REAL ELOPEMENT: Emerald Lake Lodge Winter Wonderland Elopement

The Couple: Paul & Nora

The Season: Up-to-your-ears-in-snow winter. February 1st to be exact.

The Location: Emerald Lake Lodge & Field, BC

A Snippet About the Day: When you elope you have luxury of planning your day to go however you darn well please & that was just the case for this Emerald lake Lodge winter wonderland elopement. The couple chose to not get ready together but opted to have a first look before their ceremony. Even though it was just them & me & one of the awesome Wedding Coordinators from Emerald lake Lodge witnessing the ceremony, it was still nice for them to have a first look & take the time to cuddle & snuggle without rushing right into the ceremony. If that’s something that appeals to you, we can definitely take the time to make that happen! They took a few minutes, handed her the fabulous colorful bouquet & we wandered to the ceremony spot. Now, originally their ceremony was supposed to be at the Viewpoint, a super popular spot, but as the snow falls later into the season & piles up around our ears, I made the suggestion for this Emerald Lake Lodge winter wonderland elopement ceremony to be in the pathways running between the cabin because there was actually room for them to stand & for me to stand as well without having to dig myself trenches in the snow. This particular spot caught my eye because the tree heavy in snow had drooped into an arch over the pathway… perfect framing I thought! It also happened to be right in front of their room! Perfect. When you are eloping & don’t have guests, it makes it super easy to change things on the fly to work with the conditions. If we had stayed in the viewpoint (which had no view because it was snowing so hard… no sign of lake or trees or mountains) we would have only seen them from the shoulders up! To date, this Emerald Lake Lodge winter ceremony in the pathways is my favourite spot! It can only work in winter & when it’s stormy so there aren’t any people around to walk though. After an emotional ceremony with some frozen tears, we did photos around the main lodge & went to Cilantro. The snow was so deep we had to stay on the main paths or we’d sink. Trying to dig yourself out of powder is not easy to do! We headed out to Field to see if we could catch a glimpse of the mountains. It was snowing so hard there wasn’t much of a view, but after climbing a few huge plowed snow banks, we got a peek of the mountains! Hurray! We ended the day with portraits back at the lodge as it was turning twilight. There’s a special 20 minute window of time as the sunsets where the light is super blue & looks amazing when you add off-camera flash to it! I love to do these types of photos when it’s snowing or raining! Enjoy perusing this Emerald Lake Lodge winter wonderland elopement!

ELOPEMENT VENDORS:
Wedding Officiant: Hans Zimmer
Bouquet: Forget-Me-Not Flowers
Venue: Emerald Lake Lodge

Looking for more Emerald Lake Lodge winter wedding inspiration? Oh boy, you’re in for a treat! I’ve got lots to share like this magical Winter Wonderland Wedding! How about this winter intimate wedding? Try this beautiful winter elopement! Maybe this NYE winter elopement! Or this fabulous snowy elopement? Check out this snowy winter elopement at Emerald Lake! Or this gorgeous winter wedding at Emerald Lake Lodge! Take a peek at this November wedding at Emerald Lake!

Thinking about planning an epic mountain elopement of your own? You need to see my 5 Tips for Planning your Dream Mountain Elopement! Also see my Guide to Eloping in the Canadian Rockies to help figure out the best place for you to get married!