Rocky Mountain National Park is incredibly beautiful. It has towering peaks, alpine lakes, waterfalls, open fields, tons of elk- what more could you ask for? (I mean except for dogs to be allowed but that’s beside the point.) This was the perfect place for Faith and Tre to celebrate their 3 month anniversary and 3 months in Colorado.

It was completely dark at 3am when I left my house to meet Faith and Tre at a Wendy’s parking lot off I-25. As we drove into RMNP together we watched the sunrise and talked about their move and how they were liking Colorado.  We followed the winding road into the park where we were greeted by many  elk and wild turkeys. The sun was moving in and out of the clouds. When we arrived at the parking lot it was surprisingly empty for being a Sunday morning (even at 7am). We grabbed our gear and headed up the trail. Even though it was May, because of the elevation in RMNP, there was still tons of snow- over 56in actually which is the 3rd deepest snow pack on record. The trail was pretty empty as we headed up, which is super unusual for this specific hike on a weekend, and we enjoyed the fresh air and smell of pine trees as we hiked up the snowy trail.  The first view point was the perfect place to pause and we grabbed a few pictures of Faith and Tre marveling at the beauty spread out below them.

We got to the lake and Faith and Tre got changed into wedding attire. The lake was just starting to melt which made for some amazing reflection opportunities. It was surprisingly warm and the sun kept moving in and out from behind the clouds. There were quite a few people who stopped and stared at the couple; who expects to see people in a wedding dress and suit in the middle of the mountains?! Then, out of nowhere it got super windy and cold. The sun completely disappeared and then wind was freezing. We decided to head down and try a lower spot that hopefully wouldn’t be too windy. It ended up being perfect timing because it started snowing on our way down. Not all that uncommon in Colorado during May unfortunately.

Getting back to the warm car was very exciting for all of us after the cold wind and snow/rain. We headed to our next spot so Faith and Tre could pop some champagne! We couldn’t believe it when we got down the short trail to see a small herd of elk in the field below us. Who doesn’t want a wildlife cameo in their photos?