Wedding Blog

Once we were engaged, Mr. Cherry Pie and I knew that we wanted to get married in Glacier National Park. It is such a special place for us that we wanted to share it with all of our friends and family. But really, did we need any other reason than this view?!

(The view from the bottom of Lake Saint Mary*) click to enlarge

…But to fairly consider other options, we entertained the idea of having a wedding in Seattle or on Orcas Island, where his stepdad’s family has property. We ultimately came to the conclusion that expecting everyone to get from Seattle to Orcas Island was way too much to ask, especially because 95% of the guests were coming from out of state. A trip to Orcas Island requires a two hour drive and one-and-a-half hour ride on a pricey ferry that may or may not be full. And lodging was a whole other issue. It just didn’t work. So Orcas was out.

The more we thought about hosting our wedding in Seattle, the more we just weren’t into it. For many of our guests, traveling to Seattle was just as much of a destination as Montana, and we thought Montana was way cooler. For us, Seattle was by far the more expensive option– vendor prices, much like the cost of living in this city, are outrageous.

Glacier National Park was by far the most significant location for us, and the only one we really cared about sharing with our guests. So once we had done our due diligence and at least entertained other ideas, we set to figuring out where we in the park could set our ceremony and reception.

We originally wanted to get married on Lake McDonald at the Lodge or in Many Glacier on Swiftcurrent Lake… but as many Bees know, working with government-owned venues can be a royal pain. We simply had too many requirements that the park couldn’t meet. They don’t offer private dining in any of the lodges except East Glacier’s Lodge, which is quite far from the part of the park we normally visit and not nearly as rustic (i.e. it has a golf course).

(Lake McDonald in West Glacier, crop from a photo by Anton Ertl)

(Swiftcurrent Lake in Many Glacier*)

The park requires permits for all events held on its property, and generally discourages gatherings over a certain size. As there was no way we were going to limit our wedding to 30 guests, we were in a bit of a bind. We looked at having the ceremony inside the park and the reception elsewhere, but the drive to a suitable venue was just too much to ask of our guests on top of the whole… “Montana” thing.

We considered the Cherry family inholding as a site for the ceremony or reception, both the beach and the yard are lumpy to the extreme and neither is large enough for any event.

I was really discouraged after it started to look like getting married in the park wouldn’t pan out. After all, it meant so much to us. Last summer when we made our annual drive to Montana, I came prepared to scout out another venue, be it public land or a private hall. Stay tuned for Part II, wherein we explore options outside the park.

Has anyone else had trouble working with the National Park Service or government organizations while planning a wedding on state or federal property?

[*Disclaimer: I took these photos, hence the lack of credits.]