Maxwell Reyer

I could tell you why a day in the mountains is better than a day anywhere else. Why reaching the top isn't really worth it if you don't get up there yourself. Or why even with 15 people around you can feel alone amidst the sea of peaks that stretch out before you. I could tell you why, or you could find out for yourself. #GraniteMountain #FireLookout #WashingtonTrails #PNWonderland #ExploreStuff (at Granite Mountain Summit)

#MtRainier through the looking glass. 9 miles roundtrip and 4000' vertical yesterday made for a leg burner that I'm still feeling today. But the views were definitely, definitely worth it. And it shows I should really get in better shape. Snowboarding season is right around the corner. #washingtontrails #PNW #explorestuff (at Granite Mountain Summit)

I like being places where I feel small. Where the size and scale of the surroundings allow me to be part of a whole, which is surely greater than the sum of its parts. Where I am not the main attraction. Where being 'me' isn't all there is, or even necessary. Where I am another living, breathing piece of a larger organism, all moving in harmony to the whirl of life. Greatness is a puzzle. When one piece is missing, the story isn't told. The cogs don't spin to power everything forward. Greatness is stagnant when a necessary part, or in many cases several, are removed, either by accident, negligence, or greed or malice. The harmonious balance of life is sent off kilter like a top losing momentum, destined to fall on its side and remain motionless. When I return to these grand places, I can feel the pieces inside my mind and body align, coming together into a whole. My wheels begin to turn in motion. And I start to feel where my place is in the larger scale of everything surrounding me. I feel like I am home. "The mountains are calling and I must go." #PNW #AlpineLakesWilderness #ExploreStuff #rei1440project (at Melakwa Lake)

And then we picked blackberries and made a crisp! #EmeraldCity #PNW #Harvest #maxandlinda #explorestuff (at Carkeek Park)

It's your lucky day! A double post is up on fanniegoeswest.tumblr.com. We visited family in Chicago and Iowa. Our last two stops before we strike out on our own! #fanniegoeswest #fannie4runner #MaxandLinda #explorestuff #Chicago, #OrangeCity #Iowa, #Family

Fannie looking good in the late evening light. She's got new brakes and a bath. She's ready for Iowa and beyond. #fanniegoeswest #fannie4runner #explorestuff #MaxandLinda #vsco #vscocam (at Wadsworth, Illinois)