Exquisite Elopement in Iceland | PJ + Sarah

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Sarah and PJ found each other at their company Christmas party (thanks Amazon Seattle)! Since then they were inseparable and rightfully so, never have I ever met a couple who were so simpatico! Fast forward to September 2016 when PJ went on a super secret mission to plan an unforgettable proposal. He very sweetly proposed at the restaurant where they shared their first kiss (swoon!) and then surprised Sarah with an engagement party with friends after!

These two hike, skydive, love the Pacific Northwest, have an ADORABLE pup (seriously check her out HERE), and put it as a top priority to travel somewhere new every month. Sarah and PJ have an undeniable passion for exploring new places together and their relationship went to a deeper level when they discovered Southeast Iceland together. So when they started talking about where to elope, they were looking for an adventurous place that was natural and beautiful. The more they thought about it, PJ and Sarah couldn’t imagine planning a wedding anywhere else but in Iceland.

Sarah and PJ’s summer elopement in Iceland was one our team had been looking forward to all year! From the moment we did our first Iceland wedding planning Skype call with them we were enthralled by their excitement, energy, and the love they exuded with each other! …and frankly Sarah had me when she described a few of her “must have inclusions” for the day was “Adventure + Champagne!” #yesplease

So come along with us today as we share with you the exquisite elopement in Iceland of PJ + Sarah!

The July wedding day in Iceland began tucked away at the countryside hotel, Hotel Katla, in one of their new beautiful suites!

Our talented hair and makeup team started just after sunrise (hello 5am) getting Sarah all dolled up for her adventure wedding in Iceland and (and PJ may or may not have spent the morning in the hot tub, relaxing 😉 )! Getting ready together on your wedding day is one of my favorite things about eloping in Iceland. There is such a sense of excitement, calmness, and sweetness with the groom helping his bride get into her dress. …and can we talk about Sarah’s gorgeous 3 piece black Iceland wedding dress for a sec and matching Sorel waterproof boots?! Stunning! They added in splashes of yellow that really accented (check out Sarah’s Iceland wedding bouquet and their matching Reykjavik Raincoats!)!

Even though we plan many adventure weddings in Iceland throughout the year, it’s still really exciting when we see our super jeep team arrive. I mean seriously folks, how badass is it knowing this is your ride all day for your elopement in Iceland? A 6 door Land Rover doesn’t even really exist, it was built custom!

The morning turned overcast and had some drizzling rain going on but it just added to the mystery of the adventure as we headed into the glacier area that Sarah and PJ would make their love official in Iceland.

Upon arrival, we grabbed our clear umbrellas (just in case) and began our hike to their fabulous Iceland wedding ceremony location! The super interesting thing about this area is that it is deemed a “black glacier” because of the black desert that runs between and overtime and throughout the many windy days we have it creates layers in the glacier of black, white, and blue ice. It’s a beautiful natural dynamic to marry in front of in Iceland and well worth the hike!

Oh la la, Sarah and PJ’s Iceland wedding ceremony was lovely in so many ways (and I may or may not have shed a tear or two 😉 )!

After their gorgeous elopement ceremony, it was time to carefully explore the landscape (no joke folks, glacier quicksand is a real thing here in Iceland) for Iceland wedding photos! So let’s adventure together with them!

During summertime in Iceland, ice caves are typically unstable and dangerous to go into especially if wanting an ice cave wedding ceremony. But our adventure wedding planning and super jeep team were determined to continuously scout for them even if it meant a couple would need to glacier hike or ice climb to them. But guess what, we got super duper lucky this year and July we were able to share one of my favorite stunning ice caves with 2 couples this year (Do you recall last weeks post of Petra and Jan? This is the same ice cave literally 7 days later, that is how fast they melt! So Sarah and PJ were thrilled when I told them that there was an ice cave to explore just a little hike away from their Iceland wedding ceremony spot!

As the morning turned into afternoon and Sarah and PJ were newlyweds all of 1 hour, we headed into one of my favorite secret areas for more exploring during their elopement adventure day in Iceland. The textures and tones of this place in summer and fall continuously blows my mind.

The adventure continued on to (I dare to say) my favorite waterfall in the world. Where Sarah and PJ ran around hand in hand, laughing, and kissing during their elopement in Iceland. We even busted out a traditional bbq of Icelandic hot dogs for lunch!

Crossing unbridged rivers and streams is soo much freaking fun and what we more often than not need to do during our adventure weddings in our private, secret, and offbeat areas during an Iceland wedding adventure. We ventured to another amazing waterfall that had more of the vivid green that can only be found here for more Iceland wedding portraits and impromptu first dances.

Did you know that the reason why we start so early in the morning (like a 5am start for our adventure weddings) is so that we are able to discover so many EPIC Iceland wedding locations in one day and so that our clients also get a variety of unique private landscapes?! I think by the end of the day we lost count how many stunning areas we explored during PJ and Sarah’s elopement in Iceland. The area below was not an originally planned stop but many times with Iceland wedding photography, you have to jump out for a few kisses and hugs next to a beautifully lit mountain or waterfall!

These two being married in Iceland on the famed 7-17-17 they were right in the middle of our lupine season. So fields were brimming with them lining the paths gorgeously for Iceland wedding photos!

If you’re a first time visitor to our Iceland Wedding Planner site, you should know that our team are experts in having adventure weddings in Iceland in private – offbeat – secret locations throughout the country. We have agreements / permissions / permits from local landowners and are able to drive on to private property (which did you know most of Iceland is privately owned outside of the national parks?) and often drive to locations that are only accessible by hiking if wanting to see the location outside of our team). The below locations is one of those. You may recognize the beach or basalt stacks below being Reynisfjara. But our super jeep team is allowed to drive to the top (whereas it would be a 1.5-2 hour hike one way normally). Having permissions like these allows us to provide you a more thorough (action packed) experience throughout your Iceland wedding day.

Super green canyons are often on the “list” for our adventure wedding couples because they are memorized by the vividness of the green!

So! Let’s recap… Sarah and PJ’s Iceland July wedding day had… glaciers, an ice cave, river crossings, 4 stunning waterfalls, beautiful lit mountains, cliffs that had views for days, and a super green private canyon! Sounds like they hit all of the best kind of landscapes Iceland has to offer, right?! True, but last but not least a private black sand beach was on the agenda! Again, this is another example where our locations are a step above other Iceland Wedding Planners… We have permission to access the private side of Dyrholeay sea arch (whereas others only access the touristy public side).