For this article, I return to Olallie State Park outside of North Bend, Washington to visit Weeks Falls, a film location briefly seen in Twin Peaks – Part 15 on Showtime. This quick transition shot of the woods and waterfall takes places before the scene with Steven and Gersten in the woods.
WHERE IS WEEKS FALLS FROM PART 15 LOCATED?
Weeks Falls is located at the end of the Weeks Falls Trail in Olallie State Park near North Bend, Washington. The exact coordinates for this location are 47°26’0.05″N 121°38’51.90″W.
The trail is where many scenes from both the series and film were shot including Jerry Horne’s woods scenes, Jack Rabbit’s Palace, Laura and James in the Woods, and many more. To access Olallie State Park, you’ll need a Discover Pass. It’s affordable and easy to order one online. Plus it gives you access to many other Washington State Parks.
HISTORY OF WEEKS FALLS
People have been visiting Weeks Falls for more than 100 years. The image above from the Snoqualmie Valley Museum shows Weeks Falls (though I believe it’s the lower falls). It was taken by Margaret Gardiner Weeks whose homestead near the falls provided its name. The description for this photo reads: “Weeks Falls on Sunset Highway and Cabin during low water. Rocky, low water. Falls named for Weeks’ homestead. Cabin in background on left. Falls later named Roosevelt Falls for a while.”
According to FindAGrave.com, Margaret Weeks was born in England around May 1880. She married William Chaney Weeks in 1906 and died in North Bend, Washington on December 10, 1918 at the age of 38.
William Weeks was the co-owner of the North Bend Lumber Co. He was born on February 26, 1863 in Lancaster, Hampshire and died on September 10, 1937 in North Bend. The town of Edgewick, along with the falls at Olallie State Park, are named after Mr. Weeks. Interestingly, the town was swept away in a terrible flood in 1918 according to fascinating article on SavorSnoqualmieValley.com.
William and Margaret had three children, Margaret, Elizabeth and John. Sadly, all three have also passed. But clearly the Weeks family was important to the early growth of North Bend and lumbering in the area.
Margaret Weeks took this image of the North Bend Lumber Company’s Edgewick Mill and millpond sometime between 1906 and 1918. Look carefully and you’ll spot Mount Si (also known as the “Twin Peaks” in Twin Peaks).
The falls are like their impressive cousin Snoqualmie Falls, but just not as tall (77-feet versus 268-feet). Their location along the Sunset Highway made it easy to stop and admire the beauty of nature. This images comes from Ranger Rick Oakley around 1914-1915. It is most likely the lower falls but their magnificence hasn’t been lost with the passage of time.
Today, Weeks Falls has a 4,772-kilowatt hydroelectric generating station. It’s unique as, according to co-partner Eagle Creek Renewable Energy, “a small diversion dam directs some of the water from the river into a tunnel that connects to a powerhouse approximately 700 feet downstream, at the base of Weeks Falls.” The powerhouse, built in 1987 and commissioned on June 5 that year, contains a single horizontal Kaplan unit (a turbine like this one from GE).
Eagle Creek Renewable Energy has stated that the facility “produces approximately 13 million kilowatt-hours of clean energy in a typical year. ”
WEEKS FALLS IN PART 15
The scene opens with an aerial shot looking down at tall fir trees. Most likely the shot was captured using a drone.
The drone camera flies over the trees and begins to zoom out.
Since I don’t have a drone, the closest thing I could find was this image from Google Earth. It shows the grouping of trees to the left of the falls.
The camera zooms by a gigantic solitary tree as we get a short glimpse of Weeks Falls.
The camera passes the tree and we see the raging waters of the falls. You can see a similar aerial shot on Google Earth.
I love that the crew captured new and additional footage from King County, Washington. There is so much beautiful things to see in the area, like these falls.
I created the collage that shows the path the drone camera traveled in order to get the transition shot.
VISIT ON SEPTEMBER 17, 2019
The falls were the final location I had to shoot during my birthday visit on September 17, 2019. After spending all day shooting images at other film locations, I made it to the falls around 4:00 p.m. Luckily, I brought a poncho as it rained periodically throughout the day. I’m also glad I brought towels from the North Bend Motel to help keep the camera dry (I really need to invest in a raincoat for the Canon).
The location was easy to recognize thanks to that solitary pine near the rocks.
Here’s a wide angle shot of the area taken with my 11-16mm lens on the Canon 40D. Such a spectacular sight!
I stood for a few moments admiring the rushing water. A long exposure captured the water in motion.
Here’s a look at the Snoqualmie River in the opposite direction.
The location is definitely worth the hike if you are visiting Olallie.
VIDEO OF WEEKS FALLS
Here’s a 3m 30s video of the fall. So relaxing! I can’t wait to revisit.
