I was looking for info on where to run around Ancient Lakes when I found the Touch All the Lakes challenge, which seemed a perfect combo of route-building, navigation on the go, and steady running. Starting at the South Quincy Access Gate and running clockwise, I missed a sharp turn into the reeds early on and tagged a bonus lake before backtracking a few minutes. From there it was pretty straightforward.
Most lakes were low so there was lots of balancing out onto reeds to officially touch each lake. The route along the final Ancient Lake before climbing up to Judith Pool was less defined than I expected, so it was slow going through the boulders. Flat Lake was FULL of migratory birds and I flushed most of them when I approached, which was awesome and I gave up a few minutes there watching the scene.
Before starting the route, I did a warmup jog on the dirt road between Cree Lake and Evergreen Reservoir - not far, but enough to see that there were enough 4WD roads going in all different directions, so I'd have to pay attention on the final stretch. I found both boat launches easily. All in all it was an ideal day with overcast skies (but a headwind for the last 5 mi) so temps were mild and I had plenty of water. No bugs, ticks or snakes to be seen. I went out for a cooldown jog after and snapped a few extra pictures. Great day, cool route and terrain.