The Love Story of Lauran + Timothy: A Destination Elopement at The Mast Farm Inn
“Tim and I met while hiking the Camino de Santiago or “The Way of St. James” in Spain of 2012. As a tradition, Tim and his best friend Brian plan backpacking trips every few years or so and this time decided to hike the Camino Frances which is a specific route of many different routes on the Camino. I decided to hike the Camino in November of 2011 for several reasons including my love of Spain, traveling, and hiking.”
“...I decided to go alone because I wanted to be able to have no commitments and just walk everyday and meet new people and experience this journey just by myself. I was wrong about the solitude part because I met Tim on my very first day on the Camino and his third day of hiking...”
“I started my Camino in Pamplona on June 1st and Tim started his Camino on the French side of the Pyrenees on may 30th. I finished my first day of hiking and settled into the albergue (pilgrim hostel) and not more than an hour later Tim and Brian walked in the door and introduced themselves and told me that they were from Nashville Tennessee. The next morning I woke up late and the whole bunk room was already gone. They had left, and started hiking for the day. I rushed to leave and started my second day of hiking and walked at such a pace that I caught up with Tim and Brian at the first small village where many pilgrims were resting. They called out to me “Hey there, North Carolina! When we left you were out cold! You gotta try one of these croissants, they’re the best on the Camino.” I reached down in my pack for my wallet that had my cash, credit cards and pilgrim passport but it wasn’t there. In my rushed exit from the albergue I had left my travel wallet under the pillow. Luckily Tim and Brian had a list of all the phone numbers and a phone with service and offered their use to me and I called the owner of the hostel who found it right where I left it and told me to keep hiking to the next stage and it will be delivered to a specific albergue and then I could just sleep there for the night. I said my goodbyes to Brian and Tim and didn’t mention to them the name of the albergue I was headed to...”
“I walked the fastest 12 miles I’ve ever walked, arrived and my wallet was safe and left untouched. I unpacked my things, got clean and settled down into my bunk. Not an hour later Brian walks into the bunk room and says “hey Tim, North Carolina’s here!””
“Tim and I spent the next several hours talking about playing and listening to music, traveling and the reasons why we were walking the Camino. We felt a deep connection right away. Even during dinner with the rest of the pilgrims our eyes would find each other from across the table.”
“We all got up the next morning and walked together. For the entire month of June, Tim and I walked the Camino together, learning everything about each other and we fell in love taking in the sites, food, wine, and culture of Spain. We helped each other when it was a difficult day to hike and provided support for one another. I went on the Camino alone but the truth is you’re never alone on the Camino because everyone is there to help you because you have the same goal of finishing. Tim, Brian and I arrived to the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela on June 29th thus officially finishing the Camino de Santiago.”
“We especially are grateful to find each other and fall in love in a way that was so organic and romantic. We were grateful that we didn’t have to deal with texting and initial awkward dates. Every day and night was just so much fun and natural and all we wanted to do was wake up, walk, and do it all over again.”
“The Camino ended and we’re weren’t quite sure how it would all end up because of the distance between us. We both got back to the states and quickly realized there was no way we could not be together. It was very difficult to be separated after spending an entire month together. We were very fortunate that we did live that close together if you think about it. We could have been from opposite ends of the world but we ended up being just a 6 hours drive from each other.”
“We decided to travel back and forth from Nashville to Boone and long distanced for nearly a year. I decided to move to Nashville one year after the Camino and then a year after that we were married on June 9th. We always want to remember June.”
