'26 McK Magazine

McKenzie MAGAZINE Your Guide to Oregon’s Most Beautiful River Corridor 2026 EDITION

Published by McKenzie River Reflections

A DAY ON THE McKENZIE STAGE

Stagecoaches served the area by carrying freight and mail as well as passengers from the Bangs-McNutt Livery Stable in Eugene to Belknap Hot Springs. They would stop to feed, water and change horses in small hamlets that formed around the lodges, restaurants, stables and general stores along the route - like stage coachman Ed Walker, above, with his cousin Belle Sparks.

Annie Laura Miller was a talented writer whose career began soon after her graduation from the University of Oregon in 1897. Laura, as she liked to be called, was born in Eugene City, November 25, 1876. She was a truly cultured person with a most extensive vocabulary. She had a great sense of humor, played tennis, golf, spent time in the mountains and at the seashore.

She reveled in fishing and canoeing, was a great birdwatcher.

Her reports from many parts of the world were carried by the Sunday Oregonian. There was no hint of stuffiness about this young woman who had a lively interest in all that surrounded her. She was equally enthusiastic about the customs of the Orient and trout fishing on the McKenzie. Below are portions of her account of a trip up the McKenzie by stage, published in the Oregonian in 1909.

In 1909, a trip from Eugene to McKenzie Bridge was an all-day adventure by horse-drawn stage — 56

miles of dust, mail deliveries, country meals and colorful characters.

Annie Laura Miller captured that journey in an account published in the Sunday Oregonian on October 9.

Miller, born in Eugene in 1876, graduated from the University of Oregon in 1897 and became a widely traveled writer whose reports appeared in The Oregonian.

Although she wrote about places around the world, she was equally enthusiastic about fishing, canoeing and exploring the McKenzie.

Her journey began before dawn in Eugene. At about 5:30 a.m., the “big red four-seated stage drawn by four horses” rumbled into view. Miller had reserved the high front seat beside driver Jesse Jones, partly to escape the worst of the dust.

The stage reached Springfield around 6 a.m., where Jones exchanged mail sacks and picked up meat destined for O’Briens. Then the coach headed east through farmland bordered by sweet peas, apple trees and roses.

Passengers were as varied as their destinations: a bookkeeper and banker headed for the hot springs, a woman visiting her son on a timber claim, two men interested in McKenzie River water power and a man headed to the fish hatchery to help plant 180,000 young rainbow trout in the river and its tributaries.

Miller quickly discovered that the stage driver was much more than a driver. Along the road, residents asked Jones to deliver cabbage to Blue River, make change for a five-dollar bill, mail letters, check on a missing diamond ring and arrange for a roll of butter to be brought downriver.

“And the driver with nothing to sustain him but a plug of tobacco undertakes everyone’s errand,” Miller wrote.

The stage passed through Thurston, where the big news was that a weasel had been killed during the night, Continued On Page 5

SLEEP 4-6 PEOPLE

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A DAY ON THE McKENZIE STAGE

Continued From Page 4 then crossed the McKenzie to Walterville. There, residents gathered at Wright had killed a cougar with a rethe store discussing a right-of-way dispute that had halted work on a volver. Soon afterward they encountered Wright himself, helping unload a wagon canal.

After changing horses, the stage continued past O’Briens and the carrying provisions for trail workers in fish hatchery before reaching Gate Creek at noon. Passengers were the forest reserve.

At Blue River - described by Miller allowed just 20 minutes for dinner - boiled beef, cabbage, potatoes, as “almost a tiny town because of the onions, peas, hot bread and wild blackberry pie.

Beyond Gate Creek, the character of the journey changed. Miller gold mines above” - she said goodbye to noted the scars of an old forest fire on the mountainsides, with charred Jones. A younger driver took over for the stumps surrounded by young firs and alders. Dust from the road rose final stretch upriver.

At about 6:30 that evening, after in clouds, working its way through clothing and coating passengers roughly 13 hours on the road, Miller from head to foot.

The trip also introduced Miller to some of the McKenzie’s legend- finally arrived at McKenzie Bridge and the Log House Hotel. ary characters.

Her account preserved a glimpse of One was “Ole Man Finn,” whom Jones described as such a remarkable fisherman that locals joked he once caught enough fish to make an era when the McKenzie stage was far more than transportation. It carried the McKenzie River fall three feet at O’Briens.

Farther upriver, Jones pointed out a footlog he had crossed during mail, freight, news and favors between a winter flood with a lantern in one hand and the mail sack strapped scattered settlements, tying together the to his back. He also showed Miller the place where famed hunter Dee communities along the river one dusty mile at a time.

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From whitewater and waterfalls to mountain biking, fishing and quiet forest trails, recreation comes naturally along the McKenzie There are places where recreation means finding something to do.

In the McKenzie River Valley, the harder question may be deciding what to do first.

Stretching east from the Willamette Valley into the Cascade Mountains, the McKenzie offers an unusually rich mix of outdoor experiences within a relatively compact corridor. Highway 126 follows the river through communities, forests and volcanic landscapes, providing access to fishing holes, boat launches, hiking and biking trails, campgrounds, lakes and waterfalls.

At the center of it all is the McKenzie River itself - cold, clear and spring-fed, flowing out of the Cascades through a landscape shaped by lava and water. A section of the upper river has been designated Wild and Scenic, recognized for its scenery, fisheries, geology, recreation and exceptional water quality.

Get on the river For generations, the McKenzie has been known as a fishing river.

Rainbow and cutthroat trout, along with salmon and steelhead, have attracted anglers from around Oregon and far beyond. Professional guides still take anglers downriver in the distinctive McKenzie River drift boat, a craft developed locally to negotiate the river’s rocky channels and rapids.

The experience is about more than catching fish. A day in a drift

boat can mean watching an osprey circle overhead, slipping beneath a covered bridge, floating past towering Douglas firs and listening to little more than moving water.

Anglers should check current Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife regulations before heading out; seasons, retention rules and allowable fishing methods vary by location and time of year.

For those looking for more excitement, the river also offers rafting and kayaking. Rapids ranging from playful to challenging have helped make the McKenzie one of Oregon’s classic whitewater rivers.

Around Vida, the river becomes particularly lively, with boulder-filled stretches and well-known challenges like Marten Rapids.

Several public launches provide river access, stretching from Hendricks Wayside Park to the Olallie Boat Landing.

Follow one of Oregon’s great trails The McKenzie River National Recreation Trail is an adventure in its own right.

Running roughly 26 miles through the upper valley, the trail takes hikers and mountain bikers through old-growth forest and across stark volcanic terrain while rarely wandering far from the water.

It is especially famous among mountain bikers, who come for its combination of flowing forest trail, technical lava sections and remarkable scenery.

But there is no requirement to tackle all 26 miles.

Numerous access points make shorter outings possible, and hikers can use portions of the trail to reach some of the valley’s best-known natural attractions.

Chase waterfalls - and a very blue pool Few outings deliver as much scenery for the effort as the pathwayContinued On Page 13

Unearthed in the Hillsides: The McKenzie Valley’s Stone Story The McKenzie River Valley is known for rushing water, towering forests, and ancient lava flows. Hidden among those volcanic ridges is a place where that geologic story is being revealed one block of stone at a time

The dimensions of granite slabs will greatly increase when a newly ordered computer-controlled saw begins operations.

From the highway, it’s easy to mistake the McKenzie River Rock Quarry for just another gravel operation. Trucks come and go, excavators move across stepped benches of volcanic rock, and crushers reduce massive boulders into road-building material. But beneath the surface, something much more ambitious is taking shape.

New owners Joel Zeni and Jeff Brink, working alongside veteran stone craftsman Robert Steury of Steury Stoneworks, envision transforming the McKenzie Valley quarry into one of the most unique dimensional stone operations in North America - an enterprise built not only on gravel, but on artistry, architecture, and the remarkable geology of the Cascade Range.

The quarry itself has a winding history. Mining first began here in the late 1980s before environmental issues forced the operation to close. The property later became a horse farm until the quarry was revived in 2006, producing gravel for U.S. Forest Service projects and other

to cut it from virtually any direction. Its exceptionally low water absorption also makes it highly resistant to Oregon’s freeze-thaw cycles, giving it durability for generations.

“It behaves differently than most stone,” Steury explains as he runs his hand across a freshly exposed face of volcanic rock.

“That opens opportunities you simply don’t have with many other materials.”

The quarry now yields everything from massive glacial erratics - some measuring nearly ten feet across - to elegant columnar formations created as ancient lava slowly cooled thousands of years ago.

From Quarry to Craftsmanship Soon, much of that raw stone will never leave the property unfinished.

Plans are underway to convert the site’s former horse barn into a sophisticated stone fabrication center unlike anything currently operating in the United States.

Inside will be a massive wire saw and a computer-controlled fiveaxis CNC machining system imported from France.

Rather than simply slicing stone into slabs, the equipment has the ability to carve intricate architectural elements, polish surfaces, create textured finishes, engrave artwork, bevel edges, and even produce three-dimensional sculptures from enormous blocks of volcanic rock.

The technology can handle pieces up to 30 feet long - large enough for monumental columns, public art, building facades, custom fireplaces, benches, fountains, outdoor kitchens, and landscape features.

Steury believes the operation will become America’s only quarry producing dimensional andesite on a commercial scale.

Instead of competing in crowded countertop or monument markets, the company intends to focus on architecture, public spaces, commercial buildings, and high-end landscape design.

Building Close to Home One of the first showcase projects is already underway.

Breitenbush Hot Springs has selected the quarry’s stone for custom window sills and the complete tile installation surrounding the sanctuary entrance - inside and out. Additional distribution has also expanded from Lane County into southern WashContinued On Page 10

infrastructure work. After changing hands several times, the site found new life under its current ownership less than a year ago.

Today, the familiar gravel business continues to thrive.

Contracts with the U.S. Forest Service, Oregon Department of Transportation, along with Blue River infrastructure projects, and private contractors, keep trucks rolling. But those operations are only one chapter in a much larger story.

Stone Unlike Any Other Standing among several different displays, Steury explains why a discovery has captured his imagination.

The quarry produces andesite a volcanic stone that lies geologically between granite and basalt.

While andesite is found in volcanic regions around the world, this local deposit possesses characteristics rarely seen elsewhere.

Unlike many forms of andesite, the McKenzie Valley stone contains no bedding planes or natural layers that weaken the material.

Instead, it is solid throughout, al- Planning a landscaping project? The McKenzie Gravel Quarry has the raw lowing artisans and fabricators 8 materials that are sure to increase its visual impact.

The Water Beneath the Mountain: Born of Basalt, Bottled with Pride

By the time you lift a glass of McKenzie Mist water, you’ve already tasted a story shaped by volcanic rock, family resilience, and one family’s refusal to quit.

From the Heart of the McKenzie: A Family’s Journey to Keep Pure Water Flowing Long before bottled water became a supermarket staple, Molly Morris believed people would recognize the difference that truly exceptional water could make.

In November 1994, she and her husband, Gale, launched McKenzie Mist Water Company with little more than a remarkable artesian spring, a belief in quality, and a willingness to compete against companies far larger than themselves. Their first products half-liter, liter, and gallon bottles - quickly found homes in local stores and even at the airport.

Then the landscape changed almost overnight.

That happened when CocaCola introduced Dasani and PepsiCo launched Aquafina, transforming the bottled water industry into a battle of marketing budgets and razor-thin prices.

Independent bottlers across the country struggled to survive.

Morris refused to join the price war.

“If people taste the difference,” she believed, “they’ll understand the value.”

She was right.

Not long after opening, McKenzie Mist entered an international water tasting competition. Against 42 waters from around the world, the little company from Oregon’s McKenzie River Valley earned top honors.

The victory became more than a trophy. It became validation.

Word spread.

Customers came.

And McKenzie Mist found its

Launched in 1994, McKenzie Mist has continued to deliver water known world wide for its purity. place.

Listening to Customers Success didn’t come from a carefully scripted business plan as much as from paying attention.

Around 1998, Molly began receiving phone calls from homeowners and businesses asking if the company delivered five-gallon bottles.

Three calls became four.

Four became enough.

Despite some understandable skepticism from Gale about another major investment, she ordered the equipment needed to begin home and office delivery.

That decision quietly transformed the company.

Today, those familiar blue five-gallon bottles remain the backbone of the business.

As demand increased, McKenzie Mist outgrew one facility after another - moving first to downtown Springfield, then to West 11th Avenue for greater visibility, and eventually into the spacious warehouse on West 6th it occupies today.

Ironically, what once seemed far more warehouse than the

company would ever need is now filled nearly to capacity.

Growth has a way of catching up.

Water Born of Fire The water itself begins deep beneath the volcanic landscape of the McKenzie Valley.

A 280-foot artesian well reaches through layers of ancient basalt before bringing naturally filtered groundwater to the surface.

That volcanic geology gives the water much of its distinctive character - a taste recognized by international judges and appreciated by thousands of customers

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throughout Lane County.

Yet the same landscape that created the water nearly ended the business.

Fueled by high winds and dry conditions on the evening of September 7, 2020, the Holiday Farm Fire swept through Blue River, destroying McKenzie Mist’s production facility.

Everything changed in a single day.

Rather than walking away, the Morrises began rebuilding almost immediately.

Lane County approved construction of a new agricultural building over the well site, allowing large holding tanks to be installed while tanker trucks transported water to the company’s Eugene bottling facility.

The rebuilding process took nearly two years and required more than $250,000 in new infrastructure for electrical systems, plumbing, water storage, and production equipment.

Ten employees temporarily lost paychecks.

Operations were disrupted.

The future seemed uncertain.

Yet looking across today’s warehouse, Molly doesn’t dwell on what was lost.

Instead, she sees how the fire forced them to rebuild.

New forklifts.

Modern racking systems.

Improved bottling equipment.

A more efficient production process.

Sometimes rebuilding creates Continued On Page 11

Now headquartered in Eugene, the Morris family’s enterprise is built upon the pure output of a spring in the McKenzie Valley.

Valley’s Stone Story

Continued From Page 8 ington and northern California. tion while supporting local jobs For Steury, local sourcing rep- and regional manufacturing. resents more than convenience.

“It’s a resource that’s been here Stone imported from overseas all along,” he says. “Now we’re often travels thousands of miles finding new ways to use it.” before reaching construction The partners envision far more sites in the Pacific Northwest. than a quarry.

Producing finished architectural Plans include a new fabrication stone in the McKenzie Valley facility equipped with automated dramatically reduces transporta- bridge cranes, energy-efficient

systems, and LEED-certified construction. Future partnerships with major stone suppliers could bring additional granite, basalt, and specialty materials under the same roof, creating what they hope will become a regional hub for dimensional stone serving the western United States.

Meanwhile, the quarry continues its everyday work.

Every few months, carefully planned blasts expose another section of volcanic hillside. Mas-

sive boulders are sorted by size and quality. Some become landscape stone, columns, or handcrafted bird baths. Others begin life as gravel destined for roads, bridges, and forest projects throughout Oregon.

With an estimated 20 years of reserves remaining, the operation has time to grow.

For anyone standing atop the quarry overlooking the forests of the McKenzie Valley, the vision becomes surprisingly clear. The same volcanic forces that shaped the valley thousands of years ago are now providing material for buildings, public spaces, and works of art that may stand for centuries.

Bottled with Pride

ly injured husband, Molly also navigated constantly changing COVID regulations that affected every aspect of the business.

Then came the wildfire.

Within days of losing the Blue River production facility, she found an unlikely partner.

Justin Allensworth, owner of South Fork Coffee, agreed to bottle McKenzie Mist water using Eugene’s municipal supply so customers would continue receiving deliveries while rebuilding continued.

Nearly 90 percent of customers stayed with the company.

Months later, when South Fork Coffee experienced equipment problems of its own, McKenzie Mist returned the favor by bottling water for them.

In rural communities, resilience often comes down to neighbors helping neighbors.

Family Still Matters Walk through McKenzie Mist today and it still feels more like a family business than a manufacturing operation.

Continued From Page 10

something stronger than what existed before.

An Unexpected Opportunity One of McKenzie Mist’s newest business divisions began almost by accident.

The trucking company hired to haul water from Blue River had a driver preparing to move to Michigan. Before leaving, he asked whether Molly might be interested in purchasing his bulk water delivery business.

She said yes.

The acquisition added another dimension to the company.

Today, McKenzie Mist tanker trucks deliver water for swimming pools, agricultural operations, ponds, cisterns, construction projects, and emergency needs throughout Lane County.

The company maintains fill station agreements with utilities and municipalities, including EWEB, allowing rapid deployment whenever additional water supplies are required.

Demand has grown so steadily that the company has added a new tanker truck each year for the past three years.

Sometimes opportunity arrives disguised as an ordinary conversation.

The Hardest Year If 2020 tested businesses everywhere, it seemed determined to test the Morris family personally.

On Valentine’s Day, Gale and the couple’s younger son were struck head-on by a distracted driver.

Gale barely survived.

He spent 22 days hospitalized before complications during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic led to an early discharge. Rehabilitation brought new medical emergencies, including a dangerous brain bleed that required emergency surgery and additional time in intensive care.

While caring for her critical-

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Roughly ten employees keep the company running.

Molly’s son, Colton, oversees production.

Drivers know many customers by name.

Phone calls are answered by people rather than automated systems.

Growth remains steady, but measured.

The Morrises have little interest in becoming another regional corporation.

Instead, Molly says they’re focused on serving Lane County well, maintaining dependable delivery schedules, and perhaps adding a few complementary products - such as electrolyte supplements - to meet changing customer needs.

Their philosophy remains refreshingly simple.

Do one thing well.

Then keep doing it.

An Independent Current The bottled water industry has become increasingly consolidatContinued On Page 12

Bottled with Pride Continued From Page 11 ed. Most familiar brands now belong to a handful of multinational corporations.

McKenzie Mist is different.

It remains family-owned.

Its water comes from a pri-

vately owned artesian source beneath Oregon’s hillsides.

Its reputation has been earned one delivery, one customer, and one recommendation at a time.

During a recent visit, Molly

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paused beside rows of neatly stacked bottles filling the warehouse from floor to ceiling.

Years earlier, she and a visitor had laughed that the building seemed impossibly large.

Today, there is scarcely an empty corner.

For the family, the crowded warehouse isn’t simply evidence of business success.

It’s proof that perseverance can fill spaces once occupied by uncertainty.

Like the water that rises patiently through the heart of ancient basalt, some of life’s best things arrive slowly - shaped by time, strengthened by pressure, and ultimately emerging clear enough to speak for themselves.

Continued From Page 6 connecting Sahalie and Koosah falls.

The approximately 2.6-mile Waterfalls Loop Trail passes through a deep green forest alongside two powerful cascades created by the area’s volcanic history. Sahalie plunges about 100 feet over an ancient lava dam, while Koosah drops into a deep pool downstream.

Farther along the McKenzie River Trail is another of the valley’s signature destinations: Tamolitch, better known as Blue Pool.

Here the McKenzie emerges after moving underground through porous lava, collecting in a remarkably clear, intensely colored pool surrounded by basalt cliffs and forest.

Other hiking opportunities are scattered throughout the surrounding Willamette National Forest, from short family outings to longer excursions into the Cascades.

Spend a day at the lake The valley’s lakes offer a change of pace from the moving water of the McKenzie.

At the upper end of the drainage, Clear Lake combines hiking, paddling, fishing and extraordinary scenery. A roughly five-mile trail circles the pool, while the reort’s rowboats and other small craft offer another way to explore its famously clear water. Beneath the surface are remnants of an ancient forest submerged when lava altered the landscape thousands of years ago.

Cougar and Blue River Reservoirs provide other settings for camping, fishing and hiking, with forest roads leading deeper into the surrounding mountains.

Farther down the valley, Leaburg Lake provides easily accessible water and scenery closer to the Eugene-Springfield area.

Camp beneath the trees Camping may be the simplest way to turn a day on the McKenzie into a weekend.

Campgrounds and recreation sites are scattered along Highway 126 and through the national forest, ranging from developed sites to more primitive experiences. The appeal is straightforward: wake beneath towering trees, make coffee beside a stream and decide whether the day calls for a hike, a fishing trip or simply another hour beside the campfire - when seasonal fire restrictions allow.

The corridor also contains numerous day-use areas where visitors can picnic, walk along the river or simply find a quiet place to watch the water.

Take the scenic route Not every McKenzie adventure requires hiking boots.

Driving the valley is a recreational experience of its own. The McKenzie River Scenic Byway follows the river for 34 miles, passing through communities and providing access to parks, fishing areas, historic sites and river viewpoints.

At the upper end of the valley, seasonal Highway 242 climbs toward McKenzie Pass and the Dee Wright Observatory. There the lush western Cascade forest suddenly gives way to an enormous black lava landscape surrounded by mountain peaks - one of Oregon’s most dramatic changes of scenery.

The drive also connects the McKenzie Valley with the McKenzie Pass-Santiam Pass and West Cascades scenic routes, opening the door to much longer Cascade explorations.

Tee off with a mountain view 13 Recreation in the valley isn’t limited to rivers and trails.

Golfers can spend a morning or afternoon on the course at Tokatee, where fairways sit amid forest and Cascade Mountain scenery. Travel Oregon has singled out the course as another recreational option along the McKenzie, including its memorable views toward the Three Sisters.

When the snow arrives The McKenzie area’s outdoor season doesn’t end when summer does.

As snow covers the higher Cascades, recreation shifts toward skiing, snowboarding, snowshoeing, sledding and other winter activities. Sno-parks near Santiam Pass provide access to the winter landscape, while the Hoodoo Ski Area is within easy reach of the upper McKenzie Valley.

Lower elevations often remain comparatively mild, making it possible on the right winter day to walk beside the river in the morning and head toward deep Cascade snow in the afternoon.

Or do almost nothing Perhaps one of the most overlooked recreational opportunities in the McKenzie Valley is simply slowing down.

Find a riverside picnic table. Walk beneath old-growth trees. Photograph the Goodpasture or Belknap covered bridges. Watch salmon in the river. Look for eagles and osprey. Sit beside a lake. Listen to a waterfall. Soak in warm mineral water at one of the area’s hot springs.

The McKenzie doesn’t demand adventure.

It simply provides the opportunity.

That may be the valley’s greatest recreational asset. From Cedar Flat to McKenzie Bridge and onward into the high Cascades, the landscape offers a progression from farms and river parks to whitewater, old-growth forest, waterfalls, lakes and volcanic peaks.

You can come to fish it, float it, hike it, bike it, paddle it, ski it or photograph it.

Or you can just come to enjoy being here. Either way, the McKenzie River has a way of becoming part of the experience.