A little backstory:
A few months ago a friend and I planned to take a roadtrip from Southern California to Portland to visit some family and friends. This was before we even knew that was going to be a Twilight movie made. Needless to say, we were pretty excited when it turned out we were going be there while they were filming!
Monday 3/31/08:
Found out about the filming in Oxbow park . Since it was out last official day in Portland we decided to check it out. Oregon has some crazy roads, we got a little lost driving out there, but once we saw the first bright yellow SUMMIT sign we knew we were headed in the right direction. We kept following the signs- it lead us down some really steep and windy roads. We finally saw the crew parking sign and drove into the lot. There was nobody there so we figured they must be filming further in the park. We paid our four dollars at the machine, figuring if nothing it would still be a nice drive. The further into the park we got the more and more beautiful the scenery became. It was, seriously, the greenest place I’ve ever been.
We came around a corner and saw this crazy thick fog spreading out through the trees from a long snaking black tube. It was absolutely breathtaking! We were shocked that they were filming right off the main road! You could see cameras and lights right through the trees on the left hand side of the road. They were at the top of what looked like a shallow ravine that was sectioned off with yellow caution tape. We were right behind a shuttle van at this point, the driver was talking to a guy directing traffic on the road. I pulled up and asked him if we would be able to drive through. He said sure, just be careful driving through the fog. We cruised through the set really slowly, taking pictures like crazy. On the right hand side were wardrobe or makeup trailers labeled with different character's/stand-in's names. The name tags I was able to see were “Bella Stunt Double,” “Edward Stunt Double,” “Mike Newton,” “Tyler,” and “Katie Power.” The larger trailers were set up in the clearing on the left. Further down on the right was craft services and a lunch area. Finally we drove past a Sheriff (who was chatting away with a crew member).
Feeling super brave, we parked at the restrooms just past the last check point and decide to walk in as far as they would let us. We drove almost 1,000 miles to get here, so we weren’t going to let this opportunity pass us by. We stroll right passed the Sheriff who doesn’t even look at us and walk pass the craft services tent. A few yards ahead, walking toward us I notice a thin girl with sort of brown/burgundy hair. I do a total double take as I realize that it is Kristen Stewart. We make eye contact and I smile at her. She kind of smiles back, but we just let her go- we didn’t stop her for a picture (she was probably on the way to lunch). As soon as she passes us Rose and whisper to each other, “*oh my edward*- THAT WAS KRISTEN STEWART!!! Ooohh, she's so pretty!! Okay, stay cool, keep walking.”
There are lots of crew members walking around, but no one is really paying any attention to us. I guess we got a little close to the actual set (we were barely passed the base camp sign) when we heard quick footsteps behind us and a guy say, “Ladies! Ladies! Can I help you?” Shoot, someone spotted us. We told him we were just trying to see what was going on. He informed us that it was a closed set and we really shouldn’t be there. Okay, so we turned around to walk back. He was friendly and didn't seem annoyed, so it was no big deal. It’s not like we were even close to where the cameras were. It didn't even occur to me until after we were back in the car to ask him what scene they were filming.
We walk back to the car and have a mini freak-out once we are inside. After we calm down, we realize that we are going to have to turn around and drive back through the set since my car was low on gas and we didn’t know how much further the exit of the park was. I drive back through the base camp area and right next to where they were filming we had to stop behind another one of the big white vans. People start unloading tons of food containers from the van and since the road was narrow and pretty much whited out from the fog I couldn’t go around it. So, we sit back to wait and try to see what was going on in the trees. All of a sudden, we hear someone yell “Action” and through the trees about 20 or so feet away I see ROBERT PATTINSON in all his Edward glory! He walked slowly toward the camera and kind of looked up into the trees. I started hitting Rose, saying “LOOK! LOOK! It’s him! Holy crap!” I took a really fast picture through the windshield- and even though it was hard to see through the glare and fog, you can still tell it’s him! There were lots of other crew members standing around in the trees, so in the rest of the pictures they were blocking Rob.
At this point the van in front of us had started moving, so I had to follow it out. The fog was so thick that I couldn’t see the road at all- I had to blindly follow the van hoping I wouldn’t hit anyone or anything. There were other cars waiting to go through the checkpoint when we drove passed- it’s right on the main road, so I’m sure they were going to have a pretty steady flow of traffic all day.
I honestly don't think it was the meadow scene, either. It was too dark and ominous looking. Probably parts of the running through the forest scene since Kirsten Stewert was on set that day.
Here are some of the better pictures from that day- I tried to clean some of them up in photoshop (the fog made it really hard to take good shots). Hope you enjoy, I know I sure did!!
First, some ambiance
The first thing we saw. That black tube was responsible for the fog.
Behind the van
Some crew members and equipment
Base Camp
Trailers (sorry for the blur- they say "Bella Stunt Dbl" and "Edward Stunt Dbl"
The money shot. Right in the center is Robert Pattinson! I took this through my windshield, so I had the glare and the fog working against me. He was beautiful, even from a distance.
More crew and equipment
Not that any of these pictures are of great quality, but if you want to use any of them please pm me first. Thanks!
--metaphysical_muse
