Alyssa & Adam had the most magical mountaintop engagement. Adam had a very elaborate scheme to throw Alyssa off the engagement scent. Complete with snow, a beautiful view and the perfect moment, he was able to get down on one knee and ask THE question!

Nearlyweds: Alyssa Clarke & Adam Martin

Together for: 2 years and 1 month

The mountaintop engagement: "Everyone knows there are two sides to every story. Here are ours.

Hers: I was duped! Let me take you back to last winter. One February afternoon, we sat at the computer, planning our next vacation together. We had decided to go to Jay Peak, Vermont to go snowboarding as neither of us had been there yet. He made a joke about telling the hotel we were celebrating something so we could maybe get some perks. I chimed right in… “LET'S TELL THEM WE’RE ENGAGED!” As we laughed, I had no idea what he was really planning all along. I unknowingly became a pawn in my own surprise. That evening we looked at fake rings, and I even got myself sized a few days later so we could get one online for cheap.

The day I told him my official size he told me he was getting his car washed that evening after work. When he came home the car was still filthy, but I was none the wiser, thinking he forgot or the line-up was too long. What I didn’t know was, what he had tucked under his car seat (FOR OVER A MONTH). He seemed obsessed with locking his car – always pressing the fob multiple times when he would return home for the evening. Yet, I had no idea. He told me he wanted to go to lunch with my Mom one day and I thought it was odd, but then again, maybe it was time they hung out without me? How did I not put it together by this point?!

When March rolled around, we got our things together, and after hours of driving we made our way to Vermont. We got in a few runs and then had a nice relaxing night so we could get up early the next day. I had no idea when we were getting dressed for the slopes, that there was something in his jacket pocket, begging to reveal itself. He was QUIET. Why? I was jamming out to tunes and he stood there – with his face bundled and goggles on. I couldn’t see his expression, which is probably why he was able to continue to keep his secret. When we got to the top of the 3,858ft peak he seemed distant. Meh – I couldn’t help but snap a few photos and take it in. I caught him in one of my selfies, sneaking up behind me... And then… Nothing. So weird. I was eventually done standing on the top of the mountain and impatiently asked him if we could go. I sat down on a rock, and for a minute I was confused at the shadow coming closer to me. He knelt down in front of me and poured his heart out – I can’t even remember everything he said because my head was swimming. There is NO way this is happening right now!! I think I said YES before he even finished asking, and we embraced as a random skier took our photo. I had butterflies for the rest of the day!

His: After a few great months of dating, Alyssa asked me to watch her partake in a night of karaoke. I had only been to karaoke once before that. Yes, I did sing. Bohemian Rhapsody not very well, but we can save that story for another time. That night I had no idea what to expect, I hadn’t heard Alyssa sing before. What if she sounded like a squawking seagull? Was I her groupie? Regardless, I was going to love her and the show she was about to put on. Not long after I arrived and saying our “hello’s” she had her name called out and she was off to bring the house down. The band began to play “Zombie” by The Cranberries and Alyssa blew everyone away, but no one was more impressed, proud, and full of joy than I. That was the moment I knew I had to find a way to ask her to be my wife.

It wasn’t until about 8 months after that night, that an opportunity presented itself in the form of a snowboarding trip to Vermont. While I was confirming the booking I noticed that there was a field designated for special occasions. So, I jokingly asked Alyssa what she wanted to “celebrate” while we were away. The prompt reply back was “Tell them we are engaged!” Perfect. After booking the reservation we dove headfirst into searching for fake engagement rings online because we needed to pull off this plan flawlessly. Now that Alyssa believed that we were simply doing this in hopes of receiving some kind of complimentary favour from the hotel, I was free to get to work on my master plan.

I began my mission by looking for a ring. I recalled that Alyssa mentioned that her ideal ring would have a “circular-cut diamond and it has to have rose gold.” So, with the very little details I mustered up, I was off to find a ring. Luckily for me with those two pieces of information I was able to get Alyssa’s ring relatively quickly. But I never considered how I was going to get her finger size without her raising suspicions. I brought up the idea about ordering a fake one, but to do so I was going to need to know her ring size. Believe it or not it worked!! The day that she told me her ring size, I had to find a way to get out of the house so I could run over to the jeweler to hand them the ring that has been sitting under my driver's seat for weeks. I told her I was going to go get a car wash. Did I forget to get the car actually washed? You bet I did. What an idiot! But she didn’t mention anything to me when I came back home. Maybe she was on to me? Too late now. I’m invested.

I had then arranged an afternoon to have lunch with Alyssa’s Mom, Debbie, to inform her of my intention to ask her daughter to marry me. Alyssa didn’t seem to think that it was odd that I was going to go to Niagara Falls to meet with her mother alone for the first time, a short while before we left for a romantic trip for a few days in the mountains. I thought it was odd that she didn’t think it was odd. I mean that’s pretty obvious, right? Regardless, with Debbie’s blessing I was coming around that last bend heading into the home stretch.

Now the last bit of the plan solely relied on my ability to: A. Not lose the ring, and B. Get the hotel in on the secret. I was sure to keep the ring safe and became mildly obsessed with locking my car. Part A – Complete. As for Part B, I called the hotel and let them know that the initial occasion that was mentioned in the booking was not to be taken seriously and I filled them in on my plan to propose to Alyssa atop the peak of their mountain. They seemed a little confused but nevertheless they were thrilled that I had decided to choose their location as our proposal destination.

Once we arrived in Jay Peak after a full 9 hours of driving, we were able to get a half-day out on the mountain in, and I was able to survey the land and locate the best spot. It was a short walk up from the gondola to the peak of 3,858ft. I had told Alyssa that it would be best if we were able to get up for first tracks the next morning, but little did she know that I had something REALLY BIG to ask her.

Fast-forward to the next morning. We get up. Later than expected. That’s no surprise we run on AAST (Adam & Alyssa Standard Time). We manage to get onto the gondola about a half-hour later than we had hoped and that’s when it hit me. This was it. We are standing across from one another in a crowded ride up. While everyone was focusing on the beautiful landscape surrounding us, I was locked in on her taking as many mental pictures in my head and trying to manage the nerves as well as anxiousness. Once the ride was over everyone started getting off. Alright! We were just moments away! CLOSED! Wait, what? The walkway to the peak was closed. How can this be? Do these people not understand I am trying to create a magical moment here!? Meh… Life goes on and so did we, down the mountain, and straight in for some food. Because who wants to be proposed to on an empty stomach? I had even asked the server if there was a particular time that the path opened because “We really need to have our picture taken up there.” She assured us that it should be open by now and just like that we were off for The Proposal: Part II.

We went back up the lift, and thankfully this time the path was open. Once at the top, we started doing the couple thing and took some pictures/selfies with the help of a bystander but there wasn’t an exact moment that yelled “NOW!” to me. Then, I caught Alyssa as she began to wander off to take in the landscape and snap a few more photos when I abruptly asked, “Where are you going!?” Alyssa let me know that she wasn’t going far and was just going to take some photos. I thought to myself that maybe this was an opportune time to kneel down behind her while she was taking photos. That was foiled by my ill timing because she had just begun to take a selfie and I waltzed into the shot. A couple of minutes passed and Alyssa sauntered over to a rock to sit and I followed. Once she was situated and comfortable I knelt down in front of her, took her by the hands, confessed my love, and asked her to marry me on top of the world. Little did we know that the bystander that was there well before we walked up was witnessing the entire situation unfold and he called out, “NOW THAT’S WHAT YOU WANTED A PHOTO OF! CONGRATS!” After that, I couldn’t contain myself and had to shout “SHE SAID ‘YES!’” from the top of the mountain, and the entire way down!!

All-in-all, it was a pretty good start to the rest of our lives. " - A&A

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