A Wildly Stunning Yosemite Adventure Elopement Story

It was another apocalyptically smoky morning at home in August 2020 when I started to get ready for an Adventure Elopement. The following evening Brittany & Adam planned to get married at Yosemite’s iconic Taft Point. It was one of those mornings where you’re praying for a miracle. Because the last thing you want is for your couple who’s flying all the way across the country to get married is to get smoked out from another summer of widespread wild fires. 

My good friend in Yosemite called and I was telling her how I always prepare myself mentally the day before a wedding. I always prepare myself to have to drive all the way around the Sierra, even if Tioga Pass is open. She was like, why do you even think about that?

Well let’s just say that one time over 10 years ago a freak snowstorm blew in the afternoon before a wedding in Yosemite and by 8pm that night closed the pass. I had to drive 8 hours around the Sierra with a 2 hour nap along the way to show up and shoot a wedding the following morning. I hope it never happens again, but yeah, now I mentally prepare myself every time.

As I continued to get ready a couple hours later she calls me back right at noon, “Shawn, there’s rumors they’re going to close the park tonight”. Well it seems that “freak snowstorms” come in many different variations and once again I was faced with a daunting task, what can we do!?

Call the couple. Reach out to the officiant. Get in touch with the Park Service. What are the details? Do we have any options? Can we even still do anything? At this point, it’s still a rumor and all we can do is speculate. Two hours go by and at 2pm Yosemite makes an official announcement, the park is closing to all visitors at 5pm. And all visitors who are currently in the park have to leave by 11am Friday morning.

Now we know and I call the couple. I suggest that if I can get in the park before 5pm (which is going to be down to the wire) that we can switch our shoot from evening to sunrise. They’re down and I jump into hyperdrive as I finish getting everything ready. In order to make the gate in time I have to leave my house by 3:40pm. I left at 3:33.

The drive up felt like I was in a dystopian red world where everything is burning. The skies had turned deep orange and I had to ask myself, what kind of world are we living in. There’s an eerie calmness though, there’s hardly anyone out. Who can blame them in this apocalyptic scene. I wonder how our shoot will be in the morning. Are we even going to be able to breath, or see anything. The cliffs of Yosemite have been hidden in shrouds of smoke for over a month now. I look at my clock, looks like I’ll just make the gate.

After squeaking through with only minutes to spare, I drive over Tioga Pass and through Tuolumne Meadows down to Yosemite Valley. As soon as I get back in cell service, Adam and Brittany call me to tell me that they went out to Taft today. Yet after they were returning to their cabin, a ranger closed a gate behind them since the park was closing. Well no Taft at sunrise! Time for Plan C.

We decided to meet at Tunnel View at 6:30 am the following morning so we could have a little tour of the Valley and find somewhere nice along the way to get married before we had to leave late morning.

When I awoke the following morning at a friend’s place, something was different. I walked outside and it was wet. Whoa, did a pipe break or sprinkler go off? But it smells fresh out, Where’s the smoke? Wait a sec, is it lightly raining?? What!???

I had no idea there was even a chance of rain, it had been apocalyptic for so long that I couldn’t imagine anything different. A surge of excitement shot through me as I realized in the pre dawn that I could see the cliffs above! And I could breath!!

I excitedly got everything in my truck. Camera, phone, tea, I’m ready to go! In the shuffle somehow as I prepared to hop in the truck and go meet Brittany and Adam the door swung shut. Wait a sec, it won’t open. Holy shit, did I just lock my keys in the truck?? With my phone and camera and everything!?? Yes I did.

My friend calls dispatch and they tell us they can have a ranger there to help us in a few hours. But I have to meet my clients in 20 minutes. I’m left speechless for just a moment, wondering how this could have happened. But it doesn’t matter, all that matters is that somehow I get to my clients and help them get married. They came all the way across the country to celebrate their love and commitment to one another. And at this point nothing else matters other than helping them.

I quickly realized that if I just break one of my windows that I can get in, access everything, and be on my way. Sure it’ll suck to have a broken window. And to have to pay for getting it fixed, and ESPECIALLY to drive in the smoke when it returns. But right now helping my clients is the priority.

I pick up a pretty decent sized rock and I look at the window, and in a flash I take that rock and smash my window….. Nothing happened. It felt like hitting plywood. I hit it again, this time harder… Nothing. Whoa, looks like I’m going to really need to hit this thing hard, ok. Third time and I really rev up….. Nothing….

At this point my friend looks at me and is like, wait a second, there needs to be something else we can do. I looked at her, “well, if you would be willing to let me borrow your camera and lenses and drive me around for the next 5 hours, that could work”. She didn’t hesitate, “let’s go”.

There’s nothing quite like the feeling of having a true friend rise up without question in a moment of need and help. And there’s nothing quite like feeling ok and worthy to accept such an offering of service. I haven’t always been able to receive such a gift.

When we finally met up with Brittany and Adam only 20 minutes late, we all laughed at everything we had all gone through in the last 24 hours. But somehow it led us to that moment where we all stood there before Yosemite and literally had the entire park to ourselves. And a mystical morning of a clearing storm and fresh rain was the icing on the cake when we were expecting apocalyptic smoke.

We had an absolutely magical morning together and I couldn’t be more grateful that their experience turned out to be a blessing amidst the chaos. I was even able to get into my truck after the session with the help of a super friendly Yosemite National Park Ranger without the need to break any windows.

I hope you enjoy these images of the magic we got to create together during a once in a lifetime experience. And if you’re looking for your Yosemite intimate wedding photographer, or you’re wanting to come have an Adventure Elopement, please reach out through my Contact Page. I look forward to hearing from you.

 

Click here for more information about weddings in Yosemite. You can see more wedding photography in my portfolio. Please check out my nature photography and filmmaking on my landscape photography website here.

To get to know more about Yosemite check out the National Park Service website here. It’ll have info on the permit process, locations, and more helpful information.