A Blue Ridge Parkway adventure elopement in Asheville

In a year full of stress, chaos, and forced rescheduling of wedding plans, the celebrations that got entirely re-envisioned were my most hopeful part of 2020. Kiera + Patrick originally had a full, traditional wedding celebration planned, and were going to set off at the end of the night in a school bus that they were finishing renovations on. That plan obviously… did not happen. But instead of trying to move their plans to a later date, they decided to scrap them and make an adventure elopement the very first stop of their new school bus van life.

After a couple months of bouncing ideas back and forth, we decided that a spot just off the Blue Ridge Parkway near Asheville, NC would be the ideal spot for a celebration with a couple friends.

Although I’m very used to photographing couples in unfamiliar places, this elopement in a place none of us had ever been before was something very special.

From the moment I arrived at the beautiful A-frame cabin in the woods that Kiera + Patrick found for getting ready, I loved the energy these two had for one another, their best friends, their adorable Boston terrier, Percy, and the world around them. I think it’s most evident in small glances they gave throughout the day and the fact that they were, quite literally, always stopping to smell the flowers.

Logistics unfortunately kept Atlas the Bus from making the trek up to our trailhead, but we did stop to pay a quick visit before heading up to the trail to make sure their #skoolielife still got to be a part of this elopement day. They’ve been traveling the country together ever since, and their adventures are documented on their Instagram. You should totally go follow along!

At the trailhead, everything fell into place in a way that made it hard to believe this hadn’t been the plan all along. The weather was perfect, the light was perfect, their very emotional vows were perfect, and the day ended with one of the most beautiful sunsets I’ve ever seen. Sometimes just going with the flow makes its own kind of magic.

If this looks like the most fun day ever, that’s because it really was. Very grateful to have been along on this ride with these two (and Percy!).