Black Canyon Inn Wedding in Estes Park | Rocky Mountain National Park

Melissa and Ryan’s Black Canyon Inn Wedding in Estes Park was an absolute dream! Their wedding day actually began with an intimate first look at Sprague Lake in Rocky Mountain National Park. It was a real life miracle because we had the entirety of this epic Estes Park location to ourselves (yes, even on a Friday!) and the only witness to their first look was their adorable Goldendoodle, Ellie. We might have had to fight through some crazy road construction and delays to get there, and we miiiiight have only arrived at Black Canyon Inn for their ceremony less than 5 minutes before they were supposed to walk down the aisle, but we made it and it was absolutely and 100% worth it. Just ask the dog, she’ll tell you!

Their ceremony had the iconic Estes Park Lumpy Ridge Mountain range (featuring the twin owls, of course) as their backdrop and the overcast weather made the mountains show through even more – it was epic! Melissa and Ryan’s sweet 10/10 cutest dog ever, Ellie, was the ring bearer and she did such a good job. She even jumped up and kissed the rings before they exchanged them. During their wedding ceremony Melissa and Ryan planted a tree together for as their wedding unity tradition. It was such a unique and fun idea! I absolutely loved that after they finished exchanging vows they gave each other a huge hug!

The bride and groom rolled with the punches of some unexpected road construction earlier in the day in Rocky Mountain National Park and so we headed back there during their guests’ cocktail hour at Twin Owls Steakhouse after their wedding ceremony at Black Canyon Inn and we and were able to take more epic mountain photos at Fall River near the Alluvial Fan in Rocky Mountain National Park! I’m so glad we did because even though it poured rain following their ceremony, it cleared up and we had the prettiest golden evening sunshine ever!

After frolicking through the mountains and meadows together we headed back to Twin Owls Steakhouse (at The Black Canyon Inn Wedding location) for their reception! Their dog, Ellie, is such an important part of their lives so it was no surprise that she was incorporated in to many fun elements on their wedding day! As wedding favors, the bride and groom gave away tennis balls and dog treats, which was the absolute best. I’m a dog mom x2 so I for sure brought some home!

For their wedding send off Melissa and Ryan’s guests waved fiber optic LED wands in a tunnel for them to run through. This was the first time I have seen a wedding send off like this and it was such a fun alternative to sparklers! Oh, and let’s not forget that they served cookies as a midnight snack for all of their guests to bring home. It was such an amazing and fun day and I’m so glad I was able to document it!