From their intimate first look witnessed by only my camera and a herd of wild elk, to their marriage license signing and first kiss as husband and wife just as the sun came up over the tops of the mountains and just their shared outpouring of enthusiasm in general, Maura and Bob’s Upper Beaver Meadows elopement in Rocky Mountain National Park was perfect in each and every way. Let’s be honest though, any relationship that sees its first spark over a game of Cards Against Humanity is going to have the most epic foundation of all. The fact that it was the perfect fall day and that we basically got to go on a tour of my most favorite spots in Rocky Mountain National Park are both amazing, but what made this day the most amazing of all was how intentional Maura and Bob were in making the day the very own.
They knew they wanted to elope and they knew they wanted it to feel as private as possible, so I was elated when they were on board of my recommendation of waking up way before the sun and heading in to Estes Park to elope at sunrise. In the first 30 seconds of their elopement when wild elk wandered through the meadow just as Maura was walking up to Bob for their first look I was basically ready to throw my camera off of a mountain (and save the memory card of course) because how could anything ever top this? How could it already possibly be this good. Oh but it did stay that good, in fact it just got better and better. After they shared their first look we headed to another secret spot in the area, which is my most favorite spot to watch the sunrise in the fall. They geared up with their Osprey backpacks, we headed up the road and they exchanged their rings, signed their marriage license and shared their first kiss as husband and wife just seconds before one of the most gorgeous sunrises I have ever witnessed in Estes Park. I’m pretty sure I was wailing like a crazy-person when the sun started to pop up as I told them to run, frolic, dance and piggy back their way around in the field to soak up as many fun and playful moments as possible while the sunrise was at its absolute best. I love that they were all for it and seemingly having just as much fun as I was! Obviously, these are my kinds of people!
Don’t let these sun soaked views fool you either, folks. It was a brisk 21º before the sun popped up and only warmed up to 34º over the course of a couple of hours, but you’d never guess it by looking at the sunshine, the views and the pure joy on Maura and Bob’s faces from start to finish. I mean witnessing a love so sweet will make anyone feel warm and fuzzy in this chilly of weather (oof, its so cheesy but it’s so true). I love how many personal touches they incorporated in to their elopement to make it their own: from their Osprey backpacks, to their sports jerseys, to Bob’s Maryland crab ‘bling’ on his tie and suspenders and so much more, but my absolute favorite was that after they signed their marriage license Maura pulled some Maryland crab pot holders out of her backpack as a gift for her husband! They both got a good laugh about it so I had to know the story and here is what Maura shared with me about it –
“So my brother and I take after my dad, a no nonsense contractor who is always coming up with practical solutions for things. One of these is to use dish rags instead of oven mitts-they’re easier to clean and you can just double up if something’s hot and use them for spills etc. My mother, and now husband, do not agree with this philosophy. Bobs always thought my dish rag habit was unjustified and that oven mitts protect your hands better. Well…I got one and…I guess they work ok. One of the biggest things I would have said, had we done vows (which we didn’t want to do), was that I will try to admit when I’m wrong and the oven mitts were the perfect way to show that instead of saying it. My moms friend is a seamstress/ amaaaaazing quilter and had previously made us a set of placemats with the crabs (huge Maryland icon) and newspaper print (you eat Maryland crabs on newspaper). So I asked her to make oven mitts to match”
If you haven’t realized it already this sunrise elopement in Rocky Mountain National Park was obviously a dream, so here are the photos to prove it!
Dress Designer – Eshakti
Florist – Thread and Heart
Menswear – Target
Hair and Make Up Artist – Kim J. Beauty
Ring Designers – Maura’s: Brilliant Earth Bob’s: Amazon
Some sweet bits of information about their story as told by Maura and Bob:
What is your favorite thing about your relationship? What are your favorite things about each other?
I love the things that we share and the way we show our love. We aren’t ones for big romantic displays of affection (hence the forgoing of a wedding and traditional vows) and instead know how much we love each other through subtle looks on the couch, at concerts, or on hikes when we just know we “get” each other. We share a deep connection through music and love that certain songs and artists always make us cry, no matter how happy the song is, because they remind us of how much we love each other.
Bob is always capturing these pictures of me hopping down the trail and loves watching me dance and have fun at concerts. I love the way Bob looks at me when I’m doing those things, when he thinks I’m not looking.
Why did you choose to elope?
Planning a wedding is complicated and expensive! When the engagement party guest list got to 40, I called it quits. We’re also practical and realized that we could save money to put towards our dream of buying a home next summer. We also wanted to get married in Colorado; we love it here and didn’t want to have to add more traveling stress to a wedding plan, and getting all the guests out to Colorado was proving tricky.
Why did you choose Colorado for your elopement?
We love living here! We moved from Baltimore two years ago and couldn’t imagine getting married anywhere else. Eloping means we can do what I wanted all along, which is to get married in Colorado, get pretty photos in the woods, and celebrate in nature, a place where Bob and I really fell in love, without spending thousands of dollars and hours of stress booking wooded venues.
I love everything about this! From how you know so much about Rocky Mountain National Park and can find super cool places to photograph even in the early hours of the day before the sun comes out, to the Q&A with the couple. The first hand account makes it so much more real, and you can see how much you meant to them as their Photographer. Again excellent work and thank you for sharing this lovely Colorado spot!
Your edit is so pure and clean I love it! Really gives you a sense of Rocky Mountain National Park 🙂
Oh that park in Colorado has my heart! And how awesome that the bride braided the groom’s hair!
So so beautiful and this makes me want to go adventure in the mountains! Love the joy these two have!