Fire Walk With Me... to the Twin Peaks Landmarks Waiting Just Outside Seattle

“The Great Northern Hotel” sits atop Snoqualmie Falls, just 45 minutes east of Seattle

Have you ever wanted to sit down at the Double R Diner with a damn fine cup of coffee? Or maybe take in the view of the gushing falls next to the Great Northern Hotel? Perhaps get a glimpse of Sheriff Truman’s retro Ford Bronco? While the titular town of David Lynch and Mark Frost’s mind-bending murder mystery series “Twin Peaks” may not exist in real life, a handful of landmarks and landscapes seen and used in the show are out there — and only a short drive from downtown Seattle.

Snoqualmie Falls

First up are the waterfalls seen in the show’s opening credits. The popular natural attraction, which gained international acclaim thanks to “Twin Peaks”, is located just 45 minutes outside Seattle and is easily accessible from the highway. The nearly 270-foot waterfall attracts over 1.5 million visitors on an annual basis, some of whom are likely hoping to catch a glimpse of the owls, which, as we know, are not what they seem.

The area has been home to the Snoqualmie People since before the record books existed — time immemorial, says the Wikipedias — who recognize the falls as a spiritual site, where the mists rising from the base are said to connect Heaven and Earth. For “Twin Peaks” fans, of course, they also elicit an auditory memory of a rhythmic “bum-bommm” that feels like home. (RIP Angelo Badalamenti.)

The Great Northern Hotel

Perched atop Snoqualmie Falls is the building fans of the show will easily recognize as the Great Northern Hotel, as much a character in the series as Agent Cooper, Sheriff Truman, or Leland Palmer. In reality, the “Great Northern” is the Salish Lodge & Spa, a luxury hotel owned by the Snoqualmie Tribe since October 2019.

I’d love to tell you what it was like walking through the lobby of the fictional Great Northern, or how it felt to dance and sing like a madman whose hair had recently gone white in Ben Horne’s office, but sadly, the Salish Lodge was only used for those iconic exterior shots. The “real” Great Northern — the Kiana Lodge, which was used for the fictional hotel’s interiors in the pilot episode — is actually found to the west of Seattle, across Puget Sound on the Kitsap Peninsula.

If you want to trek over that way, you can either drive south from the city and then head west through Tacoma and across the Tacoma Narrows Bridge, or take one of two ferries: the Bainbridge Island Ferry from downtown or the Edmonds-Kingston ferry up north. With either of the ferry options, a short drive after the boat ride is still required. But if you want to lay eyes on the inspiration for the Great Northern’s lobby and Ben Horne’s office, along with the beach where Laura Palmer’s body was discovered, it’s worth the trip.

The Double R Diner

Just a hop, jump, and a skip from Snoqualmie Falls is the town of North Bend, Washington, where the Double R Diner… er, Twede’s Cafe awaits. While you won’t find waitress Shelly or owner Norma behind the counter, stepping foot inside is like walking right into the world of “Twin Peaks”. With Double R signs decorating the wood-paneled walls, damn fine coffee and cherry pie featured on the menu, and a back hall filled with faux magazine covers featuring all your favorite characters, as well as photos of scenes from the show, Twede’s is a true shrine that every fan needs to see.

In addition to the heavy doses of nostalgia, the items on the menu aren’t half bad either. They serve breakfast, lunch, and dinner, with the highlight, in my opinion, being the array of specialty burgers on offer. I opted for the PB+J burger (which is exactly what it sounds like), but you’ve also got choices such as the Thai peanut burger, the bayou burger, and the German burger.

On the non-edible side of things, you’ve also got a selection of T-shirts, hoodies, tote bags, and coffee mugs you can potentially get your hands on.

Other Twin Peaks Landmarks

  • Twin Peaks Sheriff’s Station — Back up toward Snoqualmie Falls and the Salish Lodge is where you’ll find the building that was used as the Twin Peaks Sheriff’s Station. In real life, it houses DirtFish, a stuntman driving school, but there’s a decent chance you’ll see Sheriff Truman’s Bronco, Twin Peaks logo and all, parked on the property.

  • The Railroad Bridge — The Reinig Bridge, where missing girl, Ronette Pulaski, was found walking in a daze, is also located in Snoqualmie. The railroad tracks are long gone, however, and the bridge, now paved, is part of a jogging/bike trail.

  • The Bang Bang Bar/Roadhouse — In Fall City, just to the northwest of Snoqualmie, the building that provided the exterior shots for Twin Peaks’ favorite biker bar is still kickin’. The Roadhouse Restaurant & Inn, in operation since 1916, is more of a family-friendly joint in real life. The interiors of the Bang Bang Bar were shot in Seattle in what is now the Raisbeck Performance Hall at Cornish College of the Arts.

-LTH

North AmericaLogan T. Hansentravel, travel guide, travel advice, travel inspiration, travelspiration, travel ideas, travel recommendations, travel reviews, travel tips, travel planning, travel diary, travel bucket list, Washington, Washington State, Snoqualmie, Snoqualmie Falls, Twede's Cafe, North Bend, Seattle, Pacific Northwest, Twin Peaks, The Great Northern Hotel, damn fine cup of coffee, cherry pie, Double R Diner, Snoqualmie Valley, Snoqualmie Tribe, Fall City, Twede's, David Lynch, Mark Frost, Snoqualmie People, Angelo Badalamenti, The Great Northern, Salish Lodge & Spa, Salish Lodge, Ben Horne, Benjamin Horne, Sheriff Harry S. Truman, Sheriff Truman, Agent Dale Cooper, Agent Cooper, Puget Sound, Kitsap Peninsula, Bainbridge Island, Bainbridge Island Ferry, Edmonds-Kingston ferry, Tacoma, Tacoma Narrows Bridge, Laura Palmer, Leland Palmer, Double R, Twin Peaks Sheriff's Station, DirtFish, Reinig Bridge, Bang Bang Bar, The Roadhouse, The Roadhouse Restaurant & Inn, Cornish College of the Arts, Raisbeck Performance Hall, Ronette PulaskiComment