Thanks to writer Candice Vallantin and the Toronto-based Globe and Mail for this special Halloween feature about Forks. We're well-aware that Canada is home to hordes of Twilight fans--many of whom have already made the trek to Forks, WA. And no wonder, since we're only a 56 mi/90 km drive from Victoria, BC (via ferry). We enjoyed the article and appreciate the attention we're getting in Canada!

Hey, there’s another feature on Forks and the Twilight phenomena in today’s Seattle Times. The article attempts to weigh the pros and cons when a major pop phenomena involving vampires and werewolves happens in a small logging town–and it includes this fun video. We’re not exactly sure what the down-side of having lots of fun-loving, happy visitors to our community might be. Anyway, we’re loving it!

Opening day at the 2010 Olympic Games and the following Paralympic Games in Vancouver, BC, Canada, (226 mi/364 km from Forks) is just over 100 days away! And you can feel the excitement building with the Olympic Flame arriving from Greece and the Olympic Torch Relay beginning in Victoria this Friday morning. The Victoria Times Colonist has some good viewing tips if you’re heading up there for the festivities this weekend.

Wow! You’d expect to find huge t-shirt factories lining the streets out here in the West End of Washington State’s Olympic Peninsula, given the number of Forks and LaPush t-shirts available online. We’re not really sure who’s making these shirts, but we suspect most aren’t actually from around here.

We appreciate all of the attention–and the more the merrier–but there are locally produced Forks, LaPush and Twilight-related products available, including the Forks Chamber of Commerce’s own line of shirts and stickers. Your purchases help support community-minded Chamber activities, including operating this web site and our web cams, staffing our Visitor Information Center in Forks and funding scholarships for graduates of Forks High School and Quileute Tribal School.

But, just for fun, here’s a small sampling of some of the images available on t-shirts and other products out there:

The Olympic Peninsula Community Museum never ceases to amaze us. This colorful photograph of beautiful fall foliage in the Olympics, which is part of the Olympic National Park Flora collection, is just one small example of what you’ll find there. The online museum is organized into fascinating exhibits — each representing a different aspect of our richly diverse West End culture and history. While there are just too many worthwhile exhibits to mention, we particularly enjoyed learning more about the Mountaineers’ 1920 Outing to Mt. Olympus (what hardcores!); Fannie Taylor, Postmistress of Mora; and the Great Forks Fire of 1951. The archived images of Hoh Tribe Baskets and Artifacts also caught our eye. And that’s barely scratching the surface of what’s available at this interesting resource!

We’re pleased to announce the return of our “new and improved” photo galleries! The Chamber minions have been toiling mightily to set up new galleries with tons of new Forks and West End photos. We’re not done yet, but feel free to take a peek! We’ve split the galleries into two main sections, cleverly titled the Forks Photo Gallery and the Twilight Photo Gallery. Each leads to further galleries, so check ‘em out! And if you’ve got some cool photos of our area you’re willing to share, please This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it them to us for possible inclusion in our Visitors’ Photos gallery. Enjoy!

Fall means beautiful sunsets here on the Olympic Peninsula. This image of tonight’s sunset over the picturesque harbor in Port Angeles, our neighbors to the east, was captured from their webcam.

Special thanks to Tinsel Korey (who plays Emily Young in New Moon) for recently visiting our area. The photos show Tinsel at the “Treaty Line” between Forks and LaPush and with Chris Morganroth III. Hope you enjoyed your time here!

We got a kick out of this article about Forks in New York Times Travel. While the first impression of the article from everyone in town is likely to be “hey, it’s really not a two-stoplight town–it’s a one-stoplight town,” overall, Jane Margolies does a fine job of capturing the fun of Stephenie Meyer Day and the story of the Twilight frenzy here in Forks. We also enjoyed the slide show of nicely done local photos by Stuart Isett. Articles like this tend to make obvious the fact that Forks isn’t a secret any longer–but fall is a perfect time to visit without a lot of hoopla and Forks, LaPush and the West End continue to welcome all visitors. C’mon up and check us out!

Things are shaping up nicely for Stephenie Meyer Day Weekend 2009 in Forks and LaPush, which is just over 24 hours away!! There are a couple of things we failed to mention in our last post, so here are some additional tidbits of information. [ALSO, for a Friday, September 11, 2009, update, check out this article from the Peninsula Daily News.]

One exciting addition to the festivities is the appearance of Tinsel Korey, the talented actress playing Emily Young in New Moon. She will be appearing at various locations, including the bonfire with native storytelling taking place in LaPush, on First Beach, Saturday evening. Photo-ops and autographs will be available as part of the event. More information can be found in this article by Paige Dickerson from today’s Peninsula Daily News.

We are pleased to announce the schedule for Stephenie Meyer Day 2009, taking place right here in Forks on Bella’s Birthday weekend, September 12th and 13th. There are all kinds of events planned of interest to Twilight fans, including a bonfire with authentic Quileute storytelling on First Beach in LaPush, a showing of the new documentary Twilight in Forks - The Saga of the Real Town, and several musical events, including Mitch Hansen Band and Twilight Music Girls. And these fun events and activities are all in addition to the “usual stuff,” like touring Forks and LaPush, sneaking around in dark forests taking pictures and shopping at the many great retail outlets available. See you there!

The Makah Nation invites you on “A Journey to Wellness” at the 86th Annual Makah Days this weekend, August 28th, 29th and 30th, 2009, in Neah Bay. There is an impressive slate of events scheduled, including fireworks on Friday night, traditional salmon bakes at noon on Saturday and Sunday and–of course–the Grand Parade kicks off at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday morning.

It’s shaping up to be a beautiful weekend here in the West End. Accuweather currently forecasts the weather as “mostly sunny and delightful.” Come join the fun and help celebrate the Makahs’ rich heritage. See you there!

Do you like waterfalls? Then you’re going to love the Olympic Peninsula–home to over 20 major waterfalls. You’ll find all of the details at this cool new website, The Olympic Peninsula Waterfall Trail. The site uses the “trail” concept to connect 24 waterfalls in our area–most easily accessible. It provides photos, descriptions, videos, driving directions, GPS coordinates and other useful information about the various falls. This well-designed and executed site has been recently recognized by New York Times Travel and the Gadling travel site. Whether you visit one or two–or all 24–you have to include waterfalls in your Olympic Peninsula trip planning.

There are a couple of new books out right now focusing on Twilight and Forks that you really need to check out! Both are available at our Forks Chamber of Commerce Visitor Center in Forks as well as at our online store. What a perfect gift for your favorite Twihard (or for yourself, for that matter . . .)

This video/slide-show, created by a recent visitor from Kansas, does an outstanding job of highlighting the places to see and things to do in our area when you visit. We’re glad you had so much fun out here in Forks, LaPush and the West End. Thanks for the well-done video, Kimi!

The 2nd Annual Rainforest Run, a motorcycle rally and music festival based right here in sunny Forks, WA, is happening this weekend, August 14, 15 and 16, 2009! This is our area’s premier motorcycle and music festival, with fun for everyone. This year’s event takes place at the Highway 110 Business Park, a historic local mill recently renovated into a multi-faceted business and community hub. It’s about a mile north of town, just off of Higway 101, right there at LaPush Road. Other changes for this year include an expanded musical line-up, with hot bands playing all weekend long! Get all of the details, including registration information, at the event web site. Whether you and your friends or family roll in on Harleys, Vespas, or even in a mini-van, you’re going to enjoy being part of the Rainforest Run!

Forks continues to be “front and center” in the area of Twilight tourism! Thanks to Paige Dickerson and the Peninsula Daily News for another great article describing this incredible phenomena and its impact on Forks, LaPush and the West End. Despite our popularity, our community continues to wholeheartedly welcome Twilighters, along with all visitors. Come check out what everyone is talking about about! [We're still wondering what the answer is to the question about whether it's safe to camp with the "vampire problem" we have out here . . .]

See, here’s proof that everyone in Forks isn’t in bed by midnight on Sunday night! Forks Police report that around 2:00 a.m. on Monday morning, someone attempted to burn down our now-famous Forks High School sign. A bench/planter box located nearby was also burned. Damage was minimal, but police are looking for a person of interest who was seen in the area. Anyone with relevant information should contact the Forks Police Department.
Further details on the alleged arson can be found in the Forks Forum and the Peninsula Daily News.