Hey friend, one of the game's devs here! Thanks so much for your kind words!!
I didn't work on the movement but agree, it was easily one of the things I loved the most when testing. It looks like the wind gusts love to misbehave sometimes, something we'd definitely have to fix in a future build!
For anyone else feeling lost, there's a gate that opens right at the end of the glacier that leads to the third area (a factory). If you complete that one, there's a failsafe mechanic that gets unlocked that will let you get to the top of the canyon with the wind gusts as well, just in case your build has weak gusts too.
Great points and feedback on having a bit more guidance in the world though, I see where you're coming from.
Either way, thanks for giving it a try and hope others enjoy it too!