Photos show the moment a man proposed to his girlfriend in front of the Milky Way

The couple had to hike for 40 minutes at 3am to get to the location

Couple gets engaged in front of the Milky Way (SWNS)

A man proposed to his girlfriend with the Milky Way as the backdrop and the results are stunning.

Connor McLaren, 23, knew he wanted to recreate a picture him and his fiancée Jaimie McGregor had taken years earlier, of their silhouettes holding hands in front of the Milky Way, when he asked his girlfriend of five years to be his wife.

Fortunately, the couple’s five-year anniversary coincided with a time of year the starry galaxy is visible in Scotland.

To ensure that the opportunity was perfect, McLaren, from Perthshire, Perth, planned for three months, before finally driving McGregor to the top of a nearby mountain, Glen Lyon, Perth and Kinross at 3am on 31 March.

After hiking for 40 minutes in -2C (28F) temperatures, McLaren got down on one knee near a rock formation called the Praying Hand, a popular destination for tourists.

Once McLaren, a freelance photographer, ensured his camera was in the proper position and a 10-second timer was set, he popped the question.

The couple recreated a photo they had taken years earlier with the Milky Way as the backdrop (SWNS)

According to McLaren, a freelance photographer, when he brought the ring out, McGregor was “totally shocked”.

The couple got engaged on their five-year anniversary (SWNS)

The Milky Way is visible only during perfect conditions (SWNS)

“I think she was surprised at how organised it all was,” he recalled, as taking photos of the Milky Way requires conditions to be perfect.

The couple dated for five years before their engagement (SWNS)

“You can’t do it when the moon is out, or in summer when it is too bright, or in winter when it’s below the horizon,” McLaren explained. “It all just went to plan and it was fortunate that the anniversary coincided with it.”

But the hardest part of planning the proposal, according to McLaren, was keeping it a secret.

“It was quite difficult hanging onto the ring and keeping it a secret for two months,” he said.