“Diane, 11:30 a.m., February 24. Entering the town of Twin Peaks. It’s 5 miles south of the Canadian border, 12 miles west of the state line. Never seen so many trees in my life. As W.C. Fields would say, ‘I’d rather be here than Philadelphia.'”
Enter Special Agent Dale Cooper. He rides into town in a 1981 Dodge Diplomat. The entire monologue runs 1m 32s. Most of the scene – 1m 23s – is one continuous shot of Cooper driving while speaking to Diane via his tape recorder.
For Twin Peaks Day on February 24, 2018, I wanted to find the location where Cooper drove into town.
WHERE IS THE LOCATION FOR AGENT COOPER’S DRIVE INTO TWIN PEAKS?
The scene was broken up into two locations – 396th Dr. SE and 41433 SE Reinig Rd. in Snoqualmie, WA.
Originally, it took me several hours in the middle of the night to trace his path using Google Maps. The current Street View images on Google Maps of the Snoqualmie area are from August 2008. The Pilot episode was shot in February/March 1989, so much of the landscape has grown making identifying land markers slightly more difficult.
The scenes were captured on March 1, 1989. The crew shot Cooper’s car passing the “Welcome to Twin Peaks sign” first then moved over to 396th Drive South East by the sawmill.
396th DR. SE, SNOQUALMIE, WA
When searching for locations, I look for clues in the background. This clue was originally pointed out by the now defunct InTwinPeaks website (we miss you!).
If you look carefully, you’ll spot a smoke stack of the Packard Saw Mill (a.k.a. Weyerhauser Mill) in the background. This means they must have shot the scene somewhere near the Mill and Twin Peaks Sheriff’s Station.
Knowing the first part of Cooper’s dialogue was 1m 23s, I needed to find a stretch of road that would allow for a continuous shot. I looked at the aerial map of the location and figured it must be 396th Dr. SE.
I watched the scene multiple times, looking for certain markers such as a telephone pole, signs, trees, etc.
I then proceeded to follow 396th Dr. SE on Google Maps street view, pointing the camera to the left. I tried matching those markers from the scene with images I saw on Street View. As mentioned, much of the area is overgrown so it was a challenge finding things that matched.
My first breakthrough was an electric/telephone pole. After finding that item, I knew I was on the correct path. I continued my Street View journey, matching items from the scene with the location.
The result:
41433 SE Reinig Rd.
The scene cuts at the 1m 23s mark to a different location close to 396 Dr. SE but in the opposite direction. The white marker is where the original scene ended while the red marker is where the next scene is shot.
You may recognize it as the Welcome to Twin Peaks sign spot seen in the opening credits.
The opening credits scene is a static shot – notice how the water isn’t moving next time you watch it. However, the shot of Cooper’s car driving past the sign is vibrant and full of movement.
UPDATE – TWIN PEAKS DAY 2020
For Twin Peaks Day 2020 on February 24, I published this YouTube video on the Twin Peaks Blog channel. During my visit to Snoqualmie on January 24, 2020, I recorded Agent Cooper’s route with my Sony RX-100 held out the car window.
Fun Facts:
Here are some fun facts Agent Cooper shared with Diane during his drive into town:
- Temperature was 54 Degrees on a slightly overcast day. Weatherman said rain.
- Mileage was 79, 345, gauge was on reserve.
- Lunch was $6.31 at the Lamplighter Inn on Highway 2 near Lewis Fork. Cooper had a tuna fish sandwich, slice of cherry pie and a cup of coffee.
- Cooper was on his way to meet Sheriff Harry Truman at Calhoun Memorial Hospital to see Ronnette who was in Intensive Care.
