Where Was Anna Pigeon Filmed? All About the Stunning Canadian Setting
Anna Pigeon star Tracy Spiridakos shared details about filming USA Network's new drama in the stunning Canadian Rockies surrounded by nature and wild animals, including the occasional grizzly bear.
There's nowhere else Anna Pigeon feels more at home than in nature.
So, what better place to film USA Network’s new drama series than the outskirts of a real-life national park?
That’s right, instead of a Hollywood sound stage, the show inspired by Nevada Barr’s beloved Anna Pigeon book series was shot entirely on location in Canada’s Kananaskis mountains, which neighbors Banff National Park. The experience working among the elements, let alone wild animals, was a dream come true for star Tracy Spiridakos.
"Where we were filming was absolutely gorgeous, we could not believe that we got to be there," Spiridakos—who plays the titular crime-solving sleuth—exclusively told E! News of the "surreal" Alberta landscape. "There's no studio, everything's practical. It was just a gorgeous environment."
While the show takes place in Montana's Glacier National Park, the foothills of the Canadian Rockies stood in for the breathtaking setting. And Spiridakos didn't mind roughing it in the forests of the Great North—with one exception.
"I kept asking if they could set up the plumbing in my character's cabin," the Chicago P.D. alum recounted with a laugh. "I was like, 'I can deal without heat, just give me the plumbing.' But we all just fell in love with the cabins that they had built all along this beautiful little creek."
The absence of functioning toilets wasn't the only unique aspect of filming in the wild. In addition to unruly weather, Spiridakos and cast often encountered the occasional furry friend roaming their natural habitat.
"Our first day of filming there was a grizzly nearby set with her two cubs," the 38-year-old shared. "The park rangers had to alert us and let us know to not wander too far and keep your bear spray nearby."
As it turns out, Anna's passion for nature and protecting the beauty of our national parks was something that Spiridakos really connected to when she signed on to play the crime-solving sleuth.
"Her deep love of nature and animals, that's something that really resonated with me as well," she confessed to E!. "Her deep curiosity is something that I also was really attracted to. It's something that gets her into trouble throughout the series but I feel that I can be like that too."
"I loved how much of an adventure the series seemed like it was gonna be," Spiridakos added. "Anna seemed like a really complicated character that I was instantly drawn to."
Get lost in Anna's adventures when Anna Pigeon premieres Friday, Aug. 7, at 10 p.m. on USA Network.
(E! and USA are both part of the Versant Media family)
