Glacials melt directly into this alpine lake in the North Cascades. The water is ice-cold. But that didn’t stop my friends Ahmed and Ben from jumping for a swim after a 5-mile run up to this gorgeous piece of wilderness. I took a pass on swimming and jumped into sketching instead. As I observed the scene, I could hear Ahmed yelling f-bombs about how freezing the water was. Yet, both he and Ben had these big smiles on their faces, like kids having the time of their lives. This run into the wilderness was my first proper trail-running experience. I couldn’t have asked for more energetic and entertaining partners.
Ben, the founder of the Seattle Mountain Runners Group, also happens to be an outstanding photographer. Here some of his shots from an early Sunday morning well spent:
