Kate and Ryan’s mountain top elopement at Loveland Pass was built around a pretty simple idea: they didn’t need their wedding to feel impressive to anyone else. They just wanted it to feel important to them. They’re a blended family; they’ve both been married before, and going into this day, they had a really clear understanding of what they wanted to keep and what they were perfectly happy leaving out.
Their priorities were their kids and families, a ridiculously beautiful location, private vows, and enough time together to process the fact that they had just gotten married. No big production or spending the entire day worrying about whether everyone else was having fun. Just a very cold mountain, the people they love, and a picnic waiting for them afterward. I’d say this was a solid wedding plan.
A Mountain Top Elopement That Was Never About Putting on a Show
When I asked Kate and Ryan to describe their perfect wedding day, what stood out to me was how much they wanted to be present for it. Their dream was to spend the beginning of the day with their kids before separating to get ready. They wanted to drive up the mountain separately, have a private first look, and then walk toward their ceremony together, where their kids, parents, and siblings would be waiting. Kate’s brother would officiate. They’d say their vows, hug their people, probably cry a little, and then head off together to explore. And that’s pretty damn close to what they created.
Kate told me that marrying Ryan felt incredibly special because it wasn’t performative. The vows she wanted to say to him were intimate, and she didn’t want to be thinking about whether guests were entertained or what anyone thought about her dress or the venue while she was saying them. I think there’s something really beautiful about knowing that about yourself, especially when you’ve already lived enough life to understand that a wedding and a marriage are two very different things.
Kate and Ryan weren’t getting married to begin building a family someday. They had already built one. Their wedding was about taking this life they had created together and intentionally choosing it again. They wanted their kids and closest family there because those people were part of the story. But they also wanted space for the day to belong to the two of them.
And then there were the mountains. Colorado was somewhere they had long-time dreams for. Kate told me the mountains are where she feels the most peace and happiness. So when their number-one priority was finding a gorgeous location, Loveland Pass made a whole lot of sense.
Sunrise Vows at Loveland Pass
Here is something the photos don’t fully communicate: it was SO cold. Like, gorgeous sunrise, incredible views, very romantic… and also the kind of morning where you’re suddenly extremely aware that wedding dresses are not designed by people concerned about thermal insulation. Thankfully, the cold wasn’t the main character.
Kate and Ryan had their first look surrounded by the mountains before heading into their ceremony. The two of them exchanged the private vows they had been thinking about long before we ever made it up to Loveland Pass.
Afterward, we didn’t have to rush off to the next scheduled event. Kate and Ryan got to walk around the mountain together, take photos, hold onto each other, and soak everything in. Kate eventually wrapped herself in a blanket, which I fully support because we love beautiful wedding photos, but we also love having functioning extremities.
Their mountain top elopement portraits are some of my favorites because you can see that shift happen. That’s the breathing room I want my couples to have on an elopement day. You don’t need to spend eight straight hours hiking or cram five locations into your timeline for an elopement to feel adventurous. Sometimes the best thing you can give yourselves is simply enough time to look around, realize where you are and what you just did, and enjoy it.
From a Freezing Mountain to a Sunny Lakeside Picnic
And then, because Colorado apparently decided Kate and Ryan had suffered enough, the rest of the day was beautifully sunny. They headed down from the mountain for a picnic by the lake, something they had imagined from the beginning. Pizza, drinks, somewhere beautiful to sit, and time to talk about their dreams for their family and marriage. Nothing complicated, which is kind of the point.
I love that their picnic wasn’t something we rushed through to get to the “real” wedding stuff. This was the wedding stuff. They ate, drank from their little camp mugs, relaxed in the sun, and enjoyed their time together.
That’s what I loved most about their day, and why I want more elopements like this. Not necessarily because everyone needs to wake up painfully early, freeze on a mountain, and reward themselves with a lakeside picnic—although apparently I will happily participate in that plan.
I want more couples to feel comfortable being this intentional. Your mountain top elopement doesn’t have to prove anything. Bring your kids, invite your parents, have your brother officiate, wear heels on a mountain, eat pizza by a lake, and build a day around what actually matters to you.
Kate said she wanted to marry Ryan somewhere she felt peace and happiness because she simply wanted to be with him forever. And really, once that is the point of the day, everything else gets a whole lot easier.
For more like this: Mountain Elopement Photos & Private Vows in Telluride
