Jessie + Ben // Cusco Peru
Adventure Wedding in the Peruvian Andes
CUSCO, PERU -
If you’ve ever been to Cusco, or the misty mountain city of Machu Picchu, you probably know about the mysterious history of this place. Never has a place made me feel more connected to human evolution, more understanding of history and colonization. It’s a place rich with culture, rife with important art and architecture, much of it inspired by the diverse landscape around it.
Getting married in a place like this, on a 15000 foot mountain no less…what an experience!
The morning of their wedding, we met at Jessie + Ben’s historic hotel in downtown Cusco, then clambered into a van where we bumped along for nearly three hours to a tiny town nestled into the Andes. With our guide Daniel and horse named Carlos, we hiked our way up a dirt trail through a landscape dotted with grazing alpaca.
Hiking in a landscape like this one is no easy feat. We huffed through thin air up steep traverses by alpine lakes, and after several miles and a light rain/snow storm, we made it to a grassy meadow at the base of a glacier-covered peak. Jessie + Ben unpacked their wedding clothes from their backpacks and helped each other get ready.
They said their vows on a steep hill above a gem-colored alpine lake. Little bits of freezing rain fell around them, and just as they slipped rings on each others fingers, the wind and rain slowed and the mountain views cleared into sight. This landscape is stunning, almost otherworldly. The Andes are stark, glaciated, intimidating in their size. There are no mountains quite like these to make a person feel small and humbled in their presence. What a place to make a commitment to marriage.
After they said vows, we warmed up a bit before continuing down the trail to see more lakes and rivers streaming from the glaciers above. The trail led us back to the town we started, and we took a quick dip in the hot springs before heading back to Cusco.
The next morning, we met Jessie + Ben back at their hotel for some coca tea. We took a casual stroll through town to visit the historic sites and ate lunch before parting ways.
guide service: Peru Eco Expeditions
Cedar & Pines is a wedding and elopement photography duo made up of Nate and Megan Kantor, a married couple based in Southern California who travels the American West in their vintage Airstream. They believe in honest wedding photography, capturing the small candid moments to the epic landscape views. Primarily based near Joshua Tree California, they also travel often to Southwest Colorado, Moab Utah, and other destinations worldwide.
