Intimate Sunrise Elopement | Glacier Point in Yosemite

On the morning of October 14th we departed the Yosemite Southgate hotel at 3am. The drive was about 90 minutes to get to our destination of Glacier Point. Leaving so early allowed us ample time to drive the winding route and take a few portraits under the stars. This was Haley and Aaron’s top priority, so we took this into consideration when planning the day.

Astro-photos take a lot of variables to line up. The weather, the location and the moon cycle. When the moon is in the sky it will pollute the dark sky with light, making it hard to capture the beauty of the stars. Upon Haley and Aaron’s inquiry, I looked into the moon cycle for their desired date. It would not be a new moon unfortunately. However, the moon would no longer be in the sky between 3 am and sunrise. I told them as long as the fall Yosemite weather didn’t do anything crazy, then we have a shot in the early morning.

This, of course, made sense for us to then plan the ceremony for sunrise following the portrait session under the stars. I recommended Glacier Point. I believed it wouldn’t be very busy at sunrise in mid-October it is easily accessible by car so we wouldn’t need to hike in the middle of the night.

We applied for the Yosemite Wedding Permit and we were denied. Apparently, Monday the 14th of October was Columbus Day and the National Park doesn’t give permits for holidays. I was actually frustrated for my clients because it’s not a major holiday, and it’s a Monday late in the season at sunrise. I doubted many people would be there.

The park still allows portraits without a permit, but we would be unable to do the ceremony inside the park on that day. This date was very important to Haley and Aaron though, so we put our heads together during the planning process and went back and forth on many different backup plans.

Less than a month before the wedding, Haley received an email from Yosemite National Park saying they have decided to approve the permit since they didn’t anticipate large crowds during our requested time and location. It would have been nice to know sooner, but hey, we were so grateful and ecstatic that the original plan was back on.

That morning at Glacier Point was decently cold while the stars were still out. Luckily, after capturing a few star photos, we were able to go back to the cars and warm up. We had time because there is a point where the sky get’s too light for the stars to really shine, but it is still too dark to capture other photos.

After warming up the extremities for 15 minutes or so, he headed to one of my favorite little nooks at the point. We were still 45 minutes away from the sun rising, and there was nobody there. It was so peaceful. The increasing light gave depth to the humbling landscape below us and the lack of sound from other humans made the experience surreal.

We spent about 20 minutes doing some epic portraits with the famous Half-Dome in the background before beginning the ceremony. Aaron’s best friend was the officiant.

This is something I love so much about elopements. A small group of people can have such a powerful experience together. The three of them traveled from Kentucky to elope, then Haley and Aaron planned to stay and explore other scenic areas of California. It’s all about doing exactly what you want, and nothing you don’t want to do.

The ceremony was simple, yet full of emotion, love and authenticity. I am a huge fan of when the officiant has a close relationship with the couple and is able to share stories. The couple get’s to reminisce and laugh, but selfishly I also get to laugh and learn more about them.

A good introduction filled with stories from the officiant set the stage for incredibly written vows. There was no holding back from neither Haley nor Aaron. The Yosemite landscape doesn’t judge, so let those words rip.

Just as the ceremony was concluding, the sun began to poke out. This resulted in the most beautiful glow for the first kiss. I wish I could say I planned this, but I actually thought the sun was going to come out 10 minutes earlier. It ended up coming up later than I had researched. Anyway, it worked out beautifully.

Once the ceremony concluded, we took a few last photos at Glacier Point and then headed down to Tunnel View and Yosemite Valley to quickly grab a few more shots. Yosemite is great for offering diverse looks and locations, not too far from each other. Glacier and Taft Points of course are about an hour from the village, but once you’re in the village you can get around rather quickly if there’s no traffic.

If you are planning to Elope, I would love to help you plan your dream day, and of course, document it. If you’re interested in eloping in Yosemite National Park, check out this guide: HOW TO ELOPE IN YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK

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-Nic Hilton