Sunrise Proposal at the Maroon BellsProposal Details:

We love mountain proposals and the Maroon Bells is certainly an ideal place for capturing the Colorado beauty.  For Javi and Erica they had been trekking all over Colorado for the week hiking everything in sight.  Maybe it wasn’t that extreme but they had been going all over taking photos and checking out places.  Getting out to Aspen was just the next place to stop in for their Colorado vacation.  The Maroon Bells was the desired place for the proposal.  It is one of those places with a lot of variables to it so you have to keep those in mind when considering it for a location.

Sunrise was the choice time for them.  For us it just meant an early morning drive out which is definitely something we are good with provided we have our coffee.  There were a lot of photographers out to try to get the calm lake reflection and morning sky.  Functionally this makes us blend in but also means we have to be a little more flexible in the spot cause someone could be in the spot we would normally map out.  Another consideration is the water level will change depending on when it is in the year and if you don’t do it down by the water you will likely have someone in the background.

They got out before the sun was up and they were taking some selfies with their selfie stick.  As they moved down along the shore line we followed.  They got down to the spot and there were two girls in the area from out of state.  They exchanged phones with Javi and Erica to take some photos for each other.  After the photo Javi set the phone to video and one of the girls held it for him.  They didn’t know what was about to happen but figured out something was up as there was this photographer smiling happily snapping away photos.  Erica had some tears but also was trying to fight them back.

Afterward we took some photos around in the area.  At the end the crazy idea was thrown out there to go out into the middle of the lake.  Love gives you wings – right?  Well not really in this case since we got in the middle of the lake.  With the water lower we were able to hop around on some rocks after adding a couple more in the middle.   Thanks for being adventurous!  The result is that you are rewarded with unique photos in the middle of the Maroon Lake.

A couple considerations for the location to keep in mind.  Due to popularity certain times of year people are required to ride the bus in to the Maroon Bells.  Early October the leaves peak in color but there is also more people around because of it.  The sunrise time can work for photos while the valley is in the shade late in the season.  The location is most ideal for sunset as the sun will set behind the mountains about an hour before the official sunset.

We have more of these considerations and thoughts in a blog on choosing the right proposal location.  The basic idea is that we can make it happen but you need to be flexible and keep expectations in check.  We see the shoreline loaded with photographers seeking to get that epic shot.  Realistically the perfect sky, fall colors, touch of snow, and reflection in the water from a windless day might be a one minute a year occasion. You can get proposal ideas from reading past blogs and read about how we do proposals on our engagement proposals page. If you like this location and are considering using it here are some other shoots we have done at the Maroon Bells.