Author Zane Grey's Rogue River Cabin Preserved

Portland, OR — The Rogue River cabin where western author Zane Grey fished and wrote will be permanently preserved, The Trust for Public Land, a national conservation organization, and the Bureau of Land Management announced today.

The one-room cabin sits on 32 acres of land at Winkle Bar on the Rogue and is a regular stopping point for rafters and fisherman. It is surrounded by BLM land and now will be protected.

"This place meant a lot to Zane Grey and it is part of the lore of the West, and we're happy to help save it," said Nelson Mathews, who managed the project for TPL, which bought the site from a private owner and sold it to the BLM.

Eric Grey, the author's great-grandson, said, "Zane Grey was very concerned about the vanishing wilderness in America, particularly about the destructive force of road building. He wrote that 'lovers of the forest hate automobile roads, and know they are one great cause, probably the greatest, of our vanishing America.' "

"On one of his trips to the Rogue with his family, Grey noted he was glad his son could 'still see something of wild America' but he feared that his grandson never will. Three generations later, I am glad to say that the Rogue is still a beautiful wilderness. Thanks to the work of The Trust for Public Land, Zane Grey's cabin at Winkle Bar will be preserved for future generations of Americans," said Eric Grey.

Grey was born in 1872 and later moved west and became a writer. He bought the Winkle Bar property in 1926 and set up camp to write and fish for salmon and steelhead trout. His book, "Rogue River Feud," focused on the river.

Todd Newport, president of the Zane Grey's West Society, a private organization devoted to promoting Grey's writing and protecting the sites of those works, praised the TPL action.

"We strongly support preserving the places important to Zane Grey and this is one of the big ones for us," said Newport. "Grey loved going to Oregon in his later life and spending time each year fishing and running the Rogue and North Umpqua."

The property was acquired using federal funds from the Federal Land Transaction Facilitation Act and the Land and Water Conservation Fund. U.S. Sens. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Gordon Smith, R-Ore. strongly supported it, as did Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Ore.

A Guide Can Dream....

Kayaking can be a surreal experience. Bill Hays, one of Whitewater Warehouse's wonderful, professional river guides is featured in this cool photo taken by a WWW guest last year. On the Rogue, inflatable kayaking is a part of Whitewater Warehouse's "cadre of floatila." Our guests love them and so do our guides! Bill is probably dreaming of taking some river-time to jump in and surf a Rogue wave....

Our guests can use single Inflatable Kayaks (we call them IKs) and double IKs...singles are great because they give you flexibility to go where you want to go. Double are cool because they give you double the power (and double the trouble!!!). So, we advise that you reserve one of these fun water crafts and whoop it up on our Oregon rafting and kayaking trips!

Kayaking Cutie!

Guests of Whitewater Warehouse love to inflatable kayak the incredible Rogue River...and this lovely lady is no exception. Jessie Johnson and family have traveled the Rogue River with WWW for most of this young woman's life. And doesn't her comfort with this beautiful Oregon river show in this photo?

We are excited for Jesse because it looks like this year she will be guiding on day trips for River Drifters out of Bend, Oregon. Her love of rivers and her ability to read water and paddle hard (plus her awesome personality) have made her one of Whitewater Warehouse's favorite clients and we are sure she will become a favorite guide for River Drifters as well.

Talked to Tim (owner of River Drifters) today and he said that their season looks strong. This quality company focuses their rafting/kayaking trips primarily on the Deschutes, Clackamas, and White Salmon Rivers. They offer 1/2 to 5 day trips on these rivers and other rivers as well. Check out their website at: River Drifters.

Happy Campers!

Are we lucky or what? To be associated with premium quality outfitters like Rogue River Journeys on southern Oregon's Rogue River. They are experts in camping trips--and their speciality is camping on the Rogue River. They run 4-day, 3-night camp/rafting/kayaking trips starting every Wednesday through the months of June, July, and August. To view a listing of their actual start dates, you can click here.

Jim Ritter is the man to call about these trips and can be reached at 1-866-213-7754. He is one of the nicest folks you will ever speak with and knows everything about camping trips on the Rogue....or, anything else for that matter!

So, if you want a top-notch camp trip experience, check out Rogue River Journeys. While we here at Whitewater Warehouse offer lodge-to-lodge Rogue River options, we know that that is not everyone's "cup of tea." So, if you are a person or family that wants to camp in one of the spectacular places on earth (the Rogue River), give Rogue River Journeys a try...they will not disappoint!

One Creepy Toad....

They came creeping out after dark. Camped near Missouri Creek on Oregon's Rogue River, these Western Toads stayed safely burrowed away until twilight. Silently they emerged, sitting atop the warmed rocks of the camp site. They have voices like the weak peeping of baby chicks...

One of Whitewater Warehouse's clients took several photos and captured the true "beauty" of these beasts. Enature.com says that these toads are active at twilight (just what we found to be true). The site also says that at higher elevations, where nighttime temperatures are low, they can be active during the day too.

The toads live in burrows of their own construction or hang out in homes made by small rodents. Lovely....I see a new magazine in the making for these guys..."Toad Burrow Beautiful."

One Oar in the Water....

We believe it is important to use the best, more innovative equipment on the water...especially when it comes to what types of oars our guides row with on the Rogue River. Sawyer oars (and paddles) are made in southern Oregon by the Sawyer Paddles & Oars professionals. For over 40 years this company has been on the forefront of paddle and oar advancements. Their original Douglas Fir oars were light weight and had the ability to withstand the tough conditions unique to whitewater use. Today, the company also produces under the "Smoker" brand (these are solid Ash paddles and oars). Its newer hybrid oars are made of both composite and wood/composite and are arguably more durable than their wood counterparts and much lighter.

Our Whitewater Warehouse guides all have their own preferences regarding which type of oar they like to run on our Oregon rafting trips. But the one constant is that they all have selected Sawyer oars brand as their oar of choice.

Bruce Bergstrom, owner of Sawyer, had a couple interesting facts to share about his company. "I am proud of that our company has supplied the oars that set the Northern Atlantic Crossing record and also supplied the oars for the recent Southern Atlantic Crossing record. It is amazing to me to think about the individuals that set these records rowing for 2 1/2 months in a 20 foot boat." For more information on this interesting company which sells paddles and oars to hundreds of outfitters and even more private boaters, check out their website at: Sawyer Paddles & Oars

Rafting the Fish Ladder

This "sneak route" is called the fish ladder and is located on the wild & scenic Rogue River. Folks use this route to bypass Rainey Falls (a Class V rapid on the Rogue River). Super fun rapid to kayak through...think it is classified as a class III rapids. You can see at the top of this rapid one of Whitewater Warehouse's pontoon rafts making its way down the pool-n-drop series of rapids. Oregon rafting and kayaking at its finest!