Forks Washington on the Olympic Peninsula

A large section (20 blocks) of the AIDS Memorial Quilt will be on display in Forks from March 1-6, 2010.  The display is located at the Forks High School Auxiliary Gym, 261 South Spartan Avenue.  The goal of the AIDS Quilt project is to provide a creative means for remembrance and healing, to effectively illustrate the enormity of the AIDS pandemic, to increase awareness of HIV and AIDS throughout the general public, to assist others in providing education on the prevention of HIV infection, and to raise funds for community-based AIDS Service Organizations (ASO's).  Volunteers are needed to help with the quilt display--please contact the Forks Chamber of Commerce today at 360-374-2531 (or toll-free at 1-800-443-6757) or by This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it to get further information about how you can participate.

Have you ever heard of a community that rallies each year to provide a scholarship for every graduating senior who applies for one?

It happens right here in Forks and LaPush with the Quillayute Valley Scholarship Auction--and over a million dollars have been raised so far!  The idea is to help jump-start students' careers with some cash to offset college or vocational/technical school expenses.  This year's event happens March 20-21 (coinciding with the New Moon DVD release festivities that weekend), so make plans to be there!  Everyone is welcome at this fun event.

This little trail has something for everyone!

• Wide, level and only about 0.3 mile long
• Located in Klahowya Campground--right off US Highway 101 at about milepost 212--convenient place for a quick break
• Borders scenic Sol Duc River--winds through old homestead site
• Crosses historic Snider-Jackson trail
• Interesting and informative interpretive signs along the way

→Our photo gallery slideshow takes you on a quick tour around this fun loop trail.

Forks is gearing up for the March 20th DVD release of New Moon. This article by Paige Dickerson, from today's Peninsula Daily News, highlights some of the activities being planned in Forks around this BIG event. We're especially looking forward to seeing all the locals appearing in the Twilight in Forks documentary, which is supposed to be part of the Special Edition New Moon DVD. Dazzled by Twilight (11 N. Forks Ave.) is ramping up the planning efforts with the Volturi Vampire Ball set for 8:00 pm, Friday, March 19th, at the Twilight Lounge (FKA the Vagabond Restaurant) right in Downtown Forks. There will be no entrance fee for this fun-sounding event! Twilight Central/Leppell's Flowers & Gifts (130 S. Spartan Ave.) is also planning some special events during the day on March 19th and running right up to the midnight release of the DVD. Other events and activities are in the works, so stay tuned, and make plans NOW to be in Forks March 19-21 to be part of the action!

The "Home of the Swans" sign at Forks' Swan House has been taken!  Yes, shocking, but true.  We're assuming local law enforcement is all over this apparent "TwiCrime," but if you have the sign--for whatever reason--just leave it at the Forks Chamber of Commerce Visitor Center (1411 S. Forks Ave.) and we'll get it back to the owners.  If anyone knows who has the sign, or has information about what happened to it, please contact the Forks Police Department (360-374-2223) and they'll take it from there.  Thanks!

 

You can see what you missed at the Twilight convention in Seattle this weekend by checking out these photos, taken by Thom Weinstein, from today's Seattle P-I.  The event appears to have been a success, based on these shots.  We'd love to hear from someone who was able to attend!

 

It's encouraging to see that the West End now has a paved 6-mile section of the Olympic Discovery Trail in place. Although it's still "closed for construction," this first-class section of trail extends through the forest from the Camp David Jr. Road end of the Spruce Railroad Trail, on Lake Crescent, to the top of Fairholm Hill. The Olympic Discovery Trail itself will eventually go the entire 100-mile distance from Port Townsend, through Sequim, Port Angeles, Joyce, Forks and LaPush, to the Pacific Ocean.

Well, we thought this video was pretty funny. It's a parody of Jay-Z and Alicia Keys' hit song, Empire State of Mind, with all kinds of clever Twilight and Forks rhymes and references thrown in. There's even a cameo from Cousin Itt in there. . . . It's just for fun--check it out! (May not be appropriate for all viewers.)

What a perfect way to start off the New Year!  This article from the Peninsula Daily News runs down some of the ice-hot local tourism statistics for 2009.  Among other things, the numbers show that over 70,000 people stopped in at our Forks Chamber of  Commerce Visitor Information Center last year.  That's about a 400% increase from the record we set in 2008!  Wow! Let's keep it going--now is an ideal time to plan a trip to Forks--there's more to see and do than ever before.  We're looking forward to setting new records in 2010.

Looks like just about everyone in Forks showed up for the casting call for the planned Forks reality TV show.  (We're up in Canada, so we missed all of the action!)  Check out the coverage at the Forks Forum site and in today's Peninsula Daily News.  We're assuming they're not talking about the "real" Forks that we know, so we're curious what, exactly, is planned.  Anyone have suggestions for Zig Gauthier, the Santa Monica, California, based television producer behind the project?

We're about to get the same weather technology here on the West End of the Olympic Peninsula that just about everybody else takes for granted--Doppler radar! This is a big deal for mariners and outdoorsmen, who rely on accurate weather information for their survival.  Up until now, the Olympic Mountains basically blocked the radar from Seattle, making it difficult to forecast our coastal weather.

A major rebuild of Forks High School is getting closer to reality.  This article from Paige Dickerson, in today's Peninsula Daily News, discusses some of the options being considered.  The Quillayute Valley School District is hopeful that funding will be available to preserve at least the historical facade from the original 1925 building.  More information is available at the QVSD website.

Twilight is coming to Showtime next month!  And just to keep it real, they stopped by Forks last week to shoot some special local footage to go along with the film when it opens January 23rd at 8:00 pm.  This photo shows Forks Chamber Director Marcia Bingham being interviewed by the Showtime crew at our Visitor Center.  Sorry about the rain, guys--hope your visit was okay otherwise!

An exciting local history project is being spearheaded by West End community leaders Bill and Kitty Sperry. The goal is to establish a kiosk with interpretive information commemorating the bicentennial of the shipwreck of the Sv. Nikolai. The Russian vessel Nikolai perished on Rialto Beach (just north of LaPush, near Ellen Creek) in 1808. Our North Olympic Peninsula coast is well known for the many shipwrecks that have occured along its rugged shoreline. The Nikolai's story is fascinating on a variety of levels, including the fact that it ties in seven separate nations:  Russia, Alutiiq, Makah, Quileute, Hoh, Hawaii and America. Learn more about it--including how you can participate in the project--at the Nikolai Shipwreck website.

Guess who's featured in the December Costco Connection magazine? Yup. It's Forks! The article, written by Stephanie E. Ponder, is actually very nicely done--thanks! Among other things, we like how they say whether the people they interview are Costco members. Maybe we should mention that Costco is a Forks Chamber of Commerce member. And it looks like someone at Costco enjoys puns. Good tines indeed! We appreciate the effort!