Hiking Elopement with Family in Colorado

Rainy Mountaintop Elopement in Colorado

Adam + Rachel

After spending the first month of their engagement feeling miserable about wedding planning, Rachel and Adam decided to shift gears and elope instead. Eloping in Colorado with their parents and siblings felt like a much better fit for them. Their goals were to spend the day adventuring in the mountains and embracing the day with each other and their immediate families.

With those things in mind, and with our long list of location recommendations, Rachel and Adam ended up choosing some of our favorite spots for their elopement! They would spend the first half of the afternoon hiking and exploring together before meeting up with their families to hike to their sunset ceremony location. We were all so excited!

In the days leading up to their elopement, the forecast called for scattered rain for most of the day. Typically, rain doesn’t worry us too much (unless there is lightning). Most often, rain storms come through in the afternoons and end pretty quickly. It’s rare to have prolonged rain, particularly in the late afternoon and evening. But nature had other plans.

When we met for their first look, the clouds looked ominous above us. Rachel and Adam had their first look on a large rock, overlooking an alpine lake and then we hiked up to a second lake for their first dance. As they started their first dance, the rain began to fall. Light at first, but soon it was coming down and we were all soaking wet. Rachel and Adam embraced the rain and snuggled up together to stay warm.

When we met up with their families at the trailhead, the rain was still coming down, and thick clouds clung to the mountainside. Their ceremony site was high up on a mountaintop and we knew that the clouds would block the views. So we decided to wait it out. About 45 minutes later, there was a break in the rain and we could see some blue skies way off in the distance. So we all jumped. We gathered our things, put on our jackets, and started the hike to their ceremony site. We weren’t sure what we would get, but as we climbed up the trail, the clouds parted and for the first time, we could see the mountains all around us.

Rachel’s brother officiated the ceremony, and their families stood around them in support. The ceremony was the perfect mix of fun and laughs, but also moments of reflection and promises for the future. After Rachel and Adam were officially pronounced as husband and wife, they celebrated with group hugs. Then their families started the hike back to the trailhead, while we basked in some unexpected golden hour light. And as the sun sank below the horizon, we were treated to the most gorgeous sunset to cap off their elopement day.

This elopement took place on Ute Land.

Location Disclaimer: The location with the alpine lakes no longer allows weddings or elopements. We no longer come to this location with our couples.

Photographs

Colorado Elopements

Destination Elopements

Hi There!

We're Lisa + Alex, the goofballs behind Vow of the Wild. We live in Colorado, but we’re passionate about exploring new places. Being elopement photographers + videographers is a dream for us and we can’t imagine doing anything else (other than being professional dog petters).