In 2024, they met while working together at a summer camp called Kidder Creek. As a member of the Adventure team, Colton thought he was in for a bachelor summer of rafting, kayaking, and mountain biking alongside his best buddies. In her role as a wilderness counselor and river raft guide, Ruthie was ready to make friends and hang out with campers! Throughout training and the first 4 weeks of camp, Colton and Ruthie crossed paths many times: on group mountain bike rides, chatting by campfires, chasing campers with water guns, you name it. At the start of week 5, a wildfire sparked in the mountains behind Kidder. Camp was cancelled, and all the staff were evacuated. A large group of homeless counselors crashed at the Downey house for the week, Ruthie included. Throughout the week, the staff passed the time rafting, thrifting, baking, hiking, swimming, and playing games. With all this extra time to hang out, a little something sparked between them. At the end of the following week, Colton asked Ruthie on their first date: a hike and charcuterie picnic at Taylor Lake. Before letting her out of the car afterward, he secured a second date — sushi and rock climbing. After a week of dates, the two helped lead a backpacking/rafting trip for a group of 10 high school guys. Colton taught Ruthie to catch and gut a fish, and found out that she could hike as fast as he could. When the summer ended, Colton drove Ruthie home to Oregon and spent the weekend meeting her family. By Monday, she was his girlfriend! Three hours after making things official, they started long-distance. Over the past year and a half, they’ve shared an abundance of FaceTime calls, letters, and visits. They are SO excited to get married and become each other’s permanent adventure buddies!