If you want an easy-to-get-to elopement ceremony AND all the epic mountain views while actually standing on top of a mountain, this Mount Baker and Artist Point two-day elopement is going to knock your socks off. We had everything from pouring rain, a perfectly clear sunrise, chillier than expected weather, all the way to a cloud inversion where the North Cascades really showed off for us.

What Are Two-Day Elopements?

The magic of two-day elopements are no surprise. It’s such a simple way to have two totally different experiences without burning yourselves out over the course of one long elopement day. In the summer and early fall, the days are extremely long which means planning to be photographed at sunrise AND sunset is a big ask! In June, you can have up to 15 hours of daylight, and even in the fall, days are still 12+ hours long.

That’s where a two-day elopement could be the perfect solution. Maybe on your first elopement day, you get up before the sun, hike to a private spot and read your vows to each other, enjoy some trail coffee, and end the day by noon. Then you get to relax the rest of the evening! Maybe on your second elopement day, you prepare to have 10 of your favorite people join you on a scenic drive to an epic overlook to have your ceremony, celebrate with champagne and snacks, and end the evening dancing with your guests under string lights at a cabin.

What will we spend our time doing at a two-day elopement?

I can promise you, it’s not going to feel like a two-day photoshoot where you’re exhausted from being in front of the camera or having a bunch of attention on you. If anything, I’m your third wheel that keeps it pretty low-key from start to finish, and I make sure that you’re having one hell of a good time along the way. Even if that means taking an extra break during portrait time, changing into comfy clothes for our hike back to the car, or bringing along a friend to carry your super-necessary-but-also-kinda-heavy elopement accessories.

The list of activites you can do on your elopement day is pretty endless! You could keep it chill by going on a drive up your favorite mountain with stops along the way to gaze at your surroundings, or amp things up by going horseback riding or cliff jumping!

Elopement day activity ideas:

Hiking (whether that’s half a mile or 10+ miles)
Backpacking
Camping/glamping
Take a private helicopter or seaplane ride
Make cocktails together
Skiing/snowboarding
Motorcycle ride (in your wedding outfits, duh!)
Make s’mores over a campfire or in a fireplace
Soaking in a hot spring together
Having a snowball fight or building a snowman
Paddleboarding in an alpine lake
Rock climbing

If there’s something you and your boo love to do together, there’s probably a way we can make it happen outdoors on your elopement day. That might mean getting creative with things, but I love that part. Dream up what your day could look like, and we’ll go from there 🤘🏻

Or peep this blog post with more specifics! ⬇️

9 Ways to Make Your Elopement Unforgettable

Two-Day Elopement Timeline

Still having a hard time picturing how you could spend two days eloping? No sweat - I wrote out a two-day elopement timeline just for you!:

DAY ONE

3:30am - Wake up, get ready with your soon-to-be spouse, and have a quick breakfast together
4:30am - Leave cabin/hotel and drive to the trailhead
4:45am - Hit the trail (in the dark!)
5:30am - Arrive at your epic mountain location with no one around, and change into your wedding outfits
5:45am - Read private vows to each other while you watch the sky turn from dark blue to bright orange
6:00am - ☀️ Sunrise! Watch the sun come up over the horizon together and how the light changes all around you, followed by some morning portraits
6:30am - Brew some trail coffee (Aeropress or Jetboil have good options) and relax with each other
7:00am - Start your hike back to the trailhead, stopping a few places along the way for more photos
8:30am - End Day 1 coverage, spend your day however you want!

DAY TWO

*Spend your morning/afternoon with guests and/or elopement vendors
4:00pm - Getting ready photos, candids of guests, detail photos of rings/accessories/etc
5:00pm - Couple and guests depart cabin/hotel and drive to ceremony location
5:30pm - Walk to ceremony location from cars, set up small decor/post-ceremony celebration
6:00pm - Ceremony
6:15pm - Group photos with guests, followed by post-ceremony celebration with champagne and snacks
7:00pm - Portraits around ceremony location, potential for another portrait location within walking/driving distance
8:30pm - 🌤️ Sunset! Continue portraits during dusk, potential for portraits with creative lighting after the sun is gone
9:00pm - End Day 2 coverage

Sounds pretty smooth, right? Two laid back days where you have scheduled time to relax and be with your guests, but you also get to see some incredible places, have a ceremony with the people you love, and get some totally badass portraits at some more locations. It’s like a win-win-win-win-win.

How to Elope at Mount Baker Or Artist Point

Pick a general season to elope (for snow-free months, go for mid-July to early October)
Hire an elopement photographer who can help you every step of the way (hey, that could be me!)
Pick a specific hike or location such as Artist Ridge, Chain Lakes Loop, or Picture Lake to say your vows at and take photos
Plan a timeline that utilizes sunrise or sunset for the best lighting in your photos
Make sure to pack the ten essentials and be prepared to be out of service while exploring Artist Point
Get your Washington state marriage license
Pack your bags and hit the trails!

Things to note about eloping at Mount Baker and Artist Point:

The final 2.7 miles of State Route 542 typically are unplowed and closed to vehicles from mid-October to mid-June, as over 95 feet of snow can accumulate throughout the fall, winter, and spring!
Weekends in the summer and fall can get incredibly busy, and finding parking can be nearly impossible. Opt to get married on a weekday OR before sunrise/close to sunset on a weekend to minimize travel difficulties
Watch where you step! Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest has beautiful wildflowers that pop up just about everywhere in the summer, and these flowers can be extremely fragile when it comes to human impact. Make sure to review Leave No Trace ethics before hitting the trail or read my Leave No Trace Guide for Eloping Couples!

Your Complete Guide to Eloping in the North Cascades

The Mount Baker + Artist Point Elopement

Now that you have an idea of just how to elope over the course of two days, I want to show you one of my favorite elopements that was two days!

Enter J+A. From the moment we had our first video call allllll the way to the very end of our time together, these two did just about everything right. They planned for the worst weather but hoped for the best, they were flexible with their timeline, made sure we scheduled time to keep baby M happy happy as can be, and dreamed up an incredible elopement day overall. Those are the kinds of days you know are going to be memorable and filled with love, even if some things don’t go to plan.

We started our day with getting ready photos and a cute charcuterie lunch at their cabin in Glacier, Washington, plus snapped some photos of the absolutely heavenly flowers from Florist Cha. I got to meet the family, stare at all the beautiful details of J’s dress, and take some candid photos of every moment. We all knew that the weather was pretty rainy and might not let up, but these two adventurers had their hearts set on saying their vows in the mountains no matter what. So we loaded up the car with extra rain layers and umbrellas, and headed to the ceremony spot!

Keeping a close eye on the weather (I love the Windy app), we found the perfect window where the rain was just a sprinkle and headed off to our spot. We knew the rain could completely stop OR totally drench us in a matter of minutes, but isn’t that some of the fun?

Officiant Grace led J+A through a beautifully written ceremony and the rain was at a standstill for a few minutes, but Mother Nature said "It’s like raaaaaaaaaaaaain, on your wedding dayyyyyyyy!” and a downpour started. Yep, mid-ceremony!! J+A and their guests continued on like it was nothing, and eventually got umbrellas out to partially cover the couple while they finished up their vows and exchanged rings.

I had on all my rain layers AND a camera cover that’s waterproof, and I still got wet! I’m no stranger to being outdoors on rainy days, but this one really did its best to soak us all to the bone 😂 Once the ceremony was sealed with a kiss, we all basically ran back to the cars to get out of the rain. I had so much fun just letting the rain get me wet, knowing a warm car and dry clothes were not far away.

We headed back to J+A’s cabin for some family photos with all the guests, and a few portraits under a dry porch. We called it a day and planned for a hike in the morning to catch the sunrise and try our luck with a brand new day.

And boyyyyyyyy, did Mother Nature say “I gotchu” that morning. You’ll see in the photos what we were graced with.

We arrived at the trailhead right before dawn, and as luck would have it, I had popped a tire somewhere in the last 1/4 mile of the drive! This trailhead is at the end of a very bumpy, pothole-filled road, and all I had was my donut tire to get me down 😅 Since that hike happened, I now carry a full-size tire in my RAV4 in addition to my portable air compressor. Plus I learned how to air down my tires for seriously harsh roads. But the flat tire was a problem for later in the day, we had a hike to start!

A+J and baby M bundled up and we hit the trail. It was chillier than expected, but hand-warmers and getting our heart rates up helped us get to the top of the mountain. Once we got there, we met a sweet family who had spend the night in the lookout who generously offered to let us us the lookout to warm up and for A+J to change into their wedding clothes. I love meeting people on the trail who definitely don’t have to help you, but they choose to anyway. Good people ♥️

The sun was just peeking up over some distant Cascade mountains, and we spent our morning taking portraits with beautiful clear skies all around. At one point, all of us turned around to face West and saw this massive cloud rolling in towards us. But this wasn’t your average Cumulus cloud that would eventually be above us in the sky - this was a full on cloud inversion that blanketed the valleys below us with a thick, white fog. We all stopped to take in just how incredible the view was and ended our morning at the fire lookout with some incredible cloud inversion portraits. This was one of those hikes I’ll never, ever forget!!

We made our way down the mountain, back to our cars, and started the long (and very slow) drive back to the highway. I had to be so ginger with my little donut tire, because popping that one would leave my car stranded! Thankfully A+J stayed right behind me and could get me off the mountain if things went south. We all made it home safely and ended day two of this epic elopement. What a memorable one.

Kind words from the couple:

“We’ve looked through the album quickly, but will have more dedicated time this week to really savor the gallery. What we’ve seen is absolutely stunning. Thank you for sharing your gifts and talents. You guided us through a truly unforgettable experience. It is seriously difficult to put into words how grateful we are. Thank you!!”

Cue the tears. I don’t think my heart swells up more often than when couples tell me how their photos and the experience made them feel 🥹