Koyukuk Sunrise

After an eight-hour drive to Coldfoot, Alaska, I woke with barely three hours of sleep and a sunrise to chase. Though Mt. Sukakpak was my original goal, the clouds had other plans. Just north of it, a smaller peak pierced the fiery sky, its reflection caught in a quiet pool near the Koyukuk River. That moment, unexpected and striking, became the shot I didn’t know I was looking for.