August 11, 2007 was an exciting day in my personal experience with Twin Peaks as it was the first time I ever visited a film location in California. Eleven years earlier, I had visited film locations in Washington state during the 1996 Twin Peaks Fan Festival. My first spot was Malibou Lake Mountain Club in Agoura Hills, California. This private community was the setting for several scenes including the Gazebo, Easter Park, Timber Falls Motel, and more.
In 2007, I had Saturday off during a business trip to southern California. This was during a time before mapping apps on my phone, so I had printed driving instructions courtesy of MapQuest. I was staying in Anaheim so the drive took more than an hour to get to Agoura Hills.
Lake Vista Drive cuts through Malibou Lake Mountain Club. I noticed several “Private Property” and “No Trespassing” signs as I approached the “Easter Park” film location. There was a security guard standing outside the club house for Malibou Lake so I stopped and asked if I could take photos. He explained the area was private property but it would be okay if I was quick.
I hopped back in the car and drove down the street. At 4:33 p.m., I snapped this photo of Malibou Lake which was called “Black Lake” in the series.
It’s the same lake in which Special Agent Dale Cooper takes Annie Blackburn for a nature study.
At 4:34, I took this photo of the spot where Maddy Ferguson and James Hurley have a conversation in Episode 2006.
It looks like the dock was replaced since it appears in the series.
I walked a little way down the road and took this photo of the gazebo about a minute late.
This spot appeared in Episodes 1005, 1006, 1007, 2019, and 2020.
This 2015 image from Bing Maps shows how close Maddy and James’ dock was to the gazebo. It also looks like some of the shrubbery and trees found in 2007 may have been cleaned up.
Unfortunately, this area suffered fire damage in November 2018 during the horrific Woosley Fire. See this article from CBS News that shares ways you can assist those affected by the fire. Hopefully the gazebo, which was destroyed, will be rebuilt.
Of course, this visit wouldn’t have been possible without InTwinPeaks.com. This now defunct website served as my original guide to film locations in both Washington and California states. See the image below for images and details about this location from that amazing website.
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