What better time of year to host your Olympic National Park Wedding than in October when the autumn leaves are bursting with color? Our LGBTQ couple, Emma & Julie, booked us for their two-day celebration starting with their wedding bouquet shopping in Seattle’s Pike Place Market followed by their ceremony at Lake Crescent with friends and family. Our team at Alesia Films captured their day on both photo and video. Read on to get all of the best tips for getting married in Olympic and awe at the wonderful fall colors!
Olympic National Park Wedding Video | by Alesia Films
How to get Married at Lake Crescent, Olympic National Park
To get married at Lake Crescent, Olympic National Park, you must secure a park entry pass and a special use permit.
OLYMPIC NATIONAL PARK ENTRY PASS
First, you’ll need to get the general Olympic National Park entry pass to even get into the park. You can get a per-vehicle pass for $30 that lasts for 7 consecutive days, or you can get an Olympic National Park Annual Pass for $55.
Although, if you’re like us and love exploring different National Parks throughout the year, then we highly recommend the America the Beautiful Pass, which costs $80 and covers entry into any national park & federal recreational land.
Keep in mind, both day passes and annual passes allow entry for everyone in your vehicle.
SPECIAL USE PERMIT
Next, you’ll need an Olympic National Park Special Use Permit to hold your elopement/wedding in the park. You’ll need to fill out this application form, pay the non-refundable processing fee of $50-100, and submit the application to the park. If you have any questions, you can email the park office!
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Day 1 in Seattle
Emma and Julie opted for our top wedding package which includes two days of coverage. For Day One, we chose to create the ultimate 2 hour day-date around Seattle, WA to capture their love story. Since Julie proposed to Emma with a custom vinyl (you can hear some of this recording at the start of their wedding video by the way!), we visited the record store in Pikes Place right after we bought Emma’s wedding bouquet, some doughnuts and a quick ride in the ferris wheel.
Get to know our couple: Emma & Julie
Before showing the EPIC wedding photos from their day, read their story below! You can see how they tied everything from their love story to their wedding day. From incorporating their custom proposal vinyl into their flat lay all the way to bringing a piece of home with them: homemade Texas chili for dinner!
HOW DID YOU MEET?
We met on Tinder, like all great love stories do and our first date lasted 5 hours. We picked up to-go mojitos and went back to Julie’s place to play a version of 20 questions. By the end of the night, we ordered chinese takeout and was playing fetch with her dog. Emma made an excuse to leave, but told Julie she wanted a second one. We spent the rest of the day texting and sending video messages back and forth until our next date.
HOW DID YOU PROPOSE TO EACH OTHER?
Julie proposed first. We had a trip planned to San Francisco, and Julie hid a travel vinyl player and custom record in her bag. We planned to picnic near the Painted Ladies houses, it was a chilly November afternoon, and we laid out a blanket on the hill. Julie pulled out the vinyl player and Taylor Swift’s Lover album, then turned around and said “we should play this one next.” It was a custom vinyl with a picture of us holding hands on the cover. Emma did a complete double-take when she realized exactly what was happening. The record started with a recording Julie made, exactly 1 year before, saying that this was the day she knew we were going to get married. And exactly 365 days later she proposed. While the first song started, she pulled out a wooden ring box with a custom gold ring. The center diamond was from Emma’s mom’s original engagement ring, 30 years before.
About a month later, Emma proposed back to Julie on Christmas Eve with a simple gold band hidden in a Christmas ornament. When Julie came in the living room, Emma had a dozen candles and a bottle of champagne on the table, with a neon sign hanging on the wall reading “Marry Me”. Our two beagles had no respect for what happened, and barked as we danced in the living room.
WHY DID YOU CHOOSE OLYMPIC NATIONAL PARK FOR YOUR WEDDING?
We wanted our day to feel like an adventurous elopement, but with our closest friends and family! We picked Olympic National Park for the mix of mountains, rain forests and beaches, and booked a forest-green themed airbnb to host everyone. Especially because no one was from the area, we all flew in and wanted to experience this new place together. Ultimately, we wanted an intimate airbnb forest vibe. One of Julie’s best friends is a chef and offered to cook for everyone. With that, we planned a menu of homemade Texas chili to encapsulate those cozy vibes. Finally, we ended the night with cake and s’mores around the fire, while playing our vinyl records. It was the perfect setting inside Olympic National Park with our chosen family.
Getting Ready + First Look at the Perch
Emma and Julie chose to book their stay at The Perch from Airbnb. You can also find more of their homes on Instagram @purvisionproperties. It had a perfect a-frame cabin feel with a wrap around deck that puts you right in the branches view of the giant maple trees.
Lake Crescent, Olympic National Park Wedding Ceremony
If you want an insane backdrop for your ceremony, look no further than the crystal blue waters of Lake Crescent. Emma and Julie’s friends all pulled together to create a beautiful, colorful wedding arch right on the boat dock of Lake Crescent. You can find this dock right next to the entrance of Marymere trail!
The amount of people on the dock was a bit much with constant swaying from the movement. You can also see from our wide shot how much the deck was dipping down from the weight. Our lesson we learned from this is to avoid having more than 10 people on the dock for the future! Though, after guiding their guests with how to stand on the edge, giving us a tight squeeze for only one person to walk through “the aisle” at a time, thankfully no one fell in and it ended up being a beautiful ceremony. We were blessed with both sunshine and clouds and the Lake got to show off it’s colors.
Bridal Portraits at Marymere Falls
What’s the best time of year to get married in Olympic National Park you ask? We say October! This time of year truly bursts with color in Olympic National Park, especially on the Marymere Trail. Emma and Julie experienced the changing leaves turn yellow around mossy branches, fern-lined trails and of course, the beautiful Marymere Falls at the end. Our favorite was the bridge towards the end of this short hike! Their solo and couple’s portraits had the most insane backdrops on this easy breezy trail through the forest.
Dinner at The Perch
To end their night, Emma and Julie wanted a cozy night in with their chosen family. It included scrapbooking with the polaroids taken throughout the day, a bonfire with s’mores, and homemade Texan chili – an ode to their home in Houston!
Olympic National Park Wedding Photographer + Videographer | Alesia Films
If you’ve made it this far, hello!
I’m Alesia Films, a destination luxury wedding videographer who specializes in Super 8mm nostalgic film. I’ve shot all around the world capturing love stories and it’s been a dream come true.
Emma and Julie’s wedding to me was extra special because when they first inquired, they said they loved my approach for Natural, Documentary style type of photography and videography. They looked forever for the right vendor to capture their day and finally found me on Instagram. I was truly honored and had the most amazing time in both Seattle and Lake Crescent with them.
If you’re looking for a vendor who’s up for adventure, especially in the Pacific North West, inquire with me today!
