History Main / ClimbingTheCliffsOfInsanity

* The stairs of Cirith Ungol in ''TheLordOfTheRings'' (and the film of the book).

* {{Cliffhanger}}.

* The TropeNamer is ''Film/ThePrincessBride''. Buttercup's kidnappers climb the Cliffs of Insanity to escape pursuit, but of course the Man in Black [[{{Determinator}} isn't ready to give up that easily.]]

* The Cliffs of Madness in ''VideoGame/GodOfWar'' could almost be the TropeNamer.

-->--'''''TheAgonyBooth''''', ''Film/StarTrekVTheFinalFrontier'' recap.

* In ''ASongOfIceAndFire'', The Wall is an Ice Wall Of Insanity in the eyes of the wildlings. Nevertheless they climb it, using ropes, stakes and ice axes. Sometimes they fall, too.

* ''High Citadel'' by Desmond Bagley. When their plane crashes into the Andes after a failed hijack, the survivors have to fend off communist rebels while three of their group attempt to climb a previously impassable mountain using improvised climbing equipment in order to get help.

* ''High Citadel'' by Desmond Bagley. After their plane crashes into the Andes after a failed hijack, the survivors have to fend off communist rebels while three of their group attempt to climb a previously impassable mountain using improvised climbing equipment in order to get help.

* This is a common task on ''TheAmazingRace'', where teams have to climb to the top of something to retrieve their clue.

* ''Film/ForYourEyesOnly'': JamesBond climbs the Rock of Gibraltar in order to reach the monastery at the top.

* The embassy in ''TheBourneIdentity''.

Whenever an obstacle arises in an action or adventure story, it is usually this. Often encountered on [[WalkIntoMordor the way into]] {{Mordor}}, it is also found in urban settings. {{Cliffs of Insanity}} can be natural or man-made; if the latter, they may involve LeParkour or a ClockTower.

Whether or not he was known to be in the area, the villain will invariably Cut The Rope before the hero can make it to the top. Fortunately, the hero will [[LiteralCliffhanger grab a ledge]] or [[SuperWindowJump something]] and reappear. He/she will [[TakeMyHand invariably need an assist]] for the last 5 feet of the climb. If the hero or villain is being pursued, he will invariably pick the tallest point in the landscape and ''[[KingKong climb that]]'' (although that is [[ClimbingClimax a trope in itself]]). And at some point in the climb, expect to see a PlummetPerspective to emphasize the danger if the climber should fall.

* In an episode of LegendOfTheSeeker "Eternity", Richard and Kahlan encounter cliffs of insanity that double as [[TheWallAroundTheWorld the wall around the]] [[strike:world]] [[TheWallAroundTheWorld magical valley]] and try to climb over them. Naturally, there's a {{literal cliffhanger}} moment.

* The cliffs in ''[[VideoGame/PeasantsQuest Peasant's Quest]]''.

* The cliffs to Manhannan's house in ''KingsQuestIII''. This was one of the last times that Sierra made you navigate a maze with the arrow keys, where the slightest misstep led to instant death. And you had to do this every time you needed to enter or leave the house, which you had to do all the time.
* The Cliffs of Logic in ''KingsQuestVI'': half puzzle sequence, half CopyProtection! Naturally, if you get a certain puzzle wrong, you tumble to your death.

* The ladder sequence in ''MetalGearSolid3SnakeEater''.

* {{Seachd The Inaccessible Pinnacle}}

* The cliffs in ''[[HomestarRunner Peasant's Quest]]''.

* The infamous 1972 crash of Uruguayan Air Force Flight 571.[[hottip:*:Players and various staff members for the alumni rugby team of a Catholic school in Montevideo survive for over two months by [[NoPartyLikeADonnerParty eating the bodies of the deceased.]]]] Realizing that rescue searches were over, two team members walked over the Andes mountains into Chile to summon help. This was recreated in the 1993 film ''{{Alive}}''.

* ''StarTrekV'': The film opens with Captain Kirk scaling El Capitan in Yosemite National Park.

* In ''WarriorCats'', it seems like the only way to travel through the mountains is to walk along narrow cliffs. Naturally, there's a couple LiteralCliffhangers and a minor character's DisneyVillainDeath.

* You climb some high cliffs at two points in ''FinalFantasyVII''. When you're doing it the second time you're constantly losing body heat, so you have to stop on ledges to heat yourself up occasionally.

* The Cliffs of Madness in ''GodOfWar'' could almost be the TropeNamer.
* The ladder sequence in ''[[MetalGear Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater]]''.
* This has to be done in order to get the Blue Feather in ''[[HarvestMoon Harvest Moon: Magical Melody]]''.

* ''OnePiece'' during the Drum Island Arc takes this to its worst. Luffy, in the middle of a blizzard, carrying a sick Nami and an injured Sanji (with his mouth), has to climb a nearly flat mountain that inclines directly upwards. This takes several episodes. At one point, Luffy's fingers ''explode in blood and he ends up sliding down a whole fraction of the mountain, blood flying everywhere, Luffy unable to even scream less Sanji drops from his mouth,'' until he finally regains his grip. This is truly one of the most painful scenes to see in the entire anime and easily turned Luffy into TheDeterminator.

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* The TropeNamer is ''Film/ThePrincessBride''. Buttercup's kidnappers climb the Cliffs of Insanity to escape pursuit, but of course the Man in Black isn't ready to give up that easily.

* In an episode of LegendOfTheSeeker "Eternity", Richard and Kahlan encounter [[CliffsofInsanity cliffs of insanity]] that double as [[TheWallAroundTheWorld the wall around the]] [[strike:world]] [[TheWallAroundTheWorld magical valley]] and try to climb over them. Naturally, there's a {{literal cliffhanger}} moment.