Original subtitles

A land of breathtaking beauty

and cruel extremes ��

Bitterly cold winters and treacherous terrain.

For the animals it's a test of endurance,

will and domination��

This is Denali��

wild, majestic and savage.

At the center of this stunning landscape in Alaska's Denali national park

is North America's tallest peak,

Mount McKinley.

At over 6000 meters high,

McKinley towers over a 650 km span

of jagged mountains called the Alaska range

it's the heart of central Alaska.

Below the towering peaks

lies a sub-arctic wilderness the size of Wales.

With peaks and ridges rising over 3000m

and its proximity to the Arctic,

Mt. McKinley creates its own weather system,

producing unimaginably cold winters.

The landscape is as savage as the climate.

Grinding rivers of glacial ice carve out massive cliffs

thousands of meters tall.

Climbers may conquer the summit

but none can tame this mountain

An avalanche is one of nature's most commanding displays,

Giant slabs of ice weighing thousands of tons

and moving at speeds of up to 400 km/h

rumble and crash down the mountain sides.

The night sky displays an even more spectacular scene

A stream of charged particles from the sun

performs an illuminating dance with the earth's magnetic field.

It's Mother Nature's own fireworks display

and it casts a spell over this frozen tundra.

Where nature is not just raw -

it's unrelenting.

The sun travels to the other end of the world

and daylight all but disappears.

The haunting howl of an alpha male

stabs at the Arctic night.

For the wolves,

survival is a constant battle with starvation.

With the light of a full moon,

North America's premier predator

is on the hunt for a meal.

Wolves are fiercely territorial.��

But their best chance for finding food

is by hunting in a pack.

On this icy night the odds are in their favor.

This moose buffet means fine dining for everyone.

Searching for food in the treacherous cold of the Denali winter

tests the limits of even the hardiest of carnivores.

Winter in Denali is nature's killing season ��

Temperatures drop to 10 degrees below zero.

Many of the smaller creatures

retreat to the depths to find what shelter they can from the elements.

This frozen tundra is just a temporary tomb.

The wood frog-Denali's only amphibian

survives the winter by freezing itself into a block of ice.

As the water temperature drops,

the frog produces a sugary fluid,

or antifreeze to protect all of its vital systems from rupturing.

Another park resident, the Arctic ground squirrel,

also has a unique way of enduring the killer cold.

He retreats underground to hibernate.

During this sleep

he adopts the lowest body temperature

ever measured in a mammal.

To create heat to warm his body,

he convulses his muscles.

He will shiver and shake for 12 to 15 hours at a time.

Every 2 to 3 weeks, For a few hours,

the squirrel will become alert

- walk around and then settle back into a deep sleep

and the cycle will begin again.

Of the estimated 58,000 brown bears in North America in 2001

more than half live in Alaska.

The female grizzly bear is nestled in her den for the winter

where she will enter a period of dormancy.

Her sleep is a sort of hibernation

but her body temperature doesn't drop.

A thick fur coat and heavy layers of fat keep her warm

even when temperatures plunge below zero.

The long, cold season is the perfect time for her to lie around,

conserve her fat stores and care for her infant cubs,

born mid-winter.

At birth, the cubs are blind,

and weigh less than half a kilogram.

For the next few months,

they are content to snuggle and nurse

in the shelter of the den.

At the end of the summer season,

the mother bear weighs around 200kg.

For the next few months,

she will have to live off her summer fat,

and by the end of winter,

she'll have lost up to 70kg of body fat.

This family will sleep away the winter for months,

inside their earthen shelter.

Many others are not so lucky.

For those creatures that cannot retreat from the brutal winter

beneath this frozen Mt. McKinley,

it's hard to imagine a less hospitable environment.

Deep snow slows a moose and her calf,

not yet a year old.

While moose and caribou keep vigil against hungry wolves,

There's no evading Denali's fiercest predator:

In the Arctic, temperatures can dip past 40 below

and winds can reach speeds of up to 160km/h,

Winter is the supreme killer.

Food is scarce.

The elements - harsh.

And the combination - fatal.

Here nothing goes to waste.

A dead caribou attracts a long tailed weasel.

It offers both room - and board.

In this natural freezer,

the meat will last for weeks.

Here the weasel will dine and live in comfort in his "trophy home"

through the final days of winter.

By late April

for those who have survived Denali's deep freeze

a bracing spring is their only reward.

The air may still be freezing cold,

but for now at least,

the days stretch as long as the nights.

Mount McKinley's frozen tundra

is melting into spring and beginning to thaw.

Over 600 varieties of flowering plants burst from the ground

as the sub Arctic begins to transform itself into a land of plenty.

From thousands of kilometers away,

a wide variety of birds arrive to enjoy the balmy weather.

The golden eagles are returning from their long migration.

Soaring in with a 2m wingspan

these birds come from places as far away as Montana and Colorado

to summer on Alaska's north slope.

For many the roundtrip more than 7,000km

Several hundred golden eagles make Denali their summer home

Some returning each year to reunite with a life long mate.

Below the ice-capped peaks,

winter retreats

as spring steals over the rest of the park.

After a 7-month gestation,

the caribou will celebrate this change of season by giving birth.

Some are just days from delivery.

Others already shepherd newborn calves.

The newest members of the park

see Denali at its most forgiving.

The sun now shines 16 hours a day,

penetrating the beds of even the deepest sleepers.

The sun's powerful rays saturate the frozen wood frog,

melting his winter tomb.

Miraculously, an icy death grip yields to life resurrected.

Just as the frog's winter crust of ice melts away,

the thousands of ponds and lakes in the Denali wilderness begin to melt, too.

The forbidding icescape becomes a glittering water park.

A band of beavers celebrates the final thaw.

Their carefully constructed sanctuary is finally free of ice.

Now their winter watering hole is a lush pond,

drawing animals from all over the park

This young moose enjoys the pond's shallow banks,

not realizing that he is about to pay a price for his new pool.

For a year, he has clung to his mother's side for protection.

That sheltered existence is about to end - abruptly.

With another calf on the way,

she can no longer afford to care for him.

In just a few minutes, her calf is born.

And the new born will need all her attention.

Wolves, bears and even other moose

pose a threat to the fragile calf.

To stay alive, it must grow up quickly.

Only a few minutes old,

the calf struggles to stand.

His first wobbly steps do not come easily.

Surrounded by splendor,

the mother sees only danger -

And now must replace her fight against the elements of nature

with a constant vigil to protect her young.

Survival is never assured.

The dazzling if brief weeks of high summer are here,

but even in these days of plenty

this world can be unforgiving.

The mother moose and her new calf

make their way down the river

but a growing problem tags close behind.

Last year's calf refuses to make way for baby,

and the mother can't look after both.

Once a calf reaches maturity, like this yearling,

she must push him out on his own.

If necessary, by force.

Finally, like a defiant teenager leaving home,

the young moose wanders off in a huff

to find his own way in the world.

It's a rough start to independence.

On higher terrain, after his winter sleep,

The Arctic ground squirrel, is ready to eat and play,

But he keeps a careful look out

He has so many predators

he is sometimes referred to as "the staff of life" ��

A meal for everyone in Denali.

And one of his greatest enemies - the grizzly bear

- is on the prowl.

After months underground, groggy and famished

she is on the hunt not only for herself,

but for her five-month-old cubs.

There is a new world to explore outside,

and it's a lot more entertaining than the winter den.

Sledding is an unexpected surprise.

However, this field trip's not just for fun.

For her cubs, 2 females and one male

it's a lesson in survival ��

Lesson one -

Never abandon the quest for food.

Grizzlies can consume up to 40kg of food a day

to build up to their winter weight.

Lesson two -

Arctic squirrels make for a tasty treat.

Their mother shows them how to sniff out a snack.

The 2 females make good students,

but the world around the young male distracts him.

and his youthful energy will soon turn this playful outing

into a perilous event.

As the mother bear continues to forage,

no one notices that the family has left a defenseless cub behind.

Overhead, a golden eagle heads home to her own young.

Their mainstay is also the ground squirrel.

Smaller mouths require little bites

so she rips the meat into tiny chunks for her hungry chick.

As the baby bird feasts in safety,

the cub below realizes his careless mistake.

Alone and abandoned,

the little bear is hopelessly lost.

This is a risky place for cubs to wander alone.

His greatest danger is another male bear.

Adult grizzlies will kill a rival's cubs not for food,

but to mate with the mother.

In a desperate panic,

the young bear realizes he is in serious trouble.

He bleats a terrified call for help.

But his mayday

may bring the wrong kind of attention.

It feels like an eternity,

but finally, the mother bear spots her son.

Despite a serious scare,

this cub will live to enjoy all of Denali's spring.

Throughout the park, love is in the air

And all of the inhabitants seem to feel the thrill of the season.

Even as they enjoy their newest families,

creatures small and large plan for the future.

It's time to mate.

Only another grizzly could find affection in this rugged embrace.

As with many species,

the male must prove his worthiness

before this reluctant female is convinced.

In this savage land,

even courtship requires a survivor's instincts.

Summer in Denali is a time of great abundance��

But not a time to lower your defenses.

For the mother moose and her week-old calf,

even a brief stop at the watering hole is tense and guarded.

The mother sniffs the air.

She is constantly alert to predators

without protection;

her calf would be an easy meal.

She smells something on the wind

the scent of a wolf.

Quickly, the mother circles around her calf

before he can attack.

Without the element of surprise,

the wolf is no match for the mother's size and fury.

A well-placed kick could crack the wolf's cunning head.

The wolves finally retreat,

but the mother knows it might only be a temporary respite.

Down stream, the waters braid through flood plains of gravel.

The warm, sun filled tributaries

become a wildlife retreat.

Wolves are not the only animals who frequent these streams.

As the summer sun melts the mountain's ice,

the growing river swells with Arctic water,

and Animals of all sizes come to drink.

Water carries sediment down from melting glaciers,

creating a grand calligraphy

Natures brush strokes,

ever changing on the canvas of Denali.

A few days older, the moose calf has grown more confident.

But at this time of year,

danger can come from any where.

Unlike before, this hunter is bigger and badder.

And the moose does not see him coming.

A full grown grizzly stands 2m tall

and averages almost 400kg.

Despite his enormous bulk,

when chasing prey,

he can reach speeds of 56km/h.

For the moose, running is not an option

but hiding is.

The mother camouflages her calf in a group of trees.

But bears have a keen sense of smell.

The mother knows, it's only a matter of time until he finds them.

Desperate to save her calf,

she shows herself to the bear,

hoping to lure him away.

The ploy begins to work.

The bear follows her lead-

Then something goes terribly wrong.

The young calf can't control his fear

he runs.

And with a clumsy step,

his inexperience gives him away.

The grizzly is on him in seconds.

The distraught mother remains close by for a time

but there is nothing she can do.

Survival in this wilderness is far from guaranteed.

And mother nature doesn't play favorites

predation is a natural part of this landscape.

The wilderness of Denali park

is in transformation again.

During mid-summer in the lowlands

the days are filled with 20 hours of sunshine,

plenty of time to rest and play.

For these young ground squirrels,

born weeks ago, spring is prime time.

These energetic sprites scamper around making the most of the warm weather.

But while the young ones play,

their parents are on the alert,

keeping a close watch over the favored meal

for many of the park's carnivores.

Between the eagle, fox and bear populations

just one in five of these Arctic ground squirrels will survive to winter.

It seems this grizzly just loves a snack of squirrel

They've been known to eat as many as 200 of the furry creatures in a single summer.

For the bear, the hunt is just part of the fun.

For the squirrel, it's pure terror.

It's a shallow burrow

offering little defense against a determined grizzly.

The bear's large razor sharp nails dig closer

her snout locking in on the squirrel's scent.

The giant hunter is within centimeters of her tiny prize.

Just then, a cub's call distracts her from her snack

and the bear turns away.

This squirrel has been spared for today

The mother bear settles down nearby,

but keeps an eye on the meal that got away.

During the height of Denali's brief summer

there is plenty to eat for everyone.

The lake-bottom plants are a succulent meal for a bull moose��

But vegetation is not the only thing to thrive in these waters.

Lurking just under the surface of these Arctic streams,

are mosquito larvae by the billions.

These protrusions on their heads are breathing tubes

although they resemble devil horns

- and look they defiantly deserve.

One by one, they shed their larval skin

and emerge as winged adults.

tiny but fierce.

This swarm makes life miserable

for some of Denali's larger creatures.

The miniature vampires find a meal of molting caribou irresistible.

The poor animals' patchy hides

offer little defense against the insects' assault.

As they feast on the caribou,

they swell with blood.

The incessant stinging of bloodsucking mosquitoes

will end only when summer wanes.

The brief Denali summer is in transition.

The days are getting shorter

and showers wash the land.

An enormous rainbow draws an arc across the park,

signaling an end to summer's bounty.

Sensing the change in season,

birds begin to migrate.

After a summer of feasting,

Denali's wildlife are in prime condition

they now roam a wilderness

growing colder and more still.

Throughout the 24,000 sq km

that make up the park and preserve,

another transformation is taking place.

An explosion of color shows itself for a brief two weeks of autumn

as the balance of power tips towards winter.

For many creatures,

there's time for one more feast

before the winter sets in.

These ptarmigan clean a tree branch of leaves

as the young bear cubs scrounge around for a final meal.

Even the winter-ready beaver

gathers a few more twigs for the dam.

For one animal, the bull moose,

autumn brings a final test.

Males must fight for territory and the right to mate

before winter

The velvety layer of skin that protected the bull's antlers through spring and summer

now hangs in bloody tatters.

Bone bare, he is ready to fight.

As the moose square off,

other animals prepare for the coming winter

in their own ways.

Temperatures are dropping quickly now

and Denali's creatures work feverishly to gather food.

The landscape darkens.

The frog prepares for the deep freeze.

Before the world succumbs to winter's slumber,

this bull has won the right to breed.

It is his way to ensure that a new life in the coming spring

will follow this dark season.

The giant bull has found a willing cow,

but a rival tries to move in...

In this competition,

size is everything

and the bigger bull's antlers

quickly convince the newcomer to look elsewhere.

The moose has little time to consummate the union.

Day by shortening day,

the sun abandons this world.

The darkness and cold of winter regain their grip.

As ice and snow cover this savage land,

Denali's wildlife prepare for survival

through another harsh, sub-arctic winter.

In the majestic shadow of Alaska's Mt. McKinley,

a rich diversity of plant and wildlife thrives��

That, in itself,

is a direct consequence of the amazingly varied landscapes of our planet,

Landscapes that remain untarnished ��

At least for now.

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