The Real Twin Peaks Is Wonderful and Strange

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The Real Twin Peaks Is Wonderful and Strange

Photographer Reto Sterchi traveled to the real world in honor of the updated season

When my plane landed in Seattle, Washington, I took it as a good sign that the man sitting across the isle from me was wearing a black suit with a black tie and had his hair slicked back. I didn't see his face for the duration of the trip, so it was easy to imagine that he was Agent Dale Cooper (Kyle MacLachlan). Sitting next to my potential Coop on the plane was perfect beginning to my weekend in the world of Twin Peaks.

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Roughly 25 years ago, David Lynch and Mark Frost revolutionized TV. In the three decades since, Twin Peaks has become a cult favorite. What reads on paper like a crime-soap becomes a mysterious and surreal experience on the screen. The style, in which the everyday and the macabre, the American small town idyll and the metaphysical killer BOB, collide in an unusual way. The series, which deals with the mysterious murder of high-school queen Laura Palmer, takes place in the fictional city "Twin Peaks." Locations such as the Double R Diner, the Great Northern Hotel, or the waterfalls are all mainstays of the series. Almost all the sites in the photos below were taken in the Snoqualmie Valley in Washington, the town where the iconic show was filmed.

On the topic of discovering Snoqualmie Valley, Mark Frost once told Entertainment Weekly that, he and Lynch had "literally found the place that [they'd] written [about]." Like the setting of the show, it is a place both wonderful and strange. Here are some photos of the real Twin Peaks.

In the parking lot of Twede's Cafe in North Bend at night

L: Buck bust inside the Kiana Lodge in Poulsbo, WA. R: Ice cream cone model, inside the Twede's Cafe which doubled as the RR Diner in the show.

The location where Laura Palmers body is found, wrapped in plastic in the pilot. They shot in 1989 and the log is still here.

The branch where the bird sits, in the credit sequence. Lynch's use of music and imagery was groundbreaking for TV at the time.

L: One of the Totem poles outside the Kiana Lodge in Poulsbo, WA. R: Rainbow on the way to Snoqualmie.

Contact sheet allegedly shot by Richard Beymer who plays Benjamin Horne. Found on the wall at Twede's.

L: A puppet wearing the waitress uniform made famous by the show, R: Marian just started working at Twede's. She has seen "some" of Twin Peaks.

A hand drawn mural on top of the wood paneled wall at Twede's. The mural was painted by the set dressers for the filming of the new season.

The scene at the bar at Twede's

Nichole, who works at Twede's and says fans come by every day.

L: Cyndi who moved here 4 years ago from Las Vegas and works at Twede's. R: Someone wrote "Cooper is a babe" on Reinig Bridge. One of the filming locations.

Mary Hütter, 41, at work at Compass, a bicycle shop in North Bend. Her and her friend Amber Sievers, diehard fans of the show, are recreating the famous Red Room for the new season.

Low hanging clouds and frequent showers are signature Washington weather.

L: Snoqualmie Falls. The Salish Lodge in Snoqualmie doubled for the Great Northern Hotel. R: A replica of Agent Coopers room key. Found in the gift store at the Salish Lodge.

L: Coffee cups at the gift shop of the Salish Lodge, printed with Agent Cooper's signature one liner "a damn fine cup of coffee". R: A replica of the police truck used in the show.

View from Lucy's work station. Lucy is the secretary at the sheriffs office where a lot of the show takes place.

Entrance to Twede's Cafe in North Bend. It doubles as the RR Diner.

Famous Cherry Pie at Twede's Cafe.

L: Another patron of Twedes. R: Deer sculpture outside the Kiana Lodge in Poulsbo, WA.

L: Ticket stub from when Mary Hütter went to see Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me in 1992. R: Fan made calendar. This page shows Mary as Laura Palmer.

Mary at her home in North Bend. In the background her son Henry.

The town of Snoqualmie organized a screening of "Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me" at one of the original locations.

The neighborhood that doubled as Laura Palmers home. Reflected in the window is the sunset.

Laura Palmers bedroom. The Rebers guest room. They keep it as close to the original as possible. They even made a BOB mannequin to complete the illusion that you're in the show. A visiting friend refused to sleep in it.

Mary Reber, to be seen along with her husband in the new season of Twin Peaks. She says "David Lynch is the nicest guy to work with."

Laura Palmers yearbook picture in the Rebers living room. Many key scenes of the original series took place in this very room.

According to a local source, David Lynch would eat ice cream at Scott's Dairy Freeze during the filming of the new season.

The alley behind Twede's.