Thank you, Trinitee. Honestly, would not have ended up at the back door if I could've helped it. I did want to laugh a bit about my misadventure however. Which is why I wanted to describe my experience in depth, just to let people know what that area is like. Not sure if I was just emotionally exhausted, since I was told prior to my visit that my mother was close to death or I was picking up some sort of "haunted space" vibe surrounding the area. I would still say it is a very creepy area at night. Creepy as in something out of an August Derleth or H.P. Lovecraft story.
My sister and her husband live in Lewiston. He grew up there. I texted her yesterday and she said about the stairs, "It is spooky around there, especially at night. I remember those stairs when I first moved here, and Randy said it was always creepy." I believe my sister has lived there since the late 1980s.
My sister worked for the Public Defenders Office in Lewiston many, many years ago, and she says Jackie Nichols is her hero (the detective from Asotin County featured in "Cold Valley"). I did not know this, but Jackie was also involved in the Rachel Anderson case. I'm not sure whether my sister has met her in person. I'll ask her today. I think she said she had met her, but that could just be wishful thinking. I think Jackie Nichols is awesome.
. (I still haven't had time, but will soon.) I distinctly remember Jackie Nichols negotiating the stairs with a flashlight (and maybe production lights) and then turning them off so the viewer can see how truly DARK the location is. 
Thank you, Trinitee. Honestly, would not have ended up at the back door if I could've helped it. I did want to laugh a bit about my misadventure however. Which is why I wanted to describe my experience in depth, just to let people know what that area is like. Not sure if I was just emotionally exhausted, since I was told prior to my visit that my mother was close to death or I was picking up some sort of "haunted space" vibe surrounding the area. I would still say it is a very creepy area at night. Creepy as in something out of an August Derleth or H.P. Lovecraft story.
My sister and her husband live in Lewiston. He grew up there. I texted her yesterday and she said about the stairs, "It is spooky around there, especially at night. I remember those stairs when I first moved here, and Randy said it was always creepy." I believe my sister has lived there since the late 1980s.
My sister worked for the Public Defenders Office in Lewiston many, many years ago, and she says Jackie Nichols is her hero (the detective from Asotin County featured in "Cold Valley"). I did not know this, but Jackie was also involved in the Rachel Anderson case. I'm not sure whether my sister has met her in person. I'll ask her today. I think she said she had met her, but that could just be wishful thinking. I think Jackie Nichols is awesome.
Google Maps
GOOGLE Maps Satellite view of the former Lewiston Civic Theater, now condemned, at 800 6th Ave. If you GOOGLE the address now, it will take you to 832 Main St, which is its current location, but not the theater Kristina Nelson and Jacqueline Miller were familiar with when they were alive.
I was trying to map out the girls line of travel, but I couldn't find the Theater's prior address in any of the articles about the murders so I ended up trolling GOOGLE Maps Satellite view in the area of Normal Hill until I found it. I think the address is mentioned in "Cold Valley" but I couldn't remember what it was and hadn't had time to watch it again when inspiration struck
I THINK this is the bottom of the stairs the girls took (although this is broad daylight, obviously).
Google Maps
This route would have taken the girls through or around Pioneer Park. Following the sidewalk takes you to F Street and Main Street is the next street over. Again, will have to rewatch "Cold Valley" for exact locations. I do recall the grocery store is no longer there.
I gotta agree with you, Wilma_W. I was also thinking it was the best thing I'd seen for years, true crime or otherwise. I plan on buying a copy too.
I guess I would be the one that doesn't think that way, It is ALWAYS the small peaceful towns that serial killers come from -
I did find his story a little odd as well for some of those reasons, but also for others. First of all, that's a serious injury and a weird scene to see on the side of the road. With such a scene, why didn't the witness stop to help? That seems overly callous/ intentionally negligent for someone who is claiming to have been concerned enough to have a bad feeling about it and then call it in later. Usually if people are that concerned at the scene, they stop to at least ask and see if they can help. People don't always stop to help for various reasons (depending where you are or where you live) but if someone is visibly hurt in a rural area, people usually stop to help in my personal experience because there is so little around in terms of resources. Also, most small towns (much like this one) brag about that kind of unified and helping hand mentality. So, already he's going against that grain. Explaining away that he felt that the guy in the van was going to help her on his own was a bit off in my opinion. Accepting that someone is going to handle an unconscious/injured person on their own with no help (when they could easily receive help from passerbys) is strange. And, you mentioned the "big grin", which also caught me off guard that he noticed that but not having seen the POI's face. Aside from the important reasons you pointed out, a grin is an inappropriate reaction to have to someone who is seriously injured that you are supposedly helping...that's a reason for this other guy to stop and help if I ever heard one. He had two excellent reasons to stop and he didn't. Perhaps he panicked...but being a rural farmer: farmers aren't faint of heart. That doesn't seem like it would fit, either. I don't know, totally possible he was just scared and had nothing to do with it. But I agree that there's some iffy story telling happening there regardless.
