A Romantic Elopement in the Redwoods at Harbor House Inn

redwoods elopement

This couple eloped at the historic Harbor House (which is also a Michelin-star restaurant... YUM!) and had their ceremony in the redwoods. Immediately after their ceremony they hurried to the coast of Mendocino in time for the sunset. Afterwards they danced and laughed cliffside and held lanterns as they watched the sun go down. Not only is this one of the most romantic elopements but it also showcases what all weddings should be about and that is love! Enjoying every step of the way from their romantic engagement in the redwoods all the way to celebrating their nuptials.

flora gibson photography was there to capture all the romantic details and lauren e snead to officiate as they eloped at Harbor House Inn. You can see all the images in the full gallery.

elopement jewelry

engagement rings

elopement venue

mendocino elopement

mendocino elopement at harbor house inn

A Surprise Engagement In The Redwoods

Suz and Nina ( they/them) met at LAX before boarding the plane for, a trip sponsored by Israel for young Jewish people in the US. They spent 10 days together backpacking and staying in all these incredible places. On this trip, they bonded very intensely and crushed hard on each other but neither of them were in a place to be together at the time. It was never even really expressed until a year later that there were explicit romantic feelings for one another.

Their engagement took place in the redwoods on a hike and N surprised S in a special spot of theirs with a violinist hired to play Celine Dion, John Denver, and Peter Gabriel. They then had a really special picnic after the engagement. It was like a fairytale hike proposal!!

redwoods elopement

adventure elopement

elopement ceremony

A Sunset Elopement Cliffside

They started their elopement day at the Harbor House Inn which has one of the only Michelin-star restaurants in the area and has the cutest historic property. With views of incredible rock formations and access to a private beach, it’s one of my favorite hotels in the area. We traveled to the beautiful Montgomery Woods State Park (one of the most remote state parks in California) where they had chosen a downed tree that they had visited previously together. With their amazing officiant lauren e snead, we hiked into the redwood grove where Lauren led Suz and Nina in a heartfelt ceremony. We dashed to the coast of Mendocino after their ceremony to try and catch the sunset. I felt so lucky that we were able to arrive at the coast just as the sun kissed the horizon. S & N had a picnic including a small wedding cake in the tall grass on a cliff overlooking the Pacific Ocean. They finished their day popping champagne and dancing cliffside at sunset with lanterns.

My favorite memory of their day was their absolute joy by the cliffs, even as their mouth turned blue from the cake and their champagne was warm they danced and jumped and loved. They embraced what a wedding day should be all about… LOVE.

fun elopement