The historic North Bend Theatre in downtown North Bend, Washington celebrated the 34th Anniversary of the North American premiere of David Lynch’s Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me from August 13-16, 2026. This “We Live Inside a Dream” weekend including film screenings of David Lynch’s movies along with the world premiere of Scott Ryan’s documentary, “The Double R Dream” on August 13, 2026. This trip report is the second article from my visit to the Real Twin Peaks of Snoqualmie Valley, Washington.
AUGUST 12 | AUGUST 13 | AUGUST 14 | AUGUST 15
MORNING AT SNOQUALMIE FALLS LOWER OBSERVATION POINT
I greeted the morning of August 13, 2026 with a view of Snoqualmie Falls from the lower observation point located at 37479 SE Fish Hatchery Road in Fall City, Washington. There are two ways to access this area, either by driving and parking in the adjacent parking lot or there is a trail from the upper Snoqualmie Falls Park that starts near Salish Lodge & Spa.
Since I was still living on East Coast time, I was up rather early during my first full day in Snoqualmie Valley. I learned from a previous trip that this area can get quite busy during the summer or on weekends. With my Canon cameras and a tripod in tow, I walked to the end of the boardwalk that hugs the cliffside to get a few of this sacred and majestic waterfall.
Here is a link to a 25-minute ambient video from my August morning visit on the Twin Peaks Blog YouTube channel.
After spending the better part of an hour observing the falls, I traveled up the road to the Salish Lodge & Spa for breakfast at 8:00 a.m. My favorite way to start a trip is by having breakfast in their recently renovated Restaurant & Terrace Bar overlooking the falls. The coffee is exceptional and their world famous “honey from Heaven” service is something you shouldn’t skip. I typically order the avocado toast served on Macrina bread with a poached egg (I’m a Gen Xer but greatly enjoy this popular Millennial dish).
My other favorite items are either the Overnight Oats with crunchy seeds, Salish honey, and seasonal fruit brûlée or the House-Smoked King Salmon Benedict. But you really can’t go wrong ordering any item – everything I’ve previously ordered was delicious.
Plus, you are treated to a spectacular view overlooking the Snoqualmie River and Snoqualmie Valley. Even though it was mid-August, I could tell the leaves were starting to turn yellow. If you visit in October, you will find a tapestry of fall colors dotting this view.
EXPLORING SNOQUALMIE VALLEY
After breakfast, I drove out to South Fork, located at 14303 436th Ave SE in North Bend, to meet up with Jeff Warren from Jeff Warren State Farm. You may recall a previous article about this rocker-turned-State Farm Insurance Agent who installed a replica “Welcome to Twin Peaks” sign outside his office in Snoqualmie.
The location is number 23 on the Snoqualmie Valley Coffee Trail so I was able to get my recently acquired Coffee Trail Passport stamped for the first time.
Jeff surprised me with some incredible pieces of art that he made from his studio, Bad Daddy Art & Foundry. I was left speechless. The skulls included a nod to my favorite David Lynch film, Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me and owls. The trout was a nod to my favorite film location from Lynch’s 1992 masterpiece, the Fat Trout Trailer Park.
I was even more surprised when I turned over the artwork to see that both skulls were artist proofs and Jeff engraved my name on them. It was an incredibly thoughtful gift and furthers my believe that people who love David Lynch’s works are some of the most kind, thoughtful and generous people I know. Thank you Jeff! Please stop by his office in Snoqualmie to take a photo with the “Welcome to Twin Peaks” sign and stop inside to get some stickers.
I made my way to Twede’s Cafe next to meet up with Scott and Jen Ryan and Brian Kursar for lunch. I had a cup of chili in honor of the great Harry Dean Stanton. According to reports from filming of Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me, Pat Cokewell, the former owner of the Mar-T Cafe (known today as Twede’s Cafe), catered meals when the crew was at the Riverside Mobile Home Park in Snoqualmie. This was the film location of the original Fat Trout Trailer Park. Harry Dean supposedly loved her chili. I can say that Twede’s chili hit the spot before Scott, Jen, Brian and me visited Olallie State Park outside North Bend.
At the Washington State park, we walked along the Weeks Falls Interpretive Trail in search of Twin Peaks film locations. I knew I would return to Olallie later in the weekend to capture photos and videos, so I didn’t take many images during my visit with my fellow Bookhouse Boys and Gal.
The one photo I was happy to capture is from the parking lot near the Ranger’s house. This is the location where the “Smash Up” deleted scene with Peggy Lipton and Everett McGill from Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me was filmed. I wrote extensively about this location for this Twin Peaks Blog article.
I had a few additional hours until the film premiers at the North Bend Theatre, so I drove around Snoqualmie Valley to capture some additional photos. The week I visited was the 30th anniversary of my first visit to Snoqualmie Valley in 1996 for the Twin Peaks Fan Festival.
During this visit, I brought along several print photographs I took three decades ago to stage some “Dear Photograph”-like images. The first one I captured was at Ronette’s Bridge. In 1996, I didn’t take many photos and the photos I did capture were not how I take film location images today.
Ronette’s Bridge is really the Reinig Road bridge is located at 40413 SE Reinig Road in Snoqualmie, Washington. It’s located very close to the film locations for “Welcome to Twin Peaks” sign, Cooper entering the town, and the Sparkwood & 21 Intersection.
When filming for Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me took place in September 1991, there was a railroad trestle that crossed Reinig Road.
You can see the trestle when Phillip Gerard is following the Leland and Laura Palmer in the film. How I wish I had a time machine to capture photos of these locations at that time.
I photographed the bridge from the side like how it is seen in the Twin Peaks pilot when Ronette Pulaski crosses the bridge. One thing I did not anticipate during this trip was the heat and humidity. I thought I left such things behind in Florida. There was a persistent haze that hung over the Valley throughout my visit. Only a silhouette of Mount Si is seen in the distance.
I quickly returned to the Roadhouse Restaurant and Inn to change into Double R Diner-themed attire for the evening’s Double R Double Feature at the North Bend Theatre. Before the screenings started, I stopped off at Volition Brewing Co. again for a beer.
This time, I tried the recently released Ice Cream Truck Chase (ABV 5.5%) which they describe on their website as “a tart and refreshing sour inspired by the nostalgic orange creamsicle pops we all chased down the ice cream truck for as kids. Bright orange citrus meets creamy vanilla, balancing a juicy, zesty tang with a smooth, sweet finish. It’s like summer vacation in a glass—just try not to hear the ice cream truck music.”
DOUBLE R DOUBLE FEATURE AT THE NORTH BEND THEATRE
Closer to 5:30 p.m., I made my way over to the North Bend Theatre. It’s truly wonderful to be able to walk to these places – the benefit of being in a small town. The marquee displayed details about the “Double R Double Feature” which would begin at 7:00 p.m. followed by a live question and answer session facilitated by me.
Scott was joined by Ari Martinez from Twede’s Cafe and who appears in his documentary.
He also posed for a photo with Anita, the server whom he first met and interviewed in 2015 during his first visit to Twede’s Cafe.
Max Spears and Rachel Bennett, owner’s of Twede’s Cafe, joined Scott and his wife Jen for a moment outside the North Bend Theatre.
Meanwhile, Brian Kursar who wrote, directed and edited the second part of the “From Thompson’s to Twede’s Cafe” documentary, spoke with the late Pat Cokewell’s family near the theatre’s main entrance.
The family was sporting vintage Mar-T Cafe t-shirts and brought a t-shirt from the first Twin Peaks Fan Festival held by New Line Cinema in August 1992. Pat’s family was tremendously helpful by providing photos from Pat’s archive to help complete Bran’s story.
Twin Peaks prop master Jeff Moore also attended the evening. Here, he is seen with Jessica Self from the North Bend Downtown Foundation and Blaine. A haze-covered Mount Si looms in the distance.
Scott grabbed a photo with his family standing next to the poster for The Double R Dream documentary.
Before going inside for the screenings, everyone involved with “The Double R Dream” and “From Thompson’s to Twede’s” documentaries posed for a group photo by the North Bend Marquee.
Once inside the North Bend Theatre, attendees were treated to plenty of slices of heavenly cherry pie direct from Twede’s Cafe down the street.
Twede’s Cafe owners Rachel and Max grabbed beverages and hot buttery popcorn before the show began.
Jessica took a selfie with the Twede’s Cafe team – Ari, Anita and Rachel.
As Guests entered the theater, images flashed across the giant screen including the logo for the “We Live Inside a Dream” weekend.
Scott set up a small table with several of his Twin Peaks and David Lynch-themed books including his newest one, “The Road to David Lynch’s WILD AT HEART” (details available in this article).
Sam Burrows did a quick introduction for Scott who then set the stage for what folks would see during the next 90 minutes. The first two parts of “From Thompson’s to Twede’s” started the evening. The first part was created by Jared Lyon for the Neon Dream event in August 2023 when the red neon “RR” sign was added to Twede’s Cafe roadside sign. The second part is something Brian created in about four weeks. It traced the history of the diner from the 1960s to about 1997 when former owner Pat Cokewell sold the cafe to Kyle Twede. Parts 3-5 will debut at the theatre in mid-August 2027.
It was great seeing pie maker Garnett Cross and Pat Cokewell’s images on the theater’s silver screen. This shot is from a first season finale party held at Salish Lodge in May 1990.
It was also surreal to see myself projected on the giant screen – the same screen where David Lynch’s Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me was seen nearly 34 years ago.
DOUBLE R DREAM – LIVE Q&A SESSION AT THE NORTH BEND THEATRE
After both documentaries concluded, the stage was set with five director’s chairs and microphones. In the video above, you can see a reply of both Sam Burrows and Scott Ryan’s introductions along with a 32-minute discussion from panel members held after “The Double R Dream” was shown.
During our discussion, we reminisced about memories of first visits to Twede’s Cafe. I also asked Max and Rachel how (and why) they decided to go into the restaurant business. The conversation continued with thoughts around small town diners and the important role they play in communities across America.
Scott expanded on his commentary in the documentary about how fulfilling it was to work at Twede’s Cafe for a week. He didn’t have to fight A.I. bots which is a regular occurrence. Brian shared a detail that didn’t make it into the film because we were unable to locate photos. In the late 1960s, Frank Marsolais, then owner of the Mar-T Cafe, introduced a “Bali Hai Room” serving Asian and Polynesian-inspired dishes.
We closed the session by answering a handful of questions from audience members.
This was a wonderful evening for the community of North Bend. Even Mayor Mary Miller was in attendance for the screenings.
Upon leaving the theatre, I noticed the marquee had already changed to an advertisement for Friday’s movie for the “We Live Inside a Dream” event. It’s David Lynch’s 2001 classic, Mulholland Drive, which would be shown beginning at 7:00 p.m.
To close out the night, I stopped at Smokey Joe’s in Snoqualmie while on the way back to the Roadhouse. This local bar served as the film location for Elk Point #9 Bar in Part 14 of Twin Peaks: The Return. I ordered a Rainier in a bottle which was a nod to The Power and The Glory bar seen in Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me.
In Lynch’s 1992 film, a camera pans across a cigarette covered dance floor as the scene in Canada concludes. Two Rainier Beer bottles are seen among the debris. It’s become a tradition for me to enjoy a bottle or two when in Snoqualmie Valley.
I heard there was a potential to see a meteor shower so I drove back toward North Bend after my Rainier Beer. The elk field along Highway 202 seemed like a good place to potentially see them. Sadly, I didn’t catch a single shooting star but I did take this nighttime photo of elk in the shadow of Mount Si. A roadside construction sign kept flashing casting an orange hue over the scene. I couldn’t see the elk as it was incredibly dark, yet I could hear them rustling in the grass as I took several long exposure shots.
All said, August 13 was a special day for Twin Peaks fans like myself. I’m grateful to Scott Ryan and Brian Kursar for asking me to be involved.
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