“A snapshot from mountaineer's life”. Have you ever wondered how does a mountaineer's day start? I will give you a hint: you wake up at 3 am, set the stove, wake up your partner, pretend it is warm, quickly consume a high-calorie breakfast, watch your friends slowly ascending the icy slopes of your dream summit with their tiny head torches glimmering against perfectly blue ice, and hope for the good weather. One would ask: why all this trouble? The answer is easy: for the love of the adventure and the unknown. Location: Chamonix, Haute Savoye, France. (Photo and caption by Kamil Tamiola/National Geographic Traveler Photo Contest)

ATTENTION! All pictures are presented in high resolution. To see Hi-Res images – just TWICE click on any picture. In other words, click small picture – opens the BIG picture. Click BIG picture – opens VERY BIG picture.

A golden huddle by Minqiang Lu, China. Two females and a male golden snub-nosed monkey huddle together to keep warm in the extreme cold. Threatened by forest loss and fragmentation, this endangered species is confined to central China. Restricted to living high up in the temperate forests, these monkeys – here in the Qinling mountains in Shaanxi province – feed mostly in the trees, on leaves, bark, buds and lichen. In heavy wind and snow, Minqiang walked up the mountain carrying his equipment. He stayed for half an hour in temperatures of –10C opposite the tree where the group was huddled before achieving this eye-level composition. (Photo by Minqiang Lu/Wildlife Photographer of the Year)

“Winter Climbing from inside Ben Nevis”. The view from inside the mountain, as a winter climber passes through the cave on Minus Three gully. Photo location: Ben Nevis, Fort William, Scotland. (Photo and caption by Daniel Wildey/National Geographic Photo Contest)

Mushers and theirs dog teams during the Sedivackuv long race, Orlicke Mountains, Czech Republic on January 28, 2016. The 240 Km (150 miles) race is a multi-day event, but was canceled today, two days early, because of poor snow conditions in the region. (Photo by David Tanecek/CTK via ZUMA Press)

A pilot inflates his balloon before the 37th International Hot Air Balloon Week in Chateau-d'Oex, January 24, 2015. According to the organizers, over 80 balloons from 20 countries are participating in the ballooning event in the Swiss mountain resort. (Photo by Pierre Albouy/Reuters)

People walk past debris on May 3, 2015 in Bhaktapur, Nepal. A major 7.8 earthquake hit Kathmandu mid-day on Saturday, and was followed by multiple aftershocks that triggered avalanches on Mt. Everest that buried mountain climbers in their base camps. (Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images)

Jing Li (L) and her husband Ke Xu wear Tibetan traditional costumes as they pose for their wedding photos in front of Tibetan prayer flags at the Nianqing Tanggula mountain pass in the Tibet Autonomous Region, China November 18, 2015. Jing, 22, and her husband Ke Xu, 23, both from Shiyan in northwestern Hubei province live in Tibet for three year. The couple married last month. (Photo by Damir Sagolj/Reuters)

A federal agent removes mud from a house damaged by a mudslide in Xaltepec, Mexico, Monday, August 8, 2016. Mountain communities in two Mexican states are recovering from weekend mudslides that killed dozens during heavy rains brought by remnants of Hurricane Earl. (Photo by Pablo Spencer/AP Photo)