Every single weekend, approximately 44,230 weddings are preformed. Most of these weddings are fairly typical: a church ceremony followed by a formal reception in banquet halls or outdoor rental tents, which are usually either simple frame tents or pole tents. However, one especially adventurous couple decided to do something 100% unique: they said “I Do” suspended 400 feet in the air on a gorgeous, rainbow-colored platform above the picturesque Utah Canyon.
The pictures are out of this world gorgeous:
Kimberly Weglin and Ryan Jenks decided from the moment they started wedding planning that they were not going to have a typical, cookie cutter wedding. However, they weren’t satisfied with a simple outdoor wedding either. So how did they decide to conduct their wedding ceremony 400 feet in the air?
Kimberly and Ryan are members of the slackline community, a daredevil sport that combines rock climbing and tight rope walking. In this sport, slacklines are laid above the ground, often suspended at great heights. For their slackline wedding, the couple had a massive rig put together above Utah Canyon, overlooking Lake Michigan in Moab, Utah.
Weglin stated that she wanted a wedding ceremony that had a beautiful view, and she couldn’t think of a better place than overlooking Lake Michigan. On Instagram, Kimberly explained that their slackline wedding was about more than the great view:
One of my favorite parts about our relationship is that we share the same passions and attitudes towards life. I love that I can share this space with @slackinhigh, above the quiet abyss, with no questions asked, and with full calm and understanding. Between all the highlining and adventuring we have done over the past three years, we have found ourselves constantly putting our lives into each other’s hands (i.e. trusting their rigging, trusting that they’re spotting or belaying you correctly, trusting that they care enough to be attentive, double check their work, and keep you safe, etc.) From that I believe we have developed a really special bond and a really strong trust in one another.
How did they accomplish such a breathtaking feat? A brightly colored net was carefully attached to the cliffs of the Utah Canyon. Lots of paracord was added to the netting to make it sturdy enough to hold everyone up for the ceremony at that height. The funniest part is, the bride used to be afraid of heights.
Kimberly Weglin stated that she has been afraid of heights since she was a little girl, and it was important to her to have her wedding in a place that once frightened her.
“I used to be terrified of heights… So, it really meant a lot to get married in the air in a space that used to scare the s— out of me, and have it feel normal,” Weglin told People.
While many couples have planned adventurous or unusual weddings in recent years, being suspended 400 feet in the air over a canyon certainly raises the bar. Now, the happy bride and groom are upping the ante for creative couples everywhere. In the era of Instagram and Pinterest, there’s a lot of pressure to plan a picture perfect wedding. As a result, couples are ditching wedding traditions left and right (of course, 75% of brides still receive, and expect, a gold and diamond engagement ring).
That being said, this is one wedding ceremony that’s going to be hard to top. The photos of their outdoor ceremony have to be seen to be believed: