Ready to see this elopement along Park Loop Road in Acadia National Park? Keep reading!
When they first reached out to me, Kelly was pregnant. They knew without a doubt they wanted their infant to be a part of their day. So when we met up on October 10th in Acadia national park for their elopement, baby James was 4 months old and ready for one of his first family hikes!
Eloping with a newborn in tow brings extra challenges (obviously). So, here are some basic tips for planning a hiking elopement with a newborn.
Eloping with a baby, TIP 1: Choose a location and time of year with comfortable temperatures
If you’re hiking with an infant, choose to go at times when the weather is not too hot or too cold.
Infants overheat and get cold very easily. You want to be able to bundle them up a little, so early summer or fall are great times to plan a hiking elopement with a newborn. Avoid midsummer in very hot locations!
Kelly and Shrey are from Houston, Texas and wanted a location which felt different than what they were used to. They wanted autumn colors and coastal topography, and went with Acadia National Park in Maine.
The season, location and length of day aligned perfectly with their newborn’s needs.
Eloping with a baby,TIP 2: Plan your elopement day with tons of comfort and flexibility for feeding and napping
If you’re eloping with a newborn, you need to keep things as convenient as possible. Booking a private Airbnb, having a large rental car, and maintaining an open timeline are musts.
Kelly and Shrey booked a spacious and beautiful Airbnb with a yard for their elopement. With a baby, this is even more important so you have plenty of privacy to spread out.
I arrived at their Airbnb at 10:30 am. Kelly was in town in nearby Lamoine getting her hair and makeup done, so it was just the boys who greeted me. Baby James was napping, so I took some detail shots while Shrey got ready alone.
Outside in the yard, Tabitha from Luxury Picnics Acadia had set up a picnic for them to start the day with. It was super convenient and relaxing for everyone. They snacked on a charcuterie board and cake while James chilled with them.
After their lunch, they went back inside to change into their wedding attire.
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Eloping with a baby, TIP 3: Buy a baby carrier, and ideally, invite a friend or family along to carry and care for the baby throughout your elopement day
Throughout the day, we went to multiple locations for their ceremony, portraits and just to explore. All that moving around made a comfortable baby carrier a necessity. If you are planning a hiking elopement with a newborn baby, it’s easiest to invite at least one close friend or family member along to help! That way, someone is always there to take care of your baby, look after feeding and keep your hands free.
In this case, I was both photographer and baby carrier!
Eloping with a baby, TIP 4: Plan your ceremony and other activities around locations which can easily be reached by car
Our first location was on the southwest part of the island and involved about a 30 minute hike. That’s about the longest hike I’d recommend with a newborn! You have to be prepared for their moods and feeding/napping schedules. Therefore, it’s always good to stay relatively close to the car, as you’ll probably get held up by feeding at least once. This was exactly what happened to us, and it still worked out great since we were never far from the car.
The second location for the day was Jessup Pass. When we arrived, it was Shrey’s turn to feed James. Kelly and I went ahead on the trail for some bridal portraits. It was really fun giving mom some space for herself and making her feel beautiful.
After she and I were done, we went back down the trail to grab the boys and continued together as a group. James hung out with me the entire time and just chilled. I shot half their day with him swaddled on my chest! I’ll admit, he was a pretty cute accessory.
For our third location, they had something special in mind for their ceremony. By a crazy coincidence, they had a beautiful landscape photo in their bathroom that they loved the look of. They wanted to say their vows in a spot that looked similar. When they showed the picture to me, I was shocked – it was the exact location in Acadia I had in mind for their ceremony and they had absolutely no idea!
Their officiant met us and they read their vows there on the rocky cliffs overlooking the ocean. It was a dreamy seaside ceremony, and now they can replace that photo in their bathroom with one of their own.
Our last location was one of my favorites in Acadia: Otter Point. It’s just off the road from the parking lot. This made it the perfect spot to end the day with portraits while James napped.
We capped their Acadia elopement with a photo next to the park sign and parted ways.
I had never imagined planning a hiking elopement with a newborn baby could go so smoothly!
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