I started mine without pre-chilling. The germinated fine and transplanted well. YMMV, of course.

Natanya, there are many columbine/aquilegia, do you know which you have? They have different germination requirements, some will germinate after a chill of a couple of weeks, some with no chill and can take anywhere from 2-4 weeks to several months to germinate at room temp, others need many months at approx 40F.

And the chill (if needed) has to be moist to do any good. Dry in the refrigerator is just storage - a chill to stratify must be done moist.