No exhausting summit or exotic backcountry dish outweighed the conversation that followed… And so I was reborn yet again, only two years into my life, anticipating every new adventure as much for the debrief, as I did for the view. 

She taught me how to fall in love with friendship. The beauty of knowing someone and being known by a community. 

Now, six years later, I still move through life according to the blueprint that Sarah gave me.

Madison Rose Ostergren is my teammate.

She’s also my adventure partner.

Above all else, she’s my friend. 

Although, it’s likely that such titles are irrelevant... 

All I know is that I don't like to be too far from her, because the distance increases the time between an experience that I have and the moment I get to tell her about it. 

But that goes for all my friends really. 

I love to pack them in around me as we navigate our wild lives, each day containing less certainty than the next.

We pass the time together with daydreams and adventure. 

We swim in alpine lakes and host elaborate roller discos.

We neglect our maps and “pioneer” the rivers of the west.

We invent games and throw rocks in ponds.

We write haikus on birthdays and attempt absurd endurance challenges. 

(You want to go for an 80-mile rollerblade with us?)

When our dishwasher broke, it was all hands on deck. 

Now we dance when we scrub, because it’s been three years since the dishwasher worked. 

With the support of my friends, I’ve stood on higher peaks than I ever did alone.

The success of one is the success of all. 

When Mads, Stephen, and I learned we were being sent to Iceland to test gear for Helly Hansen, our friends cooked us a “travel-safe” dinner. 

Now, I look around the room the night before we embark to the land of fire and ice…

Our friends are all sharing a meal, kneeling around the living room coffee table, because we lack a proper dinner table. 

“Go far” and “good luck” they say.  

“Can’t wait to tell you all about it” I say.

Here are some of the scenes from Jim’s time in Iceland, hiking and exploring the surreal landscapes of that corner of the world, with his dear friends Madison (also in front of the camera) and Stephen (behind the camera).