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Skye + Bug | Sequoia Intimate Wedding
Straight from Alabama, Skye & Bug brought their entire crew for a few days of celebration in the forest. It’s easy to come from across the country when you have a whole team planning your Sequoia celebration!
Whitney + Dan | All-Inclusive Intimate Wedding
Whitney + Dan
If there was any wedding that showcased the color and splendor of the autumn colors, it was Whitney & Dans All-Inclusive intimate Sequoia Wedding. We arrived to find the most magical and colorful version that the High Sierra fall has to offer - what better way to say ‘I do’ than being blanketed by sweet vibrant colors all around, then getting fed by the best chefs in Three Rivers!
Rebecca + Aaron | All -Inclusive Intimate Wedding
Rebecca + Aaron came from Santa Barbara to celebrate their love story with us. Such a beautiful & timeless autumn day!
Tara + Thomas | Sequoia Intimate Wedding
Tara & Thomas
Tara & Thomas did it right and said ‘heck with wedding planning, lets bring our family cross country Sequoia for a magical day in the trees’. One of my favorite days in a while, featuring Taras amazing long sleeve dress, hand made hat, Thomas in his bridal leather suspenders, and together both their unmatched Kentucky style. Sequoia Weddings can’t be beat!
Lauren + Josh | 30 Person All-Inclusive Intimate Wedding
Magical gloomy cloudy days in the National Park - perfect weather to set the mood for your beautiful wedding day! Lauren & Josh married at the Ol Buckaroo during one of our 30 person all-inclusive weddings. Want a wedding day without the stress and chaos of planning your own day? We gotchu! We’ll take care of the details, and let you focus on your fiance, family, and drinking in the woods with your lover :)
Gloria + Joe | Sequoia Elopement
Gloria and Joe flew from Florida to elope in Sequoia for our ‘all-inclusive elopement’ Sequoia Weddings elopement package. What better way to celebrate privately, and make memories that will last forever!
Our all inclusive elopements include: AirbNb, guided photography experience, food, drink, reception and ceremony venue, as well as all the magic Sequoia can offer.
Nikki + Kevin
From Sasquatch sightings, to a dreamy love story - Nikki and Kevins All Inclusive wedding was the best way to start the year. The Sequoia Complex Fire ravaged through Sequoia National Park in 2021, and the park opened just in time for us to explore the lower part of Sequoia.
Josie + Jose
The beauty of our All-Inclusive Wedding Packages is that you’re able to book the wedding of your dreams with all of the beauty, and none of the stress!
From the AirBnB, to photography, to ceremony & reception venue, food, drinks, and dessert - we’ve got you covered, in one easy to book package! With packages ranging from a simple elopement for just the couple, up to 30 people, or 60 people! We can’t wait to make your wedding dreams come true! View the collections here.
Help us celebrate Josie + Jose, by enjoying their beautiful gallery by our included photographer A Fierce Love Photography
Karis + Ryan | Sunset Ceremony at Beetle Rock
We dreamt for months leading up to their warm summer elopement, considering how amazing it would be spend a full day adventuring together, and finally ending the day with a ceremony. The anticipation of the day gave everyone butterflies, and finally rings were exchanged and vows were promised, as we stood on Beetle Rock while the sun dropped past the horizon.
Just a reminder that eloping gives you all the freedom to do things out of the box - tequila shots while hiking through the woods, charcuterie boards, and a ‘just married’ rock n roll leather jacket.
Here’s to Karis & Ryan, eloping with style!
17 Reasons to Elope in 2021
17 Reasons To Elope in 2021
This year has been one for the history books to say the least. Weddings are already so stressful to plan, let alone the chaos of cancellations, rebooking, and the anxiety of planning an event during a pandemic! Covid has changed life for the foreseeable future, and there are so many compelling reasons to say ‘heck with the traditional wedding, let’s elope!’
And we're not talking about your Elvis-in-a-Vegas-Chapel type elopement, we're talking about an Adventure Elopement! So many couples are saying that more than anything, they’re valuing an intimate day, focused on the two of them, without the chaos and politics of planning for hundreds of guests on a day that’s really supposed to be fun and stress-free. You’ll save a years worth of sanity, I promise.
So come on - put on your hiking dress and your wedding boots, grab your partner by the hand and whisper in their ear 'let's go elope in the woods!'
Here are some of my top reasons to elope!
1. Adventure With Your Partner Is Much More Exciting!
Think about the times you've had the most fun with your partner. Was it in a stuffy ballroom wearing clothes you're not comfortable with? Listening to a drunk uncle rambling on during a toast that should have ended 30 minutes ago? Probably not! You're probably envisioning a time of pure-bliss, on some great adventure together, hiking a mountain peak, jumping in an alpine lake, or simply wandering in the woods.
2. Cost Savings
The average cost of a wedding in the U.S. is….wait for it… $33,000. Let that sink in for a moment. Yikes! And that’s just the average. There are so many great ways to spend that kind of money as newlyweds - getting out of student debt, putting a down payment on a home, or taking a month long honeymoon in Bali. Let’s face it, millennials are already facing a struggling job market and rising cost of living. The average elopement cost is often close to $5,000, and can even be done for less! I always say - ‘Bigger budget, bigger problems’, when it comes to wedding planning. More money doesn’t equate to more romance on your wedding day, often it can just complicate things and add stress. Which brings us to number three…
3. It’s Just So Simple
The entire experience of elopement planning is just SO. DANG. SIMPLE. A couple key details, some dreaming about locations, and a little bit of logistic prep is all it takes! And if you want to add some extra touches, the skies are the limit! Couples are often surprised at the end of a planning conversation, saying “wait….that’s it?”
4. Covid Is Here To Stay
We have to face it, life isn’t going to get easier anytime soon. Do we really want to plan a traditional wedding where our family has to social distance on the dance floor? Or take family photos wearing masks? Not really. Ditch the crazy big event, elope, then have a backyard family party sometime afterwards!
5. Complete Day Of Adventure
When you elope, you can focus on the ‘feelings’ that you want your day to hold. It could be a crazy day of adventure, hiking to a 14,000’ summit and saying vows on the top of Mt Whitney. Or it can be a cozy day starting by writing vows together in a cabin, in front of a fireplace. A floatplane to a hidden beach, a walk beneath Sequoia trees, or helicopter ride to the top of an Alaskan Glacier!
5. You Can Focus More On Your Marriage Than Your Wedding
By the time some people get married, they’re sometimes so overwhelmed by the wedding planning process that it takes a toll on their relationship. When you choose something simple, you can really focus on the things that matter - your own hearts and minds.
6. Buck The Traditions
Who even know why cake is important on your wedding day. Not sure about you, but I’d rather have pie! There are so many wedding traditions that we hardly know the origin - and I suppose to me, tradition without basis is meaningless. Hold on to traditions with meaning, and create some new ones!
7. Epic Photos
Let’s be honest, this is the real reason we’re doing this, right? When else do you get to have this much attention focused on your beautiful selves? And on a mountaintop nonetheless, wearing your best outfits, on an emotional high? Sounds like the right time for a photoshoot to me!
8. Skip The Family Drama
Wink wink… we already know this is the main reason some of us are arriving at this decision. The politics of wedding planning can be completely overwhelming when family is involved, and makes some people want to just throw their hands in the air and run away. You can tell the family that they can plan a party for you when you get home, and escape to the woods without an overbearing mother-in-law in sight! Most mother-in-laws are awesome though ;)
9. Fun Outfit Options!
There’s no reason to be formal if you’re not interested in that. There are SO many cool things you can wear on your wedding day when you’re not constricted to formal attire. I LOVE when people get creative and wear patterned dresses, rompers, wool jackets, denim pants, leather boots, adventure hats. Let your attire represent who you are, however casual or fancy that might be!
10. Experiences That Normally Couldn’t Happen
Certain events would require so much planning, logistics, and permitting, that it just wouldn’t be possible. Especially if you’re talking about having a ceremony in the backcountry next to an alpine lake, 12 miles from the closest road. You can literally say “what sounds like the greatest adventure EVER”, do it, and happen to get married!
11. Intimacy & Privacy
In an Instagram world, we rarely have any privacy anymore. There’s something to be said for a sacred and intimate ceremony, where YOU have control of what’s shared from your event. No eyes on you during your wedding, nobody asking you to make decisions about silly things - just closeness and intimacy with your partner.
12. You Can Get Married ON Your Honeymoon!
SO MANY people do this and I think it’s awesome! Why not? Choose an epic location, get married there, and then stay for a week! Often your photographer might stay for a day or two extra and document your amazing adventures kayaking, snorkeling, mountain biking, hiking, or just hanging out cozy in your mountain cabin!
13. You Get Time Back
If you think of how many guests are often invited to a traditional wedding, you are reminded how little time you’ll get to spend in conversation with each of them. And if you focus so much on your guests, you’ll realize after the wedding that you had barely interacted with your new spouse!
14. Amazing Locations
What kind of places are important to you? Mountain summit? Top of a icy glacier? Grove of Sequoia trees? Hawaiian Island? Secluded beach? Certain areas are off limits or inaccessible for large groups but perfect for a handful of people.
15. It's Environmentally Friendly
Want to lessen your carbon footprint? Weddings are notoriously wasteful - from the paper invitations, flowers that are thrown away, plastic party favors that are abandoned, tossed food. A typical wedding of around 100 guests usually results in 400-600 pounds of waste. Wanna go green? Start by how you get married! It’s amazing how eco friendly you can be by getting married outside, following leave-no-trace guidelines, and adventuring in responsible ways!
16. Authenticity
For those who don’t relate to a large event, having a small private ceremony is a way to stay true to yourself and your values! Creating a celebration that doesn’t feel like ‘you’ is stifling to the whole experience. Step out of the box, and do something that makes you feel like your true self!
17. There Are NO RULES
I mean, this is honestly the best part. Forget about what anyone else wants for you. You can even disregard my own advice. This is about YOU, and doing something that’s right for YOU and your new life together. Bend the rules, break the rules, forget them completely. You can do what you want. This is your day, and your life!
18. Maybe This Isn’t For Me
I’d be so remiss to say that if this just DOESN’T sound like your cup of tea, and you’ve always dreamed of a big beautiful wedding, than please by all means follow your heart. This isn’t for everyone, but you’ll know if it is. Don’t follow too much peer pressure about ANY part of your wedding planning.
Thanks for reading this far! Check out The Journal for more inspiration, and peek at more Guided Elopement info as well to book your own destination elopement!
Interested in talking about your own elopement? I’d love to be a part of your love story!
Hannah + Jeremy | Sequoia Wedding
Part of the magic of getting married in the High Sierra is the unpredictable weather. Whether it’s snow flurries in July, a sunny february morning, or a thunderstorm from nowhere.
Nothing made Hannah & Jeremys Sequoia wedding more special than a beautiful stormy day, with a light drizzle that lifted right when the ceremony started and dark moody clouds that lasted until sunset.
Coming all the way from Lousiana, we were so thrilled to show Hannah, Jeremy, and their family, some of our our favorite places on earth.
Photography & Guided Popup Wedding: Peter Amend / A Fierce Love
Makeup: Janelle
Samantha + Chad | Sequoia Elopement
A three piece suit is seldom seen in these parts, but when it is, you always stop people in their tracks with a juxtaposition of class and raw natural beauty.
Samantha and Chad got married during an epic road trip through the western states. I’m so happy they chose Sequoia to say their vows - we spent the whole afternoon wandering the trees and taking in the beautiful smells of the magnificent groves after saying their vows under the Parker Group.
Photography: Peter Amend / A Fierce Love
Officiant: LJ Lara
Ann + Dawson | Sequoia
Ann & Dawson flew to Sequoia from Texas to fulfill their dream of marrying each other under a grove of Sequoia trees.
Elopements like this are always so special - reading each other handwritten vows, exploring the gigantic trees, popping champagne under a high sierra sunset… there really is no ‘box’ you have to stuff your wedding into.
Photography: Peter Amend / A Fierce Love
Brianna + Kevin | Sequoia Elopement
Eloping in Sequoia? What could be better - especially in October, my favorite month in Sequoia (shhhh don’t tell anyone!)
Our favorite venue in SEKI is Wuksachi Lodge - and we were able to convince Brianna & Kevin to stay here the weekend of their elopement, since it’s so close to all the best photo locations and most importantly the grove of trees we planned on hiking to for their ceremony!
It was so beautiful watching them help each into their outfits and prepare for their ceremony. The simplicity of elopements is just the best - no wedding day drama, timeline chaos, or family feuds. With just each other to focus on, they could focus on what really matters…. not the wedding, but the marriage.
Photography: Peter Amend @ A Fierce Love
Officiant: LJ Lara
Lodging: Wuksachi
Matt + Nataly | Yosemite
Any session that ends with a Taft Point Sunset always gives me goosebumps.
I fell in love with this couple and their passion for each other, and it was so easy to make these images while they interacted naturally on the edge of a Yosemite cliff.
This session doesn’t need any more words - you’ll enjoy for yourself the evident beauty of Matt & Nataly
Photography: Peter Amend / A Fierce Love
Ashley + Dustin | Sequoia
The perfect beauty of an intimate wedding underneath the trees is always the best.
It was absolutely a dream, spending the day with Ashley and Dustin - getting married under the Sequoia boughs.
After a ceremony at the Parker Group, we explored Crescent Meadow, ending up at Beetle Rock to open a bottle of wine at sunset.
Chelsea + Jaquelyn | Arbor Day Vows
My absolute favorite thing is thinking outside the ‘typical’ wedding box. It was Arbor Day - the day before Chelsea & Jaquelyns wedding. Because of their love of trees, and the fact that they purposefully chose the day after as their wedding day - we booked it up to Sequoia to spend an intimate afternoon documenting their intimate ceremony, with just the two of them. Not only did they get a private moment together in the midst of busy wedding planning, we had a blast exploring giant sequoia trees and celebrating the essence of Arbor Day.
Want to plan a special day together with the love of your life? We can help!
Jacques + Lisa, Yosemite
We're called 'Sequoia Weddings' - but our love is vast for the outdoors and all national parks. Yosemite is one of our favorite spots for engagement shoots and elopements - striking sunsets atop granite ledges.
Two months freshly engaged, Jacques, Lisa, and I hiked a little over a mile to Taft Point - one of my favorite Yosemite destinations. We sat on a ledge, watching the sun set on the hazy horizon, and sipped canned wine through altitude-induced laughter.
Moments like this are so beautiful - spending time with lovers outdoors.
Photos: A Fierce Love
Yosemite National Park engagement photos | A Fierce Love
Marissa & Justin | Sequoia National Park
We woke up in the morning and stumbled from the campsite to find a heavy cloud resting on the ceremony site at Beetle Rock, in Sequoia National Park. You never know what kind of weather you'll find in the High Sierra, and this cloudcover was predictably unpredictable. The fog disappeared, then the rain came, then it started snowing like there was no tomorrow. After deciding to carry on with the initial plan rain or shine, Marissa walked down the aisle and the rain stopped, clouds parted, and sun beamed down warmly as we all stripped off our raincoats.
Check out a couple frames from Marissa and Justins dreaaaamy Sequoia National Park wedding ceremony, and reception followed at Wuksachi Lodge.
Photos by the Sequoia Wedding Photographer Peter Amend of A Fierce Love
From East to West.
Tiffany and Jesse came all the way from Virginia to celebrate their engagement while holding hands under the biggest trees in the world.
Sequoia is one of our favorite engagement shoot destinations - so many beautiful locations that change with every season!
Photos courtesy of Peter Amend at A Fierce Love
