I recently shared details about the film location where Teresa Banks’ body floats along Wind River from Twin Peaks – Fire Walk With Me. That scene is one of three filmed along the bank of South Fork Snoqualmie River in Olallie State Park located just outside of North Bend, Washington. The second scene in the “Snoqualmie River Trilogy” is Special Agent Dale Cooper recording a memo to Diane. Let’s take a closer look.
WIND RIVER LOCATION
The scene is shot along the Snoqualmie River, which is near the parking lot for Olallie State Park and the spot where Teresa Banks’ body was released into the river. The coordinates for this location are 47°26’12.0″N 121°39’14.7″W.
The scene may have been shot in early September according to Charlotte Fraisse’s shooting diary. The only mention of Kyle MacLachlan is on September 3, 1991
“D-day minus one. Arrival of Special Agent Dale Cooper, alias Kyle MacLachlan. David Lynch, who wants this character to be as ‘clean and respectable as possible, runs his fingers on the back of the actor’s head to check the length of his hair and promises as a ‘hello’: ‘Not short enough yet’
The diary indicates September 13 as being the day of the fight between Agent Desmond and Sheriff Cable. Since that scene was shot at Olallie State Park, it stands to reason that they could have shot Kyle’s scene about that same time.
OLALLIE STATE PARK
Olallie State Park, located at 51350 S.E. Homestead Valley Road in North Bend, Washington, is home to numerous locations from the motion picture and series. According to the park’s website, the opened in the 1950s as Twin Falls State Park:
In 1950, Washington State Parks purchased the 160-acre parcel that includes Twin Falls from Puget Sound Power and Light and named the park Twin Falls State Park. The park expanded in 1976, and in 1977, the name was changed to Olallie, the Chinook Jargon word for “salmonberry,” because of the abundance of salmonberries in the area. The Old Snoqualmie Wagon Road, completed in 1867 to offer wagon passage between Ellensburg and Seattle, passes through what is now the picnic area. In 1905, the first automobile drove over Snoqualmie Pass, and the old wagon road was gradually replaced by the Sunset Highway.
An affordable Discover Pass is required to visit the park. It’s used for vehicle access to state parks and recreation lands managed by the Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW), and the Washington State Department of Natural Resources (DNR).
WIND RIVER
The brief scene opens with an establishing shot of “Wind River” which is actually the South Fork Snoqualmie River.
This is the approximate spot where the scene was shot. I believe the water was much higher at the time compared to the day when I visited.
The former InTwinPeaks.com had a better shot that matched the establishing shot from the film.
ENTER AGENT COOPER
The scene cuts to Cooper recording his monologue to Diane (as seen in the August 8, 1991 draft below):
EXT. WIND RIVER, NEAR DEER MEADOW – AFTERNOON
Cooper stares into the stream.
COOPER
(dictating into his recorder)
Diane, it’s 4:20 in the afternoon. I am standing here at Wind River where they found the body of Teresa Banks. Diane, this case has got a strange feeling for me. Not only has Agent Chester Desmond disappeared but this is one of Cole’s Blue Rose cases. The clues that were found by Agent Desmond and Agent Stanley have lead to dead ends. The letter below the fingernail gives me the feeling that the killer will strike again. But like the song says, “…who knows where or when”.
Here’s a look at the background behind Cooper in Olallie State Park.
It’s the same patch of land that the camera crew used to film Teresa Banks’ body in the water.
Interestingly, an earlier draft of the script contains some differences. This was a time when Cooper, not Agent Chester Desmond, was called to Deer Meadow to investigate.
In that draft, Cooper states he is “standing by St. Joseph’s Creek,” and that he “just sent Sam Stanley back to Portland with the body of Teresa Banks.” Cooper is sure he won’t find any clues in Deer Meadow and that “this is not a one time murderer.”
“WHERE OR WHEN”
In both versions of the script and on screen, Cooper mentions the song “Where or When.”
The song was first performed by Ray Heatherton and Mitzi Green in the 1937 Rodgers and Hart musical‚ Babes in Arms. That same year, Hal Kemp recorded a popular version. It also appeared in the film version of Babes in Arms two years later. Numerous musicians including Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, The Delmonts, and Peggy Lee to name a few, have recorded versions of it over the years.
You can hear Ray Heatherton performing “Where or When” from 1937 on YouTube; the lyrics to the song are below.
It seems we stood and talked like this before
We looked at each other in the same way then
But I can’t remember where or when
The clothes you’re wearing are the clothes you wore
The smile you are smiling you were smiling then
But I can’t remember where or when
Some things that happened for the first time
Seem to be happening again
And so it seems that we have met before
And laughed before, and loved before
But who knows where or when.
They seem to allude to the feeling of deja vu. According to analysis from two sources listed on Wikipedia, “The line ‘Some things that happen for the first time…’ is often misunderstood or misheard as ‘Some things that happened for the first time…’ which changes the meaning. Rather than recalling past events which actually ‘happened’, the lyrics refer to present events which ‘happen’ for the first time, but which falsely seem to be recurring.”
BEHIND THE SCENES
The incredible Mauve Zone website offered two behind-the-scenes images from the film.
The first features David Lynch, sporting his traditional uniform, speaking with Kyle MacLachlan on the bank of Snoqualmie River. Most likely this is about the location where the scene was shot.
I took several images around this location during my birthday visit. Wow – it’s gorgeous.
The second shot shows Cooper looking down and speaking into his tape recorder.
Here’s that same image overlaid on the approximate spot. They probably used a long lens to get the shot as Cooper would not have been standing in the water.
VIDEO OF SNOQUALMIE RIVER
Here’s a look at the South Fork Snoqualmie River / “Wind River” that I captured on September 17, 2019. The 4-minute video incorporates all three scenes – Teresa Banks’ body; Cooper’s Dialogue to Diane; and, the soon-to-be-discussed, Leland/Bob dumping Teresa’s body.
I would be remiss if I didn’t give a nod to InTwinPeaks who first discussed this locations on the now closed website.
