A Winter Ski Ceremony

Melinda & Jeff | February 10th

WHY DURANGO

Jeff and I have spent time in southwest Colorado exploring the San Juan Mountains. We have been mountain biking and backpacking in the summer and chasing powder at Wolf Creek in the winter. We love the area and the mountains so when we found the Silverpick Lodge, we thought this was a great match – a place to explore more in depth, but with an airport that our friends and family could make a trip out of.

A Winter Wedding in the Snow at Silverpick Lodge

THE STYLE

We did everything simple. Our approach was to personalize the weekend with things that we love. First, came our family and friends – we kept coming back to the notion that everyone was traveling to celebrate us and we really wanted to celebrate them and share with everyone why we loved having them there. We griped about how at some weddings, you show up and there are so many people from other parts of the bride/grooms lives that don’t overlap, but no opportunity to connect the dots. And since we love when our friends meet each other and end up connecting, we shaped our wedding weekend to encourage exactly that.

A Winter Wedding in the Snow at Silverpick Lodge

THE CEREMONY

We planned for an outdoor February wedding with the hope that snow would be everywhere. The day-of, it snowed 12 inches, our perfect setting. We hiked and skied down a small hill behind the Silverpick Lodge right into our ceremony.

A Winter Wedding in the Snow at Silverpick Lodge, Durango Colorado

Ceremony in skis | A Winter Wedding in the Snow at Silverpick Lodge, Durango Colorado

THE CEREMONY DECOR

All of our wedding guests added their skis and boards to our backdrop.

Ceremony | A Winter Wedding in the Snow at Silverpick Lodge, Durango Colorado A Winter ceremony in the Snow at Silverpick Lodge, Durango Colorado

FAVORITE MOMENTS

-The excitement of hiking up the hill in full wedding dress mode in ski boots.
-Skiing in and just trying to remind myself not to eat it too badly if I fall.
-The hoots and hollering from our wedding guests.
-Everyone was so positive despite the weather.

A Winter Wedding in the Snow at Silverpick Lodge, Durango Colorado A Winter ceremony in the Snow at Silverpick Lodge, Durango Colorado

THE RECEPTION

Looking back, we loved the speeches and all the dancing. Loved that my friends kept looking out for my mom (she has dementia) without me having to ask.

A Winter Wedding in the Snow at Silverpick Lodge, Durango Colorado

THE GUESTBOOK

Our signing book was an old snowboard refinished with a light birch wood veneer and a custom vinyl decal with our wedding logo.

Ski guestbook | A Winter Wedding in the Snow at Silverpick Lodge, Durango Colorado

ADVICE

Less is more. We took on a lot of personalized things and DIYed a lot, which we had a ton of fun doing, but it was much more work. Remembering to enjoy as much as possible and do less.

A Winter Wedding in the Snow at Silverpick Lodge, Durango Colorado

THE WEDDING TEAM

Venue, Caterer & Lodging: Silverpick Lodge (now The Black Diamond Lodge). Photographer + Hair & Makeup: Jenne Anne

What we’re doing now: Jeff and I both decided to ‘take the summer off’ and quit our jobs to travel the US for the summer. We have been living the #vanlife camping in our Suburban, mountain biking, and hiking.