camera equipment—so about 40 to 50 pounds of gear,” she said, noting she stashed her overnight gear before hiking up to the higher elevation lake. “But, when we got there, it looked just like a natural rink where there were these amazing rock walls rising out of the mountain. It was so cool.” The highest elevation she has hiked sans skates was in Nepal in the fall of 2015 when she reached 15,200 feet. The highest lake she has hiked to and skated is Chasm Lake at 11,900 feet, but she has plans to squash that milestone—although there’s one pretty big caveat to assuring the trip is a go. “I’ve definitely skated in temperatures in the teens and the 20s
ABOVE: Living up to its name, Glass Lake in Rocky Mountain National Park provides a great surface to skate. The winter hike up to this lake was a challenging 8.5 mile round trip. | PHOTO BY MARISA JARAE RIGHT: A peek at Laura's gear on a trek in Jasper National Park, Canada.
PS MAGAZINE
23