The Hour After Westerly

An eerie tale of the paths not taken

This short film is based on a story by Robert M. Coates that was published in The New Yorker in 1947. It’s an eerie tale of the paths not taken in life, and the beautiful film adaptation was shot almost entirely on Whidbey Island in late 2019. Audiences may recognize the faces of stars Peter Jacobson and Shannyn Sossamon, as the meticulous traveling salesman Davis Harwell and the mysterious woman who seems to know him. Island audiences may recognize Ron Wilhelm, who plays the gas station attendant and is a local actor with the Whidbey Playhouse.

A deeper dive into this production…

Time Stamps:

00:18
After a quote appears on screen, the striking opening shot of the film is Ebey’s Landing Road running through farmland.

00:51
Davis Harwell (Peter Jacobson) in his car, driving through Ebey’s Landing with views of local farms through the rain.

01:08
Davis’s car drives past the Coupeville Post Office and into Coupeville Auto Repair.

01:15
The gas station attendant who comes out to Davis’s car is played by local actor Ron Wilhelm.

Note the Connecticut license plate, where the story takes place.

02:15
As Davis prepares to drive away from the gas station, Coupeville Rec Hall can be seen in the distance. (Fun fact: this building was originally a dormitory from the Grand Coulee Dam worksite, and was shipped down the Columbia River in two pieces to be reconstructed in Coupeville as a USO Club for soldiers from Fort Casey and Fort Ebey in the 1940s).

02:19
Davis drives past an intersection marked Route 3 and Post, but this is actually SR-20 between Admiralty Bay and Crockett Lake.

02:24
Engle Rd, with views of Camp Casey.

03:16
Davis appears to nod off while driving, and sees dramatic flashes of a woman he’s never met, Admiralty Head Lighthouse, and Cottage 10 at the Fort Casey Inn-historically the Doctor’s House.

03:49
Driving in the dark now, Davis approaches a diner. The exterior of this Greenbank building used to house Molka Xete Mexican Kitchen at the time of filming, which has since moved to a building in downtown Coupeville that has also starred in many big films! Also seen in this frame is a genuine Whidbey Telecom phone booth, which still dot the south end of the island and have been altered to no longer accept coins but instead make local calls for free. The Bakken Rd street sign that appears here is real!

06:13
Davis steps back out into Greenbank parking lot (the interior of the diner was filmed in L.A.) and walks over to make a call in the Whidbey Telecom phonebooth.

06:53
An old photo Davis finds in the phone booth depicts the lighthouse he may have seen before (Admiralty Head Lighthouse).

08:01
Davis dreams of the lighthouse (Admiralty Head) and the mysterious woman, plus the roadsign he saw. We see a flash of Hill Road and a beautiful aerial shot of the lighthouse from the water with Camp Casey in the background. An inverted shot of the lighthouse, beach, and road also shows military batteries at Fort Casey State Park. Lastly we see an aerial shot of the cottages at Fort Casey Inn, before zooming in on the Doctor’s House.

08:41
Davis is parked along Ebey’s Landing Road with the historic Ferry House in the background, which has been featured in other films prominently.

08:46
As we see Davis eating his lunch in the parked car, a bluff is seen behind him in the background. This is the location of the much-loved Bluff Trail, one of many amazing hikes within Ebey’s Reserve.

10:06
Davis decides to take a new turn and finds himself on the road from his dream/vision. This is the very scenic Hill Road.

10:31
Davis drives past Admiralty Head Lighthouse.

10:38
An aerial shot of Admiralty Head Lighthouse rises above the tree line to see Camp Casey in the background.

10:45
Davis drives along the row of cottages at Fort Casey Inn, just off Engle Rd.

11:08
Davis spots the house from his dream (Doctor’s House/Cottage 10) and the mysterious woman outside gardening.

17:17
Davis has visions of the woman he met. These shots were taken at Fort Casey Inn.

18:00
Davis is back on the road near Crockett Lake.

18:16
Davis is back on Hill Rd, driving towards the bluff.

18:30
Another beautiful aerial shot of the lighthouse and military batteries overlooking Admiralty Inlet.

18:38
Davis drives along the row of cottages at Fort Casey Inn again, this time looking dark and uninhabited.

19:02
Davis pulls up outside the Doctor’s House and gets out.

21:17
Davis drives away in a hurry along Ebey’s Landing Rd.