Annie + Bryan

Wedding Date & Location:

April 19th, 2024, at Silcox Hut in Timberline Lodge, OR

When your venue is only accessible by SnowCat and literally catches fire the night before your wedding… You learn what it means to go with the flow. For our real bride Annie, her vision of a timeless, romantic mountaintop celebration at 7,000 ft. almost didn’t happen—but thanks to a miracle call from the venue manager and the most dedicated crew of vendors, her April wedding day turned out to be an unforgettable, bluebird dream.

What was the vision for your wedding?:

We wanted a timeless theme. Natural colors, elegant, soft, and romantic. The day turned out just as planned (theme-related). I did a ton of research and interviews with our vendors, and so glad I did, as I truly feel we had the best of the best. I needed to hire a photographer, hair and makeup, musician, and florist, as the rest was included at Silcox Hut. I really wanted a videographer, and everyone kept telling me “no, no, no, you don’t need a videographer,” and “you’re only going to watch it once a year, if that.” But I went with my gut and am so happy I hired a videographer as well.

How did it go on the day of?:

Well, let’s start with the day before! For the Winter months, Silcox Hut is only accessible via SnowCat. I didn’t have the luxury of going up there when I wanted, plus it’s a 6-hour drive from our home in Idaho. I really wanted a 5’ aisle, and since the space is smaller, we ran into some issues. The manager pulled some strings and was able to take me up the day before at 12 pm so I could get a good look at the place and figure out the aisle and seating. She also let me take my dress, shoes, veil, and decorations up!!! I was told later they don’t do that, but made an exception for me!! We rented the Blue Ox, a small bar inside Timberline Lodge, for our rehearsal dinner. Everyone shared stories about us, and we had a wonderful time. Most of our family travelled from Wisconsin (24 people), and we all met in the pool-sized hot tub after dinner. We are all having a great time and we realize that the embers were falling on us. Some people got out to see what was going on, and one person said a tree was on fire. I got out to see and it wasn’t a tree, but the roof was on fire of this Historic Timberline Lodge built in 1936!! It was chaos from then on. The wind picked up and really ignited the fire. Everyone rushed to their rooms to grab what they could. Some people evacuated in their swimsuits and a coat! We found a hotel in the nearby town of Government Camp and booked 24 rooms. There we all sat in the lobby until 1 am, talking about the fire and the very likely chance that our wedding would be cancelled. The firefighters did a great job and put the fire out within 2 hours, but the entire lodge was evacuated and closed for the weekend. I texted the vendors that night. It’s not like they could go home since my photographer came from Eagle, Idaho, and hair and makeup, musician, and videographer came from Portland. Everyone was on standby. At 8:12 am, the manager of Silcox called and gave the news. She said since we took up everything the day before, the GM allowed us to continue as planned!! We were the only wedding that wasn’t cancelled that weekend! So here we go! We had hair and makeup done at the Best Western and stuck to the schedule. We girls drove up and met the SnowCat at 2 pm, and the groom and groomsmen drove up and met the SnowCat at 3 pm. We did private vows at 3:45 pm and pictures right after. The guests came up at 5:30 and were hand served a glass of champagne and hors d’oeuvres. The ceremony started at 6, and it was pure bliss. We had dinner and toasts, formal dances, and then danced the night away! The day was a beautiful, bluebird, no wind day! Being at 7,000ft on Mt. Hood, that’s rare!

What is your #1 tip to future brides?

My number 1 tip is to be flexible. Try to go with the flow and don’t lose sight of the reason you’re getting married. If something goes wrong, stay calm and remember you’re marrying the love of your life!! Take time to slow down and really enjoy every detail of the day!! I would also recommend a videographer! He sent me raw footage of the whole day. This included toasts, dancing, interviews, and for me, being able to listen to my parents' voices and their beautiful speeches is priceless.