In Twin Peaks Part 2 on Showtime, there is a moment when Special Agent Dale Cooper looks out from the flowing curtains of the Red Room. In this scene, he spies Mr. C’s car driving through a desert landscape. I first identified the spot in June 2017 and visited the location more than three years later in September 2020.
MAPPING THE LOCATION
The location Cooper sees from the Red Room is around 3686 Soledad Canyon Road in Acton, California. The approximate coordinates are 34°27’06.9″N 118°12’10.7″W.
The scene was mostly like captured either on October 28, 2015 – the day the car crash scene was shot – or the following day October 29 (leaning toward the later based on the way the sun was positioned in the scene).
To get the aerial shot, the crew probably used a bucket truck or high reach.
FINDING THE LOCATION
To find the location, I looked for various clues in the scene such as the yellow Horse Crossing sign, white markers on the side of the road, and the trees or bushes.
The desert landscape of Southern California easily looks the same. Fortunately trees, mountains and road signs don’t change through the passage of time.
Once the clues were established, the next step was endlessly scrolling through street view on Google Maps until I found the spot that matched.
I announced my findings on June 4, 2017 shortly after identifying the location of Mr. C’s car crash from Part 3.
VISITING THE LOCATION
On September 20, 2020, I traveled out to the California desert to photograph this location.
The road is seen twice in the episode. The first time Cooper looks out, Mr. C’s car is still pretty far down the road. He’s coming from the direction of where the car crash scene was shot.
The second look shows Mr. C’s car near the horse crossing caution sign.
Here is the same spot on September 20, 2020. I didn’t have access to a high reach so you get the street view.
We’ll see this spot again in Part 3 when Mr. C is shown driving along the desert highway just before the car crash.
