Enlarge

Jeff Rogers attended the premiere in Forks, WA.

It's 2,500 miles from Carthage to Forks, WA,  but it was worth the trip to be there for the opening of "Breaking Dawn."

For the last few years, my wife and I have chaperoned a group of teenage girls to the opening nights of Stephanie Meyer's Twilight  movies. 

I admit that they literally had to drag me to the first one, but I soon became a fan. The next thing I knew, I was the one anxiously awaiting the next premiere. This year was no different.

Two weeks ago we decided to attend the opening night in Forks, WA, the town in rural Northwest Washington where the story takes place. 

The first showing was at midnight on Thursday. That morning we boarded a plane in Dallas/Fort Worth and flew into Seattle. We picked up our rental car and began the 400-mile drive through the Olympic National Forest en route to the sleepy little town of Forks.

Forks is much the same as Carthage. It is a close-knit small town, where everyone knows everyone. But on this day, it was a bustling Mecca to the hordes of Twilight fans who wanted to catch a glimpse of Bella's truck, the Cullen's house, or any artifact from the film that has captivated its audiences.

It was now time to dine at Bella Italia, the famed restaurant in Port Angeles where the main characters had their first date. It was a romantic meal accompanied by fine local wine.

To finish the night, we ventured to Deer Park, the only theatre in the region, to see the movie. We packed in the theatre with what seemed like every teenager from the state of Washington, and sat back to what might be the best movie in the series to date.

What is it about Stephanie Meyer's story that intrigues me so much? I don't know. But she has made a fan out of me, to the point where I have waited hours in line, rain or shine, and even traveled halfway across the country.