When they arrived in Montana, they found that the wildfires in Oregon had caused thick grey smoke that made it impossible to see beyond a ten-foot radius. Despite the disappointment, Taryn and Ian didn’t let it ruin their trip. They went to a town three hours away to go sapphire digging on the first day and then drove into the park on the second day. After their first hike, the smoke began to clear, and they decided to go on a more challenging trail to the 7,486-foot summit of the Haystack Butte trail. 
However, they underestimated the amount of water they would need for the 8-mile hike, and Taryn’s energy was depleted by the time they got to the mountain’s base. They were almost out of water, and the real climb had yet to begin. Ian asked Taryn to scramble up a rock wall for one last great view of the Haystack Butte, but she was grumbling and complaining all the way up. When Ian sat beside her, he apologized for everything they had been through that year, including the pandemic and the loss of Taryn’s job. He said, “Even though this year didn’t turn out how we wanted it to, I think I can make it up to you.” It was when Ian’s last phrase that Taryn understood what was happening.
Taryn burst into tears as Ian knelt on one knee and asked her to marry him. It was more romantic than anything Taryn could have dreamed up on her own, even though she was sweaty, dehydrated, and felt like she had smoked a pack of cigarettes. Despite the mishaps, course corrections, and the pandemic, the moment was perfect as Ian slipped the kite-shaped sapphire ring over her finger. Ian made it so.