A cliffside elopement at Duncan's Cove, Bodega Bay, was exactly the size Catherine and Christian wanted — five guests on the Sonoma Coast in August 2022, the ceremony held right at the top of the cove with the Pacific open behind them and the afternoon light still on the water. What made it theirs was who came: two of their kids, their moms, and Snow the dog, who walked in at the front in a black tuxedo collar and a red leash.
They didn't get ready together, and they skipped a first look. Catherine arrived to the cove separately, married Christian at the cliff's edge, and drove a few minutes down the coast to a quiet dinner afterward with the five people who had stood with them.
Catherine did her own hair and makeup at home, then came out to the coast for finishing touches at a hotel above the bay. Her dress was ivory, a lace-appliqué bodice under sheer beaded long sleeves with a fine cuff, a soft tulle skirt, and a floor-length cathedral veil edged in the same floral lace that would trail across the cliff grass all afternoon. She wore a single pearl drop at her ear.
The florals stayed deliberately spare — one bridal bouquet and a boutonniere from Vanda Floral Design, blush and cream roses in eucalyptus. Catherine and Christian got ready apart and drove separately, no first look between them, while the arch and the chairs went up at the cove and the afternoon light held.
Afternoon
The Ocean-Cliff Ceremony at Duncan's Cove
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The ceremony was at the very top of Duncan's Cove, a slim arch draped in cream fabric and dressed with one asymmetric spray of blush and cream roses and eucalyptus, set at the edge of the cliff with the grey Pacific and the sea-stacks stretching out behind it. Rev. Richard Meyer officiated. Catherine walked in to "Until I Found You," and the whole small family came in the processional: the officiant first, then Josiah with Snow, Christian with his mom, the couple's daughter and son, and Catherine last with her own mother beside her.
Their daughter had recently had spinal surgery, so they set out a white chair for her right up front where she could see everything. Five guests, the dog in his little tuxedo, and every one of them exactly who Catherine and Christian wanted there. Christian stood in navy while Catherine's long veil caught the wind off the water, and they kissed at the cliff's edge and recessed to "Beautiful Crazy."
“Five people and their dog, on the edge of the cliff with the open Pacific behind them.”
After the ceremony
Portraits Above the Cove
The walk down to the beach wasn't an option during their daughter's recovery, so the couple kept portraits at the top of the cove — a few minutes alone out on the cliff while the family stayed close by, Catherine's veil running out long across the grass behind her.
Duncan's Cove sits roughly halfway between Bodega Bay and Jenner, tucked beneath the cliffs of Sonoma Coast State Park, where sheer rock walls drop to a small sand beach, sea-stacks stand offshore, and the surf folds white through the gaps. The light kept moving toward sunset the whole time, going soft and gold on the water past the railing.
Evening
Champagne, Cake, and a First Dance on the Cliff
The celebration stayed right there at the cove. A small white cake sat on a wood stand ringed with eucalyptus and white berries, from Sweet C's Bakeshoppe, next to a silver ice bucket with sparkling wine and a bottle of Martinelli's, champagne flutes lined up beside it and the cove dropping away behind the table. The family raised a toast to them — the boys in bow ties and suspenders, the moms in blue and blush, the daughter in her chair with her bouquet, Snow front and center.
Their first dance was to "Live Forever," close together with the ocean behind them and the sun dropping toward the water. When the light went, Catherine and Christian drove a few minutes down the coast to a dinner reservation by the bay, the five of them and Snow. The Inn at the Tides sits right at the water's edge in Bodega Bay, the windows looking straight out over the harbor, and the conversation went long. They ended the day the way they started it: close, unhurried, and exactly who they wanted.
