Are you dreaming of tying the knot with your love in a beautiful location with few crowds, countless fun activities, and stunning photo ops? If so, look no further than the San Juan Mountains! In this article, I’ll share why a San Juan Mountains elopement is so incredible and the best locations, including my all-time favorite.
As an elopement photographer, the San Juan Mountains area in western Colorado is one of my all-time favorite destinations. It’s one of the most gorgeous locations and there are endless opportunities for all kinds of couples. Whether you’re looking for a lowkey experience or an adventurous elopement, there’s something for everyone!
Where are the San Juan Mountains?
The San Juan Mountains are in southwestern Colorado, covering the southern part of the Colorado Rockies. They cover 12,000 miles of mountain terrain and extend for 150 miles through a few popular mountain towns – Telluride, Ouray, and Silverton.
This stunning Colorado region boasts unmatched rugged mountain scenery, fascinating volcanic summits, jeeping trails, and gorgeous blue lakes.
Why Have a San Juan Mountains Elopement?
There are countless reasons to elope in the San Juan Mountains. In fact, I can’t really think of why you shouldn’t say “I do” here.
Here’s a quick rundown of why you can’t go wrong picking the San Juans as your elopement destination. Then, I’ll go into detail about what you can expect if you choose to elope in this magical location!
- Picture-Perfect Scenery
- Natural Beauty
- Endless Ceremony and Photo-Op Locations
- Exciting Mountain Towns
- Fewer Crowds
Related read: The Ultimate Mountain Elopement Guide: Best Locations and Top Tips
Picture-Perfect Scenery
From tall mountains with fascinating formations to breathtaking blue lakes, everywhere you turn offers scenery like no other. Best of all, all times of the year are beautiful! Whether you want a lakeside wedding or an adventure elopement experience, you’re sure to have a magical backdrop.
Natural Beauty
The natural beauty of the San Juan Mountains almost makes you feel like you’re in a faraway place only seen in the movies! A top reason people choose an elopement vs a traditional wedding is because elopements can be a lot simpler. With the natural beauty that the San Juan Mountains have to offer, all you have to do for a gorgeous, epic ceremony is throw on your attire and grab your sweetheart.
Endless Ceremony and Photo-Op Locations
As you’ll read below, the San Juan Mountains have endless elopement ceremony locations. All of them are amazing photo-ops. That’s why elopement photographers like myself love this slice of natural paradise!
Exciting Mountain Towns
While the San Juan Mountains are a natural paradise, popular mountain towns like Telluride, Silverton, and Ouray are also filled with fun activities. From local events and hiking to great restaurants and off-roading trails, you’re sure to enjoy your time here. Extend your elopement for an unforgettable mountain town honeymoon.
Fewer Crowds
If you’re hoping to have an intimate, quiet experience, a San Juan Mountains elopement is perfect for you. While this area is becoming more known to tourists, it’s still somewhat lowkey and doesn’t attract massive crowds. Even during the busy season of summer, crowds stay relatively small.
The Best Locations for a San Juan Mountains Elopement
While just about any place in the San Juans is amazing for an elopement, here are my favorite destinations!
- Telluride
- Silverton
- Dunton Hot Springs
- Ouray
Telluride
Telluride is a quiet, gorgeous mountain town nestled in the San Juan Mountains and surrounded by thousands of peaks. Once a mining town, Telluride is now a historic city with unmatched scenery and easily one of the most incredible Colorado elopement locations.
While Telluride is known for world-class skiing, it’s also home to exceptional dining opportunities and relaxing spa experiences, offering ample activities for your Telluride elopement getaway.
Where to elope in Telluride:
- Bridal Veil Falls: the tallest waterfalls in Colorado
- Mountain passes: picturesque mountain panorama
- Alpine Lakes: captivating blue lakes
- San Sophia Overlook: a wedding venue for couples who want to have guests
Dunton Hot Springs
Dunton Hot Springs is a resort located in a romantic ghost town in the valley just across the mountain from Telluride. While the resort is on the more pricey side of the San Juan Mountains elopement destinations, it offers an unmatched experience.
At the Dunton Hot Springs, couples can enjoy a unique setting with log cabins, hot springs, nature trails, and spa treatments.
Silverton
Silverton is another quaint mountain town nestled in the San Juan Mountains. It’s most known because of the Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad, now a National Historic Landmark. But it’s also a great place to have a San Juan Mountains elopement.
Couples love Silverton’s historic downtown area bursting with shops, restaurants, and historic buildings. Adventure enthusiasts also appreciate nearby hiking and Jeeping trails.
There are also a few hotels perfect for staying and eloping in Silverton. The Avon Hotel is a charming historic hotel, while The Wyman Hotel is a modern hotel with a gorgeous space for a small ceremony.
If you’re looking to have a mountain pass elopement with picturesque scenery, the Million Dollar Highway is located just outside of Silverton. This 25-mile stretch boasts magical mountain, gorge, and valley views.
Ouray
Ouray is considered “America’s Switzerland,” and even though it’s the iconic San Juans mountain town, it’s still a primarily unknown gem. If you want epic mountain views, few crowds, and an intimate small mountain town vibe for your elopement, Ouray is the place to go!
Not only is Ouray gorgeous and romantic, but its jeeping tour opportunities are also amazing. Adventurous eloping couples can book a tour, head high up to secluded places in the mountains, and get married right there! As an elopement photographer, I’ve had incredible experiences working with Alpine Scenic 4×4 Tours, a small family-owned business that offers private tours for couples who want to have an adventurous elopement experience.
A few fabulous places you can elope with a 4×4 vehicle near Ouray are:
- Imogene Pass: Colorado’s second-highest drivable pass, sitting at more than 13,000 feet above sea level
- Corkscrew Pass: a gorgeous, moderate pass with epic views
- Yankee Boy Basin: an off-road trail nestled between beautiful San Juan Mountains peaks
- Hurricane Pass: a challenging but well-worth-it pass offering incredible alpine wildlife sighting opportunities
Ready to Plan Your San Juan Mountains Elopement?
With so many amazing places to elope in the San Juans and views you can’t find anywhere else, this is easily the perfect destination for an unforgettable elopement. Whether you’re ready to start planning or you have more questions, I’d love to help!
Among the Pines (that’s me!) is a Colorado elopement photographer who helps couples plan and execute their dream wedding day. I take photos to capture your big day, and I can also help plan the entire process – picking your ideal location, booking vendors if needed, planning adventures, carrying your dress train, and more. I also provide a 100-page Elopement Guide with everything you need to know and can officiate your wedding!
kinsley + caden
“Brooke was the perfect choice for our wedding day! We had a micro wedding at Sapphire Point in August. I had never been to Sapphire Point and Brooke was so helpful suggesting vendors, picture locations, parking, marriage license info etc. She was so kind and helpful before and during the whole process and was a large part of why the day went so smooth. She does so much more than just show up and take pictures, Brooke will truly go out of her way to make your wedding day perfect! The photos are gorgeous and I keep getting so many compliments! I truly cannot recommend her enough!”
"Brooke was a large part of why our day went so smooth and will truly go out of her way to make your wedding day perfect!"
We chose Brooke to capture our Colorado elopement and she did exactly that and more. She made it easy to plan our day out with locations and timelines so that we could focus on ourselves. We decided last minute to change our afternoon/evening elopement to a 6am sunrise one so beat the heat of the day. Brooke accommodated us without hesitation and even created a new timeline for us so that we knew where to be for the perfect sunrise. She was kind and understood what we wanted in terms of our elopement and we are so grateful to have her capture the day. Our photos turned out beautiful and truly helped us relive the day. I would recommend Brooke to anyone wanting their special day photographed.
"Brooke accommodated us without hesitation and even created a new timeline for us so that we knew where to be for the perfect sunrise."
erica + stacy
kirstie + colin
Brooke not only photographed our mountain elopement beautifully, but she put so much thought into the details and knew all of the answers the questions I didn’t even know to ask. She really puts a lot of thought into each photo and brings her expertise while still remaining very open to what we wanted and ideas we had. She even helped pick the perfect spot for us and advised us on the logistical details like securing a reservation at the mountain lake where we wanted our ceremony. She is SO easy to work with and very friendly and chill. My husband and I are super awkward in front of a camera but she made it so natural and easy - and the shots came out better than we could have imagined.
"She really puts a lot of thought into each photo and brings her expertise while still remaining very open to what we wanted and ideas we had."
amanda + jace
Brooke is many things; talented, calm, flexible, experienced/ knowledgeable, patient, incredibly responsive, organized, resourceful in a pinch, supportive, creative, professional yet a blast to work with, and goes above & beyond w her clients. Our wedding was a spectacular dream and we couldn't be more grateful that she made that single day last forever. Whether she's photographing nature or an intimate event, her pictures tell a story of peace, love, whatever your vision may be. We couldn't recommend her more and we look forward to booking with her for all of our vow renewals, seasonal and family pictures for as long as she'll have us.
"Whether she's photographing nature or an intimate event, her pictures tell a story of peace, love, whatever your vision may be."
linden + brent
Working with Brooke was a dream come true! Before we even met, my husband Brent and I were impressed by her portfolio. After meeting, we were even more convinced that her photography skills and knowledge, and her fun and easygoing personality were exactly what we were looking for in an elopement photographer. Brooke was able to take our vision and facilitate everything so that it worked out beautifully, especially when it came to finding the perfect location (the incredible mountains surrounding Ouray). Throughout the entire planning process, she was honest and flexible, and made it clear that her goal was for us to be 100% happy. In the end, her creativity and our happiness totally shine through in every single photo.
"Throughout the entire planning process, she was honest and flexible."
lauren + branden
I can't begin to express my gratitude for the intimacy and beauty behind Brooke's photographs. In capturing our wedding day, she went above and beyond to document our story, our families, and the depths of our love in ways that I'll forever be grateful for. Brooke has an eye for not only capturing the adventure and magic of your love, but deeply connects with your personal story, understands your relationship, and then gives that back in the most incredible way. She is truly an artist and tells your story in an authentic and creative way for you to look back on for years to come. We are forever grateful to Brooke for spending the time to get to know us, our story, and capturing the memories that we'll relive for years to come.
"Brooke deeply connects with your personal story, understands your relationship, and then gives that back in the most incredible way."
heather + jedd
“If you're contemplating which photographer to go with, THIS IS YOUR SIGN TO CHOOSE BROOKE!!!! She is so so so talented and was able to capture our elopement exactly how I pictured and wanted! We eloped in Ridgway, CO this past September and she was so helpful figuring out picture locations, recommendations of timeline for the day, and just made the whole day feel so smooth. She schedules multiple check ins, phone calls, etc., leading up to the big day to ensure everything is as you want it. Brooke has such a calming, down to earth presence and is one of those awesome people you feel like you've known forever after just the first time of meeting."
"Brooke has such a calming, down to earth presence and is one of those awesome people you feel like you've known forever."
christy + austin
Brooke is the absolute best. She truly went above and beyond for my fiancé and I to be able to get our engagement photos taken with the fall colors. Brooke is so sweet, fun, personable and incredibly talented. We could not be more in love with our engagement photos! Our engagement session with Brooke was such a special experience and a memory we will cherish forever.
"Our engagement session with Brooke was such a special experience and a memory we will cherish forever."
