When Special Agent Dale Cooper seeks accommodations in Twin Peaks, Sheriff Harry S. Truman offers to get him a great rate at the clean and reasonably priced Great Northern Hotel. This Setting the Stage article takes a closer look at the exteriors scenes of this iconic hotel from the first three seasons of Twin Peaks.
WHERE IS THE GREAT NORTHERN HOTEL IN TWIN PEAKS LOCATED?
According to the “Twin Peaks Access Guide to the Town,” the Great Northern Hotel is located on Great Northern Highway above White Tail Falls.
In reality, The Salish Lodge & Spa, located at 6501 Railroad Ave in Snoqualmie, Washington, sits above Snoqualmie Falls. The hotel exteriors were captured at this location, while the interiors were shot at either Kiana Lodge (Pilot Episode) or on a set in Southern California.
BRIEF HISTORY OF THE SALISH LODGE & SPA
Built in 1916, the hotel began as an eight-room inn known as The Snoqualmie Falls Lodge. The hotel was perched above the 268-foot Snoqualmie Falls, one of the most popular natural spots to visit in Washington State second only to Mount Rainier.
The building was completely remodeled and reopened as The Salish Lodge in 1988. Today, it is owned by the Snoqualmie Tribe who purchased the property from the Muckleshoot Indian Tribe in November 2019.
For this story, I’m focusing only on the hotel as I’m saving the falls for a separate “Setting the Stage” story.
THE GREAT NORTHERN HOTEL IN THE PILOT
The Great Northern Hotel is first seen early in the Pilot Episode. The establishing shot pans from the falls up to the hotel perched on a ridge.
The scene cuts to an establishing shot of the hotel’s sign. This shot (or a version of it) will be seen a few more times in the series. You can see the original sign prop on the fantastic Twin Peaks Props website.
Audrey Horne is then seen leaving the hotel and getting into a Mercedes-Benz 600. This is the only time this closer view of hotel is seen in the series. As she enters the car, look for snow covered mountains in the distance (which is actually Mount Si).
The stone bollards from this scene that once graced the parking lot are now gone. Read more about them in this article.
A similar establishing shot from earlier in the episode is used again before the scene with Sylvia, Audrey and Johnny Horne. The camera panned in the earlier shot while this one is static (probably from the tail end of the earlier take).
THE GREAT NORTHERN HOTEL IN EPISODE 1.001
The same shot opens Episode 1001 just before the scene cuts to the interior of Room 315, home to Special Agent Dale Cooper. Colors look slightly different than the Pilot Episode (warm hues versus cool tones).
THE GREAT NORTHERN HOTEL IN EPISODE 1.003
The sun shines on the hotel at the beginning of episode 1.003 as the camera pans down from the hotel to White Tail Falls.
The sign makes another appearance in episode 1.003 (before the scene where Audrey Horne spies on her father’s office). This image seems to come from a longer take used in a later episode.
THE GREAT NORTHERN HOTEL IN EPISODE 1.005
The first nighttime establishing shot of the hotel is used in episode 1.005. The short scene shows a car – most likely the Mercedes Benz 600 from the Pilot – parking in front of the hotel. The shot was captured just after sunset based on the colors of the sky.
THE GREAT NORTHERN HOTEL IN EPISODE 1.006
Episode 1.006 opens with a moody nighttime shot of the hotel and falls bathed in blue. This is the only time this shot is used in the series, and it’s the last look at the hotel from the first season.
THE GREAT NORTHERN HOTEL IN EPISODE 2.001
Episode 2.001 of season two opens with a nighttime shot of The Great Northern Hotel then cuts to Agent Cooper laying on the floor of Room 315. This shot will be seen many times throughout the remainder of the second and third seasons.
The establishing shot of the hotel and falls from the pilot and episode 1.001 is reused in episode 2.001.
THE GREAT NORTHERN HOTEL IN EPISODE 2.002
Another pan up from the falls to the hotel opens episode 2.002. When the pan stops, look for part of an overhang in the upper left corner of the image. You can read more about this now-demolished observation deck in this story on Twin Peaks Blog.
THE GREAT NORTHERN HOTEL IN EPISODE 2.004
Episode 2.004 uses the same establishing shot from episode 2.002. The pan up from the falls appears slightly longer and we can see more of the observation deck overhang at the end of scene.
A nighttime shot first seen in episode 2.001 is seen again in episode 2.004. This time the colors look slightly different from the aforementioned episode.
THE GREAT NORTHERN HOTEL IN EPISODE 2.005
A “morning” establishing shot opens episode 2.005. The shot appears to be captured at sunset (versus sunrise) using a tinted polarized filter (hat tip to fellow Bookhouse Boy Travis Blue for the extra set of eyes). The cars appears to be in similar spots, including the Mercedes Benz 600 parked at the middle right of the screen. This could mean the shot was part of a longer take which was first used in episode 1.005.
Episode 2.005 also contains a unique scene only used once – a pan from across Railroad Avenue to the hotel parking lot. This shot provides a fantastic look at the area from the late 1980s.
This image from September 13, 2019 shows how much has grown around the area; all those trees weren’t present when the Pilot episode was shot.
The pan shot from the road ends on the hotel’s sign. This sequence reminds me of the shot from episode 1.003, which means it was most likely filmed when the Pilot episode was shot.
THE GREAT NORTHERN HOTEL IN EPISODE 2.006
The nighttime shot first seen in episodes 2.001 and 2.004 appears again in Episode 2006 (albeit the color now has an orangish hue). This pan down shot from the hotel to the falls is used before Agent Cooper returns Ben Horne’s briefcase of cash.
The episode ends with the same nighttime shot, only this time the end credits are placed over the image.
THE GREAT NORTHERN HOTEL IN EPISODE 2.007
A slightly darker pan shot first seen in the Pilot was used in episode 2.007 (prior to Mike the One Armed Man is seen in the hotel lobby).
Episode 2007 contains a pan of the hotel front at dusk, similar to the scene used in Episode 1005.
THE GREAT NORTHERN HOTEL IN EPISODE 2.012
In episode 2.012, the hotel exterior returns following a four episode absence. This slightly darker image of the exterior is the first time it was used in the series.
THE GREAT NORTHERN HOTEL IN EPISODE 2.013
Another pan up from the falls shot is used in episode 2.013, which was first seen in episode 2.002.
THE GREAT NORTHERN HOTEL IN EPISODE 2.014
Windom Earle knocks out the power in town in episode 2.014, so The Great Northern Hotel is seen without lights. This establishing shot cuts to Audrey and Bobby discussing ice in a room full of candles.
Ben Horne’s singing accompanies a later scene in episode 2.014. The camera pans down from the hotel to the falls, which was first used in episode 1.003.
The nighttime shot from episode 1.005 is reused in episode 2.014.
There is a nice transition of a fire place reflection in Thomas Eckhardt’s sunglasses that fades to a nighttime exterior of the hotel. As mentioned, this nighttime images is seen multiple times in the second and third season of Twin Peaks.
THE GREAT NORTHERN HOTEL IN EPISODE 2.015
Episode 2.015 also has a cool transition from a close up of the falls that fades to the hotel exterior at night. A similar pan down to the falls follows this transition before cutting to an interior scene of Cooper looking at Caroline’s photograph.
THE GREAT NORTHERN HOTEL IN EPISODE 2.016
The same pan from the falls to the hotel from episode 2.002 is recycled for episode 2.016 (noticeable because of the overhang in the upper left corner of the second image).
THE GREAT NORTHERN HOTEL IN EPISODE 2.017
The nighttime establishing shot from episode 1.005 and 2.014 returns for episode 2.017.
THE GREAT NORTHERN HOTEL IN EPISODE 2.018
The sign also makes another appearance in episode 2.018. It appears to be the same image from episode 1.003.
For these next images, I’m assuming they are supposed to take place outside The Great Northern Hotel (despite the absence of the hotel building). Episode 2.018 recycled part of a deleted scene from the first season of Johnny Horne shooting buffalo targets with a bow and arrow.
The footage was most likely captured in California (haven’t identified the location … yet). The deleted scene from episode 1.001 is titled “27 Going on 6,” which featured Dr. Jacoby, Sheriff Truman, and Agent Cooper.
I also included this exterior shot of Donna Hayward exiting her pink 1960 Rambler Six Super. This scene was also most likely shot somewhere in Southern California. Donna is seen entering The Great Northern Hotel after she exits her car.
THE GREAT NORTHERN HOTEL IN EPISODE 2.020
Episode 2.020 is the final time we see the exterior of The Great Northern Hotel in the second season. The shot – a pan up from the falls to the hotel – is again a recycled clip from episode 2.013.
THE GREAT NORTHERN HOTEL IN TWIN PEAKS: THE RETURN – PART 1
Twenty-five years later, we are treated to a gorgeous image of the hotel and falls in Twin Peaks Part 1 on Showtime. This is the only time this scene appears in Season 3. I love it!
THE GREAT NORTHERN HOTEL IN TWIN PEAKS: THE RETURN
For Parts 7, 9, 10, 14, and 17 of Twin Peaks: The Return on Showtime, the same nighttime establishing shot from episodes 2.001, 2.004, 2.006, 2.014 and 2.015 are used.
THE GREAT NORTHERN HOTEL IN TWIN PEAKS: THE RETURN – PART 14
I close this article with four images of Twin Peaks: The Return Part 14 on Showtime.
The scene takes place with Freddie Sykes and James Hurley sitting on a loading dock behind The Great Northern Hotel. Freddie reluctantly tells James how he received the green glove.
The loading dock scene was shot on March 8, 2016 at the Lanterman Development Center in Pomona, California. This was the final time we would see the exterior of The Great Northern Hotel in Twin Peaks.
