No one minded when a mountain goat crashed the wedding.

The lone goat was, in fact, the only guest at the top of Mount Aeneas as Steve Singleton and Trisha Thomason of Texas got married on Thursday.

The three-mile hike with more than 1,800 feet of elevation gain in the Jewel Basin was the first trip to the summit of Mount Aeneas — at 7,528 feet above sea level — for both the bride and the groom.

When the couple’s family in Texas began talking about a big wedding, all Singleton and Thomason could think about was a simple ceremony.

Although they never had been on the mountain they picked for their wedding, they had heard their friends, Jim and Phyllis Pederson of Somers, talk about the Jewel Basin. The Pedersons moved to Somers from Texas a year ago to spend their retirement years.

A mountaintop wedding seemed like the perfect retreat, so Singleton one day declared: “We’ll just get married on top of Mount Aeneas.”

And that was that.

“When they had bought the airline tickets to come here, the idea still stuck in their minds and they just decided to actually do it,” Phyllis Pederson said.

The hardest part was finding someone capable of hiking the distance to officiate the ceremony on the cusp of a long Labor Day holiday weekend. Through Jim’s sister, Debra Arnold of Kalispell, they found retired pastor Chrysta Bourne ready and willing.

“Chrysta set a fast pace” on the trail, Phyllis recounted. The Pedersons served as the couple’s attendants.

“In the middle of the ceremony a small goat came to join in the fun,” she said.

The couple exchanged rings dressed in their hiking gear.

As the wedding party descended the mountain, the news of nuptials spread to other hikers.

“Jim proceeded to tell everyone we met what had just happened on top of Mount Aeneas,” Phyllis said. “Several young people had the great idea to form an arch with their hands for the newlyweds to duck under.

“We had met another group of four people at the trail merge on our way up and Jim had told them about the scheduled event. These same people were waiting for us at the merge to congratulate the newlyweds,” she said. “It was a wonderful experience and a great place to marry. All the different people we met on the trail really enhanced the experience.”

The couple is honeymooning in the Two Medicine area this week before they head back to Texas.

Features editor Lynnette Hintze may be reached at 758-4421 or by e-mail at [email protected]