“Sorry about your barn”

The Peabody Farmhouse and Barn and Twin Pines Ranch filming Location from Back to the Future – AND WHY EVERYONE ON THE INTERNET IS WRONG ABOUT THIS ONE. See the end of this article for visiting information.

The Libyans have suddenly vanished, and so has the parking lot! That’s right, Marty has just successfully become the world’s first time traveler and driven straight into a barn at 88mph. After an out-of-this-world encounter with the local pine tree farmer and his family, Marty flees the barn and heads out of the area as fast as he can, destroying a prize pine as he goes. So where was the farmhouse, the barn, and the entrance to the Ranch? Glad you asked. LA film studios operate within a thirty mile zone to avoid paying extra fees to the union, so where do you find a farmhouse and a barn within thirty miles of Hollywood? Disney’s Golden Oak Ranch!

Little known beyond a small ring of Disney superfans and filming location enthusiasts, Disney’s Golden Oak Ranch was purchased in 1959 after using it for several years to film Spin N Marty. Over the years countless Disney classics were filmed on site, including The Parent Trap, Follow Me Boys!, and many others. Today, TV shows like The Office and big productions like the Pirates of the Caribbean still use the ranch as a filming location.

But because the site is completely off limits to the public – and we mean Period, no exceptions, EVER - it makes the location that much more interesting.

And of course, at BTTF tour, we along with all our predecessors have reported that the Ragwing Barn on the ranch stood in for the Peabody farm barn. I mean literally. Using every search engine known to man, we have determined that every Back to the Future website in English in the entire world lists the Ragwing Barn as the location of Marty’s crash. Every filming locations website, everywhere.

I hate to burst their bubble, but they’re wrong. All of them are wrong. Don’t get me wrong, we were wrong too. Have we used the word wrong enough to show you how wrong everyone was? (Ok, I’ll stop.) The Barn was NOT the Ragwing Barn, and the evidence is obvious. But forget that for a second, how could everyone unanimously make this mistake?

The simple truth is the matter is it’s so difficult to get in to the Golden Oak Ranch (a few have achieved it, but it often takes a long time and a lot of favors) that everyone just reported what the previous person reported on the internet. Bruce Gordon (who worked for Disney) visited the ranch in the 90s, looked around for a barn, saw the Ragwing barn, and decided that must be it. Later, Wesley Treat managed to get in to the ranch, and concluded the barn had “undergone some superficial changes,” and it spread to the rest of the internet as all of the brilliant copy-pasters did their work. We too, took their word for it because we hadn’t managed to make it inside the ranch. We jotted down the location, gave credit to the explorers past, and kept on going.

So why did Bruce, Wesley, and the rest of the internet miss the obvious? It’s easy to make this mistake. Visit any Hollywood backlot twice and you’ll see dramatic changes to the set buildings. They can turn anything into anything, and they do. Most movie ranches are full of temporary facade buildings that are reconstructed and shifted around constantly to suit the needs of a particular production.

But not the Ragwing Barn. Thanks to the folks at cinchset.com for devoting a serious, noteworthy amount of time and research we know all about the Ragwing Barn. Built in the 1920s (or earlier) the barn stood as an actual feed barn for decades until the sides were rebuilt and enclosed in 1972, giving it the look it has today. It has never been structurally modified since, and the aged wood beams inside prove it. See the bottom of this article for a link to a very detailed and well researched article on the Ragwing Barn!

So if we know the Ragwing Barn hasnt changed, we know that it’s too wide and deep to be the right barn. So where is the real barn at the Golden Oak Ranch? And where is the Peabody farm house? The short answer is, gone forever. Your next question will undoubtedly be the same as mine. Then where was this set located?

Well, there are only so many barns on the Golden Oak Ranch now, but there were more in previous years. The same holds true for farmhouse sets. And, don’t discount the fact that many productions build temporary sets from scratch on the ranch and either tear them down after production, or leave the structures standing to be used sporadically until they simply fall apart.

The long and the short of it is, the barn is gone. It’s not the Ragwing barn, and it’s not any barn that’s stood on the Golden Oak Ranch for at least 20 years. The same goes for the house. All we know is that they were sets on the ranch property, and they’ve gone the way of the parent trap set.

Having established the facts and burst literally every fans bubble, we can now all rampantly speculate. My few contacts at Disney simply don’t know what set it was. What I believe to be the house and Barn ARE visible in a production filmed on the ranch in 1977, but until I have screenshots and do a little more research I’ll keep it under my hat. I’m sure this will launch some controversy among fans, so I just wanna say, “Sorry about your barn.”

But for the Hard-Core, Die-Hard, Do-Whatever-It-Takes Back to the Future fan, you will remember that as Marty flees the ranch in the DeLorean he comes off of a dirt road and back out onto pavement just after he runs over that tree. Well that pavement is public property, baby! The gate Marty flees through is actually one of the many gated entrances to the ranch, and the exit into Placerita Canyon Rd is the same spot from which you can get your only legal peek at the other sets on the ranch.From our gallery you can see that the exit to the ranch looked exactly the same as in the film for years, but recently as Disney plans to expand the Ranch into a full fledged movie studio, they’ve revamped all the fencing around the property to look much more appealing and perhaps eco-friendly.

This is not recommended for people with a time restriction for their BTTF viewings, or people who can’t entertain themselves while driving in between locations. Compared to the other SoCal locations… this one’s out there.

Like I said earlier visit this website for the most complete history of the Ragwing barn available. This website contains more about the history of Golden Oak Ranch than any other you’ll find on the web, including Disney’s official ranch website. A special thanks to “K” for backing up my suspicions that we were all looking at the wrong barn with his research and expertise. Contact us at BTTFtour if you have a theory about the proper barn or spot it in other films!

This article has just been updated for 2013 – but we have a few more updates to come in March on this location. Now, hurry up so we can get to the recently updated Lyon Estates… in 1955!

ADDRESS: DISNEY’S GOLDEN OAK RANCH
19802 PLACERITA CANYON RD, NEWHALL, CA

GPS COORDINATES: 34.377331, -118.477120

Lyon Estates Filming Location from “Back to the Future”

See the end for Map and Directions

Now Updated for 2013!

Screenshot from BTTF

This has to be one of the greatest locations for any back to the future fan to visit! If you love what the 80′s movie gateway calls “Movie Archaeology” you will LOVE this site! Marty, still reeling after being shot at on the Peabody’s Twin Pines Ranch, pulls over and can’t believe his eyes… It’s It’s his home! The Lyon Estates! Only… it’s not built yet!

Though it seems a short stretch down the road from the farm in the movie, this spot is about 70 miles away in the northernmost tip of Corona, California. During production this was part of the Alta Dena dairy farm. The area was one of the few unspoiled agricultural areas close to Los Angeles and Orange County. The view was incredible. In fact, until recent years you could turn 360° and see nothing but green hills hemmed in by distant mountains and hills in all directions, with the exception of the water tower from the nearby Women’s Prison.

Location in Feb 2013

Technically, the fields visible in the screenshot are private property. In fact, this spot is located on a gated road. Luckily for all of us Back to the Future fans, they open up the gates every fair-weathered weekend for R/C plane flights in a nearby field.

Hemmed in by the Prado Dam park and a few shooting ranges, the location can only be approached from the north, in Chino. In fact, the water tower in the distance as Marty McFly walks towards Hill Valley is actually IN Chino, at the Chino Women’s Correctional Facility. It’s the home of Manson Family member Patricia Krenwinkel, among other ruffians. Or ruffiettes? Whatever, anyway…

When you get to Chino (se below for map and address) make sure you continue south down Chino-Corona road past the prison. That road will actually continue to the left, but keep going straight south on the small paved road (Cucamonga Ave) that branches off, until you see the gates with the “PRIVATE PROPERTY” sign. It’s just beyond. This is farm country, so although you technically take a legal risk (and mind you, this is your OWN legal risk, you hoodlum!) passing the gate when closed, the site is only a few yards beyond the gate and in all my interactions with farm workers and caretakers and R/C enthusiasts back on this strange road, I’m sure no one will mind if you explain that you’re just there to take a few photos. If anyone sees you at all, which I doubt.

Actually, a few years we had a chance to speak to the caretaker’s wife, who told us that it’s ok to be back there (on the road only mind you, not in their fields) to take photos etc, but she did think the idea was a little nuts, and she warned us that if, in fact, you find the gate open on a weekday, to be careful parking your car out of sight of them, because there’s an extremely high chance you could be locked in!

However, avoid the possibility of trouble altogether and try and make it early (I reccomend 10am-noonish just to make sure the sun isn’t in your pictures) on a Saturday or a Sunday. Very little has changed here, other than some added gates and fences. When we first launched BTTFtour we talked about the gravel still visible from production. Sadly they’ve repaved this stretch of road and gravel from the re-paving is everywhere. The gravel from 1985 is not the gravel you’re seeing entering the gates. It’s all washed away and covered up these days.

And for those as obsessive as we are, we should say the Billboard was built slightly behind and to the right of the right-hand gate visible in our photos. The left gate leads to a clear cut path through the fields that some assume was aligned perfectly between the Lyon Estates sign, but that path used to be underneath both gates. (What was once one field was sold and subdivided since BTTF) The south/right hand field allowed their portion of this dirt road between fields to be plowed over, so make sure you adjust your photographs accordingly to get the perfect shot!

Detail. Photo by Brian Montez.

Of course, once Marty starts walking towards Hill Valley everyone turns to their left and snaps a photo towards the women’s prison. If you want to line up that screenshot correctly, you need to travel a bit further south down the road towards the R/C plane field and turn around. It was shot from the bottom of the hill both so that the horizon covered the visible prison buildings and to give the appearance of greater distance. Brian Montez was the first to report this. It’ll feel wrong at first because you have to pass what used to be a shrub in the film but is now a full grown tree! Keep going til you hit the unmaintained dirt road!

Some of you will wonder, no doubt, why this isn’t included in our menu for the locations from Part II. Simple. Rather than return production to Corona, they re-created the scene on stage 12 at Universal. This not only saved money but allowed much greater freedom for shooting the practical effects and bluescreen for the flying DeLorean. Sorry to burst your bubble, but Doc wasn’t struck by lightning here! Although we act out those scenes every time anyway!

2013 Update: We’re sad to say that though this location remained surrounded by 2 or 3 miles of dairy farms in the past, most are now boarded up, and there are several new housing developments encroaching on this area. Visit the site as soon as you can. In Southern California subdivisions are a disease that spreads rapidly, and although there doesn’t appear to be development planned for this small stretch of road, there’s no guarantee the amazing view will be unspoiled for long! If you visit in a Time Machine DeLorean, let us know! We’d love to come meet up with you and take a snapshot!

Send us your pictures to add to the gallery!

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Location: Private Stretch of Cucamonga Ave, Corona, California.

COORDINATES: +33° 56′ 7.79″, -117° 37′ 59.26″

Brown Mansion Location from “Back to the Future”

Located in Pasadena, California

See the end of this article for location and visiting information!

Editor’s Note: this text is from the old version of BTTF tour – we’re going to be revising these articles in the coming days. The photos and screenshots from these articles will all be down below for the time being, instead of thumbnails within the text. Thanks for your patience, and visit us again when everything’s tidied up!

After Marty has a creepy encounter with his Mother and her family in 1955, he foots it across town over to Doc Brown’s, only to discover that the house Doc had been living in in 1985 was merely the left over garage of his former mansion!(If you pay close attention in the film, you’ll notice that Doc Brown’s mansion burned down on Wednesday, August 1, 1962. Now that’s a bit of trivia for you!)

In real life, this beautiful mansion lies just off the route of the world-famous Rose Parade in Pasadena, California. In fact, this house is quite famous of it’s own accord. It’s called the Gamble House, and it’s extremely interesting location from a historical and architectural point of view. This building used to be the summer home of David B. Gamble (of the Procter & Gamble company) and was built by the famous architects Greene & Greene in 1909. A hallmark of California Craftsman architecture, the house is now owned by the city of pasadena and operated by the architecture department at USC. This site is easily accessible and you are allowed to walk freely on the grounds, although they do charge a fee for tours of the interior.

Due to the historic nature of the location, the Back to the Future film crew was not allowed inside the Gamble house itself, so the location was only used for exterior shots of the house, driveway, and garage. All of the interior shots, including the close up shots of Marty standing on the front porch, were filmed several miles away at another famous, but privately owned, house built by the Greene and Greene firm. That house has another page to itself located here.

As of the last revision of this article, The Gamble House is still open most days for guided tours, conducted by volunteers. However, these do cost money. It’s definitely worth supporting the ongoing restoration efforts at the Gamble House, but if you’re pressed for time this might not be the tour for you. If you do decide to come during business hours, you can visit the Gift shop inside the garage where you can find more information.

It’s also the closest thing you will get to being inside of Doc’s garage, since the movie version was filmed completely on a soundstage and no actual filming took place inside of the Gamble garage. If you don’t have the time, be assured that as of this writing the grounds are open as long as the sun is up, and you can even walk right up to the front porch. Two USC students live here full time to protect the property, so please try not to disturb them, but this is public property on the National Register of Historic Places and is completely free to visit, at least on the outside!

For MUCH more detailed information about the History of the Gamble house, as well as excellent directions and visitor information, visit their website at GambleHouse.org

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ADDRESS: 4 WESTMORELAND PLACE, PASADENA, CA

COORDINATES: 34°9′5.62″N 118°9′38.88″W

Filming Location from “Back to the Future”

Located in Hollywood, California

Editor’s Note: this text is from the old version of BTTF tour – we’re going to be revising these articles in the coming days. The photos and screenshots from these articles will all be down below for the time being, instead of thumbnails within the text. Thanks for your patience, and visit us again when everything’s tidied up!

You have to love Doc for taking the time to spell out START HERE in giant, painted block letters where Marty needs to revv up the Delorean for the finale of Back to the Future part 1. Between Doc’s calculations and Marty’s headbanging skills, they get the motor going right here, to send him BACK TO THE FUTURE!

This is, perhaps, not the most thrilling location for someone who hasn’t seen the film in awhile or the casual BTTF fan, but for us Die-Hards, standing in the same spot that Marty attached the hook and zoomed off headed back toward the future gives us a high that others may not quite get. This location is just inside of Griffith park, on the road to the observatory, across the street and just north of the Greek Theatre! More details on this location soon, but you can find the exact spot via the photos below!

The Map/Directions above give you directions to the greek theatre. Look for a spot just north of there along the east side of the street! Take a printout of these pictures with you!.

I have a LOT of photos of this location from over the years. It doesn’t change much. You may think they don’t match the screenshot, but trust me – this is the right spot, and these photos are going to help you find it quite easily.

ADDRESS: ACROSS THE STREET FROM THE GREEK THEATRE

GPS COORDINATES: 34.119941, -118.295422

Visiting Tip: The River Road Tunnel from Part II is just up the road!

Enchantment under the sea Dance Location from “Back to the Future”

Editor’s Note: this text is from the old version of BTTF tour – we’re going to be revising these articles in the coming days. The photos and screenshots from these articles will all be down below for the time being, instead of thumbnails within the text. Thanks for your patience, and visit us again when everything’s tidied up!

You know, hunting down the Back to the Future locations for the first time is always a thrill, and for you seekers who are about to visit this doozie for the first time, we salute you! Nestled right near the center of old Downtown Hollywood, the enchantment under the sea dance was filmed in the gymnasium of the Hollywood United Methodist Church on Franklin & Highland.

“What!?” you may be saying, “but I thought the dance was filmed at Whittier High School!?” Well, you’re right and wrong. The exterior scenes were all filmed at Whittier, but all of the interior shots were here for a myriad of reasons. One of the biggest reasons, according to producer/screenwriter Bob Gale, is that they were able to film here on weekdays. You see, while filming at Whittier Union High School they were restricted to night shoots, or shoots on days off, such as weekends and holidays.

Weekends were at a premium for the BTTF crew, especially during the day, as Michael J Fox was busy with Family Ties during the regular work-week, so to save time, they filmed it just a few miles away from the center of production, Universal Studios.

Fans will also be suprised to learn that the same stage which served for Marty McFly’s killer version of “Johnny B Goode” was also the setting for the famous talent show scene in the movie “That Thing You Do!” – This is where they first sped up the tempo that rocked them into stardom. Many other movies and television shows have used the Church’s expansive grounds, including Jarhead, Domino,Anger Management, Big Mama’s House, Super Mario Bros, and many of the scenes from Sister Act.

BTTF fans will instantly recognize the setup once they overcome the initial shock at seeing it without all the sparkly decorations. Picture a giant Posiedon statue in the back, it will help you get your bearings!

Filming was conducted here for the entire dance sequence in BTTF part I, and most of the shots from BTTF part II. Some of them, however, most notably the scene where Marty climbs the scaffolding to drop sandbags on Biff’s cronies, were shot on a soundstage, using the blue screen method. Unfortunately, there’s no rigging to climb on!

Come on down and visit, but make sure you pop in to the Church’s office and let them know what you’re doing. These are really friendly church-goers, and they’re usually more than willing to accept visitors, especially if you’re willing to be nice and stay awhile and chat. Visit their official website (linked above) for more information.

Another interesting tidbit: Amazingly enough, the HUMC was chartered the same year as Whittier Union High, in 1909. The Hollywood Church, however, wouldn’t open it’s doors until March, 1930. It took only three years to build, and instantly became one of the most famous Church buildings in Los Angeles. Today it is a registered historic landmark. I strongly suggest taking a good look around this amazing piece of architecture if you have the time!

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ADDRESS: HOLLYWOOD UNITED METHODIST CHURCH
6817 FRANKLIN AVENUE, HOLLYWOOD, CA

GPS COORDINATES: +33° 58′ 47.29″, -118° 2′ 38.68″

Filming Location from “Back to the Future”

Located in South Pasadena, California

Editor’s Note: this text is from the old version of BTTF tour – we’re going to be revising these articles in the coming days. The photos and screenshots from these articles will all be down below for the time being, instead of thumbnails within the text. Thanks for your patience, and visit us again when everything’s tidied up!

It’s only used for two quick establishing shots (and one deleted scene) in Back to the Future, But it’s one of the most recognizable houses in the film, next to Marty’s and the Gamble House, of course. On the DVD commentatry, we are told that the back of the house in the film was actually shot in the back yard for Lorraine’s house. But Bob Gale & Neil Canton remembered a lot of stuff about these locations incorrectly in the commentary and I do not believe this to be true either. Not only have we visited this location and confirmed that this was indeed the backyard ourselves, but…

HGTV definitively proved us right! Watch the clip above from their “Reel Homes” feature on the George McFly house. (Though why they picked this house over Lorraine’s might be the biggest mystery of all… but as long as they displayed that tree…)

ADDRESS: 1711 BUSHNELL AVENUE, SOUTH PASADENA, CA

GPS COORDINATES: +34.10617, -118.141528

Visiting Tip: Lorraine Baines’ and Biff’s (part2) 1955 houses are on the same street!

“…He’s a peeping tom!”

Lorraine’s House Location from “Back to the Future”

Located in South Pasadena, California

Stepping onto Bushnell Avenue, like many streets in south pasadena, is almost like going back in time yourself. It’s the street the latchkey generation wished they could have grown up on. Nice houses, great lawns. It feels like you’re in 1955.

And that’s exactly why Robert Zemeckis and Bob Gale picked this location for Lorraine’s 1955 house! Watch the movie closely, and then come to this site. You can walk the street where Marty looked up, and caught his future father in the act – of peeping!

Every time I see an actor from a movie in person they seem so tiny. With the Bushnell Avenue locations you get the opposite feeling. These houses are much bigger looking in person than they are on film. Not only that but the neighborhood is far more upscale than you’d expect.

So here you are in 1955. And of course this house is most familiar to those who remember George McFly peeping at Lorraine from the branch of a tree, and Marty realizing with surprise and disgust that, “He’s a peeping tom!”

Some have reported, though I am not sure why, that the tree branch George peeps from was not real. While I’m sure that in this shot Crispin Glover is not in the tree, (he’s probably on some kind of makeshift platform to allow the camera to line up the shot properly) he is shown in a real tree across the street and that tree branch IS there. I’ve spoken with several friendly neighbors who witnessed the filming and confirmed this. One nice older guy showed me some photos of production (mostly crew) but wouldn’t allow us to copy them.  Because of the angle of the over-the-shoulder shot filmed on a platform people get confused. They look for a tree branch pointing directly towards the window when the actual tree branch points south west of it (to the left side).

You can see from the other screenshots below, and other shots in the movie, that George McFly is up in a tree, and with enough time spent figuring it out, you will realize the branch is there, it’s very real, and yes, it’s easy to climb! I’m not sure if the tree is on private property, and we assume no liability for you injuring yourself by climbing trees, but we like to comemmorate each visit by watching the world-famous Tony P climb the tree. Unfortunately Tony P died a few years ago, but we’ll never forget the time he climbed halfway out on the branch and was stuck in the tree for at least an hour.

If you try it out yourself, just make sure the people across the street don’t think you’re peeping in their windows!

Visiting Tip: George McFly and Biff’s (part2) 1955 houses are on the same street! Update: The homeowner in the house behind this tree doesn’t want anyone climbing in ut, but he said this while videotaping me awkwardly trying to climb the tree, and laughing, for liability purposes. So, go ahead and climb at your own risk, but he’s not going to pay for your medical bills.

ADDRESS: 1727 BUSHNELL AVENUE, SOUTH PASADENA, CA

GPS COORDINATES: +34.105691, -118.141549

THE ROBERT R. BLACKER HOUSE

Doc’s Mansion interior location from “Back to the Future”

Located in Pasadena, California

Editor’s Note: this text is from the old version of BTTF tour – we’re going to be revising these articles in the coming days. The photos and screenshots from these articles will all be down below for the time being, instead of thumbnails within the text. Thanks for your patience, and visit us again when everything’s tidied up!

IN THE FILM: After Marty has a creepy encounter with his Mother and her family in 1955, he foots it across town over to Doc Brown’s. After his initial suprise at seeing that Doc’s future home is only the garage of his Mansion, he runs up the driveway at the Gamble house, only to end up two or three miles away at another Greene & Greene creation, the Blacker-Hill house! This house is nearly equally famous as the Gamble house in Craftsman circles, but less known to the public as it remains a PRIVATE RESIDENCE in a very exclusive neighborhood.

The front door of the house is very similar to the Gamble house door. Some have speculated this house was chosen because of the similarity of the front door. Untrue, and we’ll prove it in a few minutes! Just rest assured that we’re big enough nerds to offer you the guarantee that THIS is the same door that Marty McFly knocks on when he first finds Doc Brown with that contraption on his head.

Interestingly, for the original movie, instead of building the interior of Doc’s mansion on a soundstage, they filmed the scenes inside the Blacker-Hill house. Apparently they were barred from filming inside the Gamble house – Speaking with the staff there it seems that it had something to do with the crew equipment possibly ruining the floors. But for whatever reason, The Blacker-Hill house is the real deal. Because it’s public property, you can run up the Gamble house driveway, but if you want to see where Marty walked through Doc’s door you’d better take yourself southwest, just off of Oak Knoll ave. For some reason the adress of this house does not work in Mapquest, GoogleMaps, or Yahoo Maps directions, so we’re providing coordinates at the bottom the page.

(Editor’s Note: Remember DO NOT approach this house for any reason! The owners very specifically gave BTTFtour.com this message to give to all the BTTF fans everywhere: Take any pictures you want from the street, but do not come ON the porch or any of the rest of the property to try and get photos of the inside, or you will go to Jail. Even if you see someone outside on the lawn, DO NOT bother them. This is the specific request of the residents.)

Update: We have learned that the “Friends of the Gamble House” occasionally organizes tours of the Blacker house. Contact the Gamble House for information on any possible upcoming tours. They are NOT held on a regular basis. In fact, I believe the last or one of the last ones was in 1998. But it may happen again. Read an article on the history of the house here. And another site with a few links here. Also some great photos and possibly one of the best articles can be found Here.

The Verdict: Even though you can’t get close to the famous doors, or even get so much as a peep at the interior (which were the insides of Doc’s house in the films), This location is still worth visiting. You can easily see the doors from the street, and it’s close enough to the other locations so that you don’t end up travelling far out of the way. Also, from the right angle, and with a decent zoom, you will get nice photos of those doors, no problem.

Remember, there is one – AND ONLY ONE – shot you may have at seeing the inside of the Blacker-Hill house. Occasionally the “friends of the Gamble House” in Pasadena lets charters private events for it’s members and VIPs. To become a member or find more information, visit the Gamble House website at GambleHouse.org

ADDRESS: 1777 HILLCREST AVE, PASADENA, CA

GPS COORDINATES: 34.127108, -118.133583

Twin Pines Mall Location from “Back to the Future”

Located in Rowland Heights/Industry, CA

Editor’s Note: this text is from the old version of BTTF tour – we’re going to be revising these articles in the coming days. The photos and screenshots from these articles will all be down below for the time being, instead of thumbnails within the text. Thanks for your patience, and visit us again when everything’s tidied up!

Here it is. Doubtless one of the favorite locations in all of BTTF locationdom. Here it is, endless asphalt and driveways for your exploration. And if you come early (or late!) enough, you yourself can drive back in time… sort of…

As we learn from Doc Brown’s monologue, “Old Man” Peabody once owned all of this, and in 1955 this was once the “Twin Pines Ranch,” (and after Marty runs one over in 55 and we come back to the mall in the end of the movie, it’s the Lone pine mall.)

This is a location you MUST visit if you are a BTTF fan, and it’s one you really have to visit to get a sense of how the chase scenes work out. There’s not too much to tell that’s terribly interesting, though I have been here several times and it’s always a hoot, as we skateboard in the steps of Marty McFly and race our cars through the parking lot -(though I don’t suggest you do it, or risk arrest.. as I was threatened with last time, and not by Paul Blart either, by the real cops. We’ll have an update on why soon, when we find out if all the details are true).

It hasn’t changed too terribly much in the last few years, but sometime in the mid-90s it underwent a drastic facelift. And, as is wont to happen in a mall, the tenents come and go. In case you hadn’t guessed, there never was a photo-stand in the parking lot. Just make sure you enter from Colima Road, and enter the driveway on the SOUTH side of the mall, the one between TGI Fridays and the Soup Plantation.

Tip: Stop at TGI friday’s and have some lunch, their outdoor patio gives you a great view of the location!

While we haven’t provided you with much witty dialogue or many entertaining stories, we HAVE provided you with a TON of photos and screenshots of this location so that you can have a lot of reference when you visit! Just scroll down for the photos!

Here’s a handy reference map that was created years ago by our friends at the former exkren.com. In 2007, we created several vector-image maps of our own! Ours routes out the delorean’s course and sets this all in motion for everyone! This will give you the exact course!

Here’s our EXCLUSIVE map to the chase! This will help you find the EXACT spots you’re looking for! simply rollover the image with your mouse to see the chase routes, or click to enlarge the chase map!

EXTENSIVE Photo gallery going back nearly ten years!

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ADDRESS: PUENTE HILLS MALL, 1600 S AZUSA AVE, INDUSTRY, CA

COORDINATES: 33.991503,-117.926656

Hill Valley High Location from “Back to the Future”

Located in Whittier, California

Editor’s Note: this text is from the old version of BTTF tour – we’re going to be revising these articles in the coming days. The photos and screenshots from these articles will all be down below for the time being, instead of thumbnails within the text. Thanks for your patience, and visit us again when everything’s tidied up!

SEE THE END OF THIS ARTICLE FOR LOCATION AND VISITING INFORMATION!

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THIS LOCATION IS A PUBLIC HIGH SCHOOL, DO NOT ENTER DURING SCHOOL HOURS! Obtain Permission ftom Administration before Wandering Grounds!!

Hill Valley High School! The first time we come across this location in “Back to the Future” it’s 1985, and the place looks like a typical run-down, underfunded school. But not long after we blast into the past with Marty, we see his alma mater in mint 1955 condition! In real life, Whittier High School provided the location. During spring break of 1985, the crew showed up to reshoot scenes at the high school. Re-shoot? Yes, you read that correctly. Originally, Back to the future was cast with Eric Stoltz as Marty McFly, and they filmed on location at Whittier in 1984.

But enough useless trivia! On to the location! At first glance, Whittier High School looks nothing like the location you remember from the 1950s scenes. Pulling up to the front entrance is like pulling up to the fence at Auchwitz. Security on this campus is no joke. And you’ll find more fences within the perimiter fence of WHS. Over the last few years, they’ve been undertaking structural and cosmetic rennovations at a snail’s pace. Often large areas of the campus are closed or fenced off. Now, that’s never stopped us from poking around or squeezing through the gaps of the fences, but legally speaking I DO NOT recommend you do that. Make sure to take all precautions and attain permission before you roam this site. Remember, people can be a little strange about adults wandering the grounds of any school!

Hill Valley High School Back to the Future location map circa 2003

You will easily recognize the front entrance (On Philadelphia). That’s actually the administration building and also the building where the indoor/hallway scenes were shot. The “parking lot” for the dance where Marty “parks” with his mother is NOT actually a parking lot! This will save you a lot of time! Pay close attention to the film and our comparison photos. The site is actually a paved walk/driveway in the middle of a lunch area off Whittier Ave south of the Gym. It is usually blocked from view from the street by new portable classrooms, and at the time of our last visit, industrial sized dumpsters, but if you enter the front gate of the school, you will easily be able to get to this location.

The School cafeteria was also actually used for the Hill Valley High cafeteria scenes, and is located on campus. However, I have been told REPEATEDLY that the cafeteria area is OFF LIMITS to visitors, and have thus far been denied permission to post my photos of the interior of the school. If a STUDENT at Whittier High School could send us photos of the cafeteria and inside the administration building, we’d greatly appreciate it!

The back area of the Dance where Marty gets locked in a trunk is behind the real-life Gym (not used for interior shots) and is also off of Whittier avenue. The strange covered hallway where Marty is chased by Biff’s gang is between the pool and the gym, accessed from the parking lot. This is also usually your best bet for gaining access to campus if the front gate is closed. Many athletic activities go on in the evening during the school year, and so the back gates are open. Talk to campus security or the teacher on staff, and they’ll usually give you “official” permission to go poke around the buildings’ exteriors.

Also, while in the area, Bailey Street, a street you will see while in the neighborhood, is the home of Strickland’s House from Part II, so make sure to visit that page and hit both sites! Use our map, linked up on the left as “guide,” as your guide to the filming locations. It’s clearly labeled and will help you make sense of the disorienting use of WHS campus.

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ADDRESS: WHITTIER HIGH SCHOOL
12417 PHILADELPHIA ST, WHITTIER, CA

GPS COORDINATES: +33° 58′ 47.29″, -118° 2′ 38.68″