‘Wild’ about C. Oregon: New film looks familiar

If you’ve ever set foot in the little Alfalfa Store and Feed you have something in common with a big movie star — Reese Witherspoon. Really.

“She came through the door and sort of leaned right on the ice cream cooler,” said store owner Justin Green Monday. “We got to see her and talk to her, and we were kind of starstruck.”

Witherspoon certainly wasn’t one of Green’s regulars coming in for a quick snack. The actress made the small shop part of her journey in the production of Wild, a film based on the true story of a Portland woman’s trek along the Pacific Crest Trail, told in Cheryl Strayed’s critically acclaimed book of the same name.

The Alfalfa Store and gas station shut down for half a day in October 2013 as hundreds of production crew members descended upon the area, preparing the shop for its big role.

“Even all of our gas prices, we rolled all of them back,” Green said. “They put California lottery signs out front, changed the name of our Alfalfa store sign.”

There’s even more Central Oregon sprinkled throughout the film. From La Pine’s Newberry Crater to one of the region’s most iconic gems — Smith Rock — all of Oregon’s favorites, portraying locations in California.

“It is funny because we were all like ‘we can take you to the Pacific Crest Trail’ and (they) was like no, but they certainly have their shots they need,” said Deschutes National Forest Spokeswoman Jean Nelson-Dean, adding that the forest service processed the forest permits for the Wild production and provided security personnel for Witherspoon.

Shot along the trail or not, the film is expected to inspire more hikers into the wild this summer.

“Of course as more people use them then the impact on those trails are greater,” Nelson-Dean said. “So we hope that along with someone going on the trail and having the experience that it translates to stewardship for those trails.”

Nelson-Dean said hiker traffic along the trail increased by about 20 percent last summer.

The film will be released Dec. 5th at a few select theaters around the country. The movie comes to Portland theaters Dec. 12th. It’s expected to come to Central Oregon before the new year.

“I’m excited to see it,” said Nelson-Dean. “We’ll all be looking to see our landscape on the big screen.”