Spring Wedding at Glacier National Park’s Ryan Beach & Apgar Picnic Area
- Aug 16
- 5 min read
Mary Ann and Rob had a spring wedding at both Ryan Beach and Apgar Picnic Area in Glacier National Park. It was our honor to plan and coordinate the day, and every detail turned out flawlessly! From Mary Ann’s ethereal bridal bouquet made up of blush, peach and ivory hues to their first married kiss by the lake to enjoying cake and champagne with their 10 guests, every moment was unforgettable. How could it not be when we had the majestic mountains as our view all day?
This spring wedding was truly something special because it blended the intimacy of an elopement with the joy of celebrating with your closest loved ones. It also had a beautiful balance between being adventurous and laidback. If this sounds like your dream for your wedding in Glacier National Park, keep reading to find out all the details of the day!
Behind the Scenes of This Spring Wedding
No matter how small or simple a wedding may seem, there are always many moving parts that need to seamlessly come together on the day of to create a smooth experience for you! That’s where our team, led by our owner and lead planner, Katie, comes in! Katie is like the director of a film: You may not always see all the behind-the-scenes things she does for you, but they are critical to the success of the wedding!
For example, during the wedding planning process, Katie assisted Mary Ann and Rob with venue scouting, applying for their Glacier permits, vendor sourcing and liaising, and building their wedding timeline. Not to mention all the in-between tasks, like giving recommendations on the flow of the day, guiding them on what to wear and pack, advising them on the marriage license process, and more.
Then, on the day of Mary Ann and Rob’s spring wedding, Katie picked up both the wedding floral and cake before heading over to Ryan Beach to coordinate the wedding ceremony.
Spring Wedding Ceremony at Ryan Beach
Ryan Beach is one of our favorite ceremony sites in Glacier National Park! It offers a gorgeous panorama of the mountain range and lake, surrounded by lush forestry, giving you a nice balance of different landscapes in one spot. You can get married right by the shore, like Mary Ann and Rob did. From this vantage point, it seems like the lake is endless, melting right into the mountains and it is absolutely breathtaking!
When everyone arrived at Ryan Beach for Mary Ann and Rob’s spring wedding, Katie directed guests on where to stand for the ceremony. She had them create two lines, flanking the space where Mary Ann and Rob would exchange vows. Next, she made sure that the officiant and photographer were both set and ready before cuing up the ceremony music.
On that sunny afternoon, Mary Ann walked down the aisle to “Thinking Out Loud” by Ed Sheeran. She met Rob by the water’s edge with the snow-capped mountains and lake providing a heavenly backdrop. Mary Ann and Rob exchanged heartfelt vows and wedding rings here. Their intimate guest count and the peaceful silence of Glacier made the ceremony that much more sacred and special.
When they officially became husband and wife, their family and friends clapped and cheered as the song, “Honey Bee” by Blake Shelton rang out. The biggest smiles stretched across the newlyweds’ faces: Our favorite sight to see!
Wedding Portraits in Glacier National Park
When you have your wedding ceremony in Glacier National Park, there are so many different ways you can celebrate afterwards! Some ideas our AEE couples have loved include:
A cake and champagne celebration in the park
A photo adventure session around the park
A joy ride on a boat on Lake McDonald
A picnic for two in the mountains
An intimate dinner with family at a nearby restaurant
A larger wedding reception at a nearby venue
Mary Ann and Rob enjoyed the best of all worlds on their spring wedding day! After their ceremony, they embarked on an adventure session with their photographer, then celebrated with cake and champagne, all followed by dinner with their loved ones in Whitefish.
Their newlywed portraits featured the incredible beauty that Glacier offers with various backdrops, from the mountain range to the forest to the lake. We absolutely loved seeing Mary Ann and Rob laugh, smile, and joke together throughout their photo session. They couldn’t have been more in love and it definitely shows in the pictures!
Cake & Champagne Celebration at Apgar Picnic Area
When they returned from capturing their Mr. and Mrs. photos, Katie and their loved ones welcomed them to their cake and champagne celebration! This took place at Apgar Picnic Area, a conveniently located site in Glacier known for being right on the lake. You can get married here with up to 15-20 guests, depending on the season, and when you book, the site will be reserved for you for two hours. This is typically enough time for a first look if desired, the wedding ceremony, post-ceremony portraits, and a champagne toast.
Or in Mary Ann and Rob’s case, it was the perfect place for their spring wedding cake and champagne celebration!
Reserving Apgar Picnic Area as their second Glacier wedding location of the day allowed them to enjoy even more of the park’s scenery. It also enabled them to spend additional time with their guests in a magnificent setting. Here, they cut into their adorable sweetheart cake that featured buttercream mountains on the exterior. Katie dressed it up just a little bit more when she set up the picnic area by accenting the cake with fresh blush floral and greenery.
Then, she helped serve everyone a glass of champagne for a celebratory group toast. For this portion of the day, Mary Ann donned her customized jean jacket with her new last name on the back and pearls on the shoulders. Both chic and comfortable, it went perfectly with her white cowboy boots: The perfect second bridal look of the day!
After admiring the views and enjoying each other’s company, the fun didn’t stop there! The group then made their way over to Whitefish for dinner at Buchanan’s Chop House. It was a wonderful, laidback way to wrap up a storybook spring wedding day!
A Word from Katie
Huge congratulations, Mary Ann and Rob! You guys are the most adorable and I loved every minute of planning your special day! Your smiles were so infectious on the day of, and I couldn’t be happier that everything turned out so perfectly. Thanks for everything and maybe I’ll see you for a vow renewal one day! :)
-Katie
Montana Wedding Vendors
Wedding Planner: An Epic Elopement
Venue: Glacier National Park
Photography: Christine Nicole Photography
Floral: Mum’s Floral
Cake: Miss Patti Cakes
Hair & Makeup: Melanie Hobus
Officiant: 406 Officiant
Let’s Plan Your Glacier National Park Wedding!
Based in Kalispell, Montana, An Epic Elopement specializes in all-inclusive elopements, micro-weddings, and intimate weddings. Here, you get the full experience of having a traditional wedding, but with a little more adventure included!
Are you ready to start your elopement journey? Send me a note describing your vision and let’s make it happen!
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