Brielle & Jimmy's Boho Mountain Wedding at Rainbow Lodge Near Lake Tahoe
Brielle and Jimmy got married in the trees at Rainbow Lodge in Soda Springs, up on Donner Summit about twenty minutes west of Truckee.
A forest ceremony on a dirt aisle. Jimmy's uncle officiating. Their Australian shepherd, Bo, in the portraits. Earth tones, pampas grass, embroidered sneakers under the gown, and a motorcycle ride before either of them got dressed. Then dinner outside on the lodge deck with the whole guest list staying the weekend.
Here's how the day came together, and what's worth knowing if you're looking at Rainbow Lodge yourself.
Why Rainbow Lodge Is One of the Best Mountain Wedding Venues Near Lake Tahoe
Rainbow Lodge is a historic stone-and-timber lodge on 114 acres along the South Yuba River in Soda Springs, California, just off I-80 on Donner Summit. The building dates to 1869, when it sheltered travelers crossing the Sierra, and it's named for the rainbow trout people used to pull out of the river and hand to the kitchen.
For a wedding, the pitch is simple: you get the whole place. Private access to the lodge and grounds for the weekend, room for up to 120 guests outdoors, and overnight space for a good chunk of them. The river runs right past the property, and the ski resorts are about fifteen minutes away.
It's also not in a town. That's the appeal. There's forest in every direction, granite up above, and no traffic noise, which is exactly what a boho mountain wedding wants behind it.
Why They Chose a Sierra Mountain Wedding Venue with On-Site Lodging
They had three requirements: in the mountains, not fancy, and lodging on site so the whole thing could feel close-knit.
Lake Tahoe is what brought them to Nevada in the first place. They moved out from New Jersey together, landed in Carson City, and picked the spot for its access to both the lake and the ski resorts. Snowboarding, riding, and being outside is most of what they do together.
So a venue that already looked like where they spend their time made more sense than anything they'd have to dress up. As they put it, the landscape reflects who they are as a couple, and the place felt relaxed and welcoming from the start.
On-site lodging did the rest. When guests stay where the wedding is, nobody's watching the clock for a shuttle and the party lasts longer.
Boho Wedding Colors: Terracotta, Clay, and Sage Green for a Mountain Wedding
Their palette was earth tones throughout: browns, beiges, and neutrals with pops of terracotta, clay, and sage green. Boho, but the warm kind, not the beige kind.
It showed up everywhere. Terracotta napkins on woven chargers. Wooden cross-back chairs. Wood-slice centerpieces and low arrangements in peach, coral, and cream with eucalyptus trailing off the edges. Pampas grass at the ends of the ceremony rows and across the sweetheart table.
Their stationery set the tone early, layered in dusty blue, blush, and clay, photographed on green linen beside their rings and a small wooden sign shaped like a mountain range: Meet us in the mountains.
Brielle's bouquet was the best piece of it. Rust and caramel roses, cream dahlias, dried textures, and pampas, tied with a long coral ribbon. Against all that granite and pine, warm colors hold up better than pastels do.
A Wedding Day Motorcycle Session Near Donner Summit
Riding is one of their things, so the wedding day started on the bike before anyone got into a gown or a suit.
They took the Harley out onto a historic bridge with concrete railings, pine forest and Sierra granite on both sides, Brielle in a short white dress and a denim jacket, Jimmy in a black tee and a ball cap. The bike wore a custom Nevada plate stamped with their wedding date.
Then they actually rode it. There are panning frames of the two of them moving down the road with the trees blurred out behind them, and one in black and white with her veil streaming out behind the bike.
If something is genuinely part of how you spend your time together, it's worth building an hour around it on the wedding day. A motorcycle in a parking lot is a prop. A motorcycle you actually ride is a photo.
Getting Ready at Rainbow Lodge in Soda Springs
The morning happened inside the lodge, in rooms with stone walls, wood beams, and light coming through the old windows.
Brielle's gown hung in a doorway: off-the-shoulder sleeves, lace panels, a soft column skirt. Her shoes were white high-top sneakers with flowers embroidered on them, sitting on the windowsill next to her bouquet. That one pair of shoes tells you most of what you need to know about the day.
A Forest Wedding Ceremony at Rainbow Lodge, Officiated by Family
They got married in a clearing in the pines, with white chairs in curved rows, a dirt aisle, and boulders and brush closing in around the edges. The arbor was a simple tripod frame with pampas grass at the base. No drapery, no flower wall. In a spot like that, anything bigger would have been in the way.
Jimmy's uncle officiated, which was the one thing they knew from the start would make the wedding theirs.
Dog-Friendly Wedding Portraits on the Sierra Granite
Brielle and Jimmy took portraits out on open granite slabs with pine forest behind them and not a cloud in the sky except one, which showed up in about half the frames.
Bo came along. They adopted him from the Nevada Humane Society a month after moving to Nevada, so he's been part of the whole chapter that led here, and there are frames of both of them crouched down with him between them, Jimmy in a black suit, Brielle's dress spread across the rock.
An Outdoor Wedding Reception on the Rainbow Lodge Deck
Dinner happened outside, tables spread across the deck and lawn under the aspens with string lights overhead.
Brielle and Jimmy came out through the lodge doors hand in hand with their hands up, and she wore the sneakers for the rest of the night. They had their first dance on the deck with the sweetheart table behind them, pampas and florals running the length of it.
What they wanted out of the day was the feeling of it: dancing, speeches, the decor, the scenery, and everybody they love in one place for a weekend. That's what a lodge wedding does well.
How Brielle & Jimmy Met, and Their Proposal in the French Alps
They met in 2016, working at the same company in different departments, crossing paths here and there.
Ask them when they knew, and their answers are very them. Brielle says it was realizing she wanted to spend all her time with him. Jimmy says it was when he met her.
Jimmy proposed in March 2025, on a snowboarding trip in the French Alps. He took Brielle up to Pointe du Bouchet in Val Thorens, the highest skiable peak there at 3,230 meters, and asked her at the top on a clear day. The ring is a princess-cut diamond.
Getting engaged on a mountain, then married on one, tracks.
Planning a Wedding at Rainbow Lodge: What to Know
Is There Lodging On Site at Rainbow Lodge?
Yes, and it's one of the main reasons to book it. The lodge has guest rooms on site, with overnight space for roughly 65 people and private access to the property for the weekend. For couples who want a close-knit celebration instead of a single-evening event, that changes everything about how the weekend feels.
How Many Guests Can Rainbow Lodge Hold?
Up to about 120 for an outdoor summer or fall event. It's built for a mid-size guest list, not a 250-person reception, so if your list is growing past that, this isn't the venue to stretch.
What Time Do Weddings Have to End at Rainbow Lodge?
Outdoor events wrap around 11pm, with indoor space available later. Build that into your timeline early, because it decides your ceremony start more than anything else does.
Can You Get Married at Rainbow Lodge in Winter?
You can get married there year-round, but events from roughly November through May are held indoors, since it's up on Donner Summit and gets real winter. You still have the grounds, and the snow is spectacular. Just plan for an indoor ceremony and reception.
What to Know About the Drive and the Elevation at Donner Summit
Soda Springs sits just off I-80 on Donner Summit, roughly twenty minutes west of Truckee and about an hour from Reno-Tahoe International. It's higher than lake level, so it's cooler at night than Tahoe City or Truckee, and guests coming from sea level will feel the altitude on day one.
[VILD: Confirm the drive times you give couples, and add your own note about the light at the ceremony site and what time of day works best there.]
How Much Decor Do You Need for a Forest Wedding?
The ceremony clearing, the stone walls inside, and the aspens over the deck are the design. Brielle and Jimmy spent their detail budget on flowers, textures, and things that meant something, and skipped anything that would have competed with the trees.
Planning a Wedding at Rainbow Lodge or Around Lake Tahoe?
We're VILD Photography, Robert and Marie, a husband-and-wife team based in Tahoe. We spend a lot of wedding days in the trees, and the small in-between moments are our favorite part of the job, which made Brielle and Jimmy's day a good fit from the start.
If you're planning a wedding at Rainbow Lodge or anywhere in the Sierra, tell us what you have in mind. We'd love to hear about it.
Vendors:
Photographer: @vildphotography
Venue: @rainbowlodgeca
Wedding Planner: @eventsbydaydream
Videographer: @vildphotography
Florist: @ashandlilyfloral
Hair & Makeup: @lunabellebeautyco
Caterer: @rainbowlodgeca
Cake Maker: @truckeecornerstonebakery
Dress Designer: @martinalianabridal
Dress Boutique: @swoonbridal
Suit Designer: @in.italia_menswear
Rental / Decor: Reno Tahoe Party Rentals
