From the moment that we met up with Katie and Nora at their rustic cabin, we knew that we were going to have a great day for their hiking elopement in the rugged North Cascades. Their energy is infectious and we could instantly tell how full of life they are – I mean, look at the photos! We were all eager to kick off a fantastic day filled with hiking, beautiful views, and most of all – love. This is such a perfect example of an epic hiking elopement where we all worked for those views, and WOW was it worth it!
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Go big on adventure with a hiking elopement deep into the mountains
We don’t do a lot of hiking with every elopement. Sometimes we stick to shorter trails and don’t do much hiking at all. But these two share a passion for hiking and wanted to get out into the mountain wilderness to say their vows to each other. So we laced up our hiking boots and hit the trail for one of the longer trails we recommend for hiking elopements. Of course, this trail is nestled in the heart of the rugged North Cascades, the most glaciated mountain range in the lower 48!
With our backpacks loaded up with two dresses, flowers, champagne, and other celebratory goodies for Nora and Katie’s big day, we set off on the climb. As we hiked our bellies ached from all of the laughing and jokes, these two were just so amped to finally be getting married and on this epic adventure! After a few miles, we stopped along the trail for Katie and Nora’s first look. They both changed into their dresses back-to-back amongst the trees, then experienced this special moment in a little boulder field tucked below the mountain peaks.
Afterwards, these two badass ladies kept hiking in their wedding dresses up to the summit – talk about impressive! Goes to show what you can do in a wedding dress and hiking boots haha. We still had pretty far to go with a decent amount of elevation gain, so if you’re wondering how hiking elopements and hiking in a dress works, just look at these two experts!
Need help finding the perfect hiking elopement dress? Check out our wedding dress style guide!
When we finally reached the summit, we dropped our packs and had their ceremony atop the snow that was still lingering from the prior winter. It was straight out of a fairytale, with the setting sun casting beautiful rays of light from behind the mountains. We celebrated, danced, and popped bottles after the vows were said – all things that should be the conclusion of every ceremony if you ask us 😉
The rest of the day was filled with taking way too many gorgeous photos to count and a starlight-lit hike by headlamp back to the cars. This hiking elopement was one to remember!
Interested in a hiking elopement in the North Cascades? Check out another amazing North Cascades elopement!
Planning an Elopement of your own? Check out these elopement planning resources: