I got married at twenty. It was spur of the moment, and we really didn’t care about the details. Flowers, rings, fuss, whatever. At the time, I couldn’t think of anything worse than having a room full of people scrutinising me while I tried to fake them out that I was really a princess.

But now I live in a town with hitching posts. Where I lean my bike against the local cafe, others loop their horse’s reins over the hitching post, duck 10 gallon hats under the doorframe and stomp inside.

That, plus two summers of attending amazing local weddings, got me thinking about getting hitched in the Land of Hitching Posts, so I embarked on a 100 Mile Wedding research project for Tourism Pemberton.  This place offers so many options for vow-taking, be you anti-bride or full of Pride, catering with potluck contributions or willing to make literal your  Leap of Faith (see paragliders, Pemberton.)

Whistler photographer, Anastasia Chomlack, has shot several Pemberton weddings, including one last summer that took place after the rockslide closed the highway. Family from England and Iceland took the long way around, detouring 5 hours via Lillooet, or flying in by float plane, to make it to “the church” on time. The groom handily whipped up the wedding arbor, and the family spent the morning at North Arm farm picking flowers to decorate it.

The average cost of a wedding in Canada is apparently between $20,000 and $30,000 – higher if you’re hitching up in Toronto, or flying your flowers in to Whistler from Holland, as one “high-flyer” did… Nude weddings are apparently a lot cheaper.

Or you could keep it local. All the way to the bar.

After all, a town with hitching posts it is the perfect place to get hitched.