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New for 2020

We are busy planning upgrades to Illahe Lodge for the 2020 season. The upgrades will include replacing the swamp cooler on the main lodge and the stairway at the front of the Annex.

Some have asked about the house on the hill which I purchased this summer and have expressed a hope that I will rent part of it out when the painting is done. In the fall, I need to be at the lodge so I’m not able to enjoy the house on the hill. As a result, I am considering renting it out part of the fall as an experiment. I am still working through the logistics and what the rental terms may be. (My initial thought is that it will only be rented to people who have stayed at Illahe Lodge previously and there will be a three day minimum stay requirement.) We are also still in the process of painting the house, replacing some of the appliances, etc. More details on the plans for the house on the hill will be shared if and as this idea moves forward.

View from the front porch of the house on the hill looking up river
The house on the hill is getting a bit of a facelift with new paint, several new appliances, new curtains, etc.
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Illahe Post Office

This fall, we were contacted by Terri Price Selig – the great-granddaughter of Elijah Price. Elijah Price was the first postmaster for the Illahe Post Office and was the driving force behind a post office being created in Illahe. Terri believes that her great-grandfather’s motivation was the desire to help his wife deal with the isolation that existed in Illahe at that time.

Terri has shared a variety of photographs, notes, and postcards from her family’s time in the place we now call “Illahe” – and has given us permission to share those items with our guests or use them as we see fit. Thanks to Terri, I am able to share the drawing of the Illahe Post Office shown below with people reading this posting.


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2020 Rates

Our rates for 2020 will be $165 per person per day which includes lodging, meals, and our amenities. Curry County has adopted a 7% lodging tax and this tax is included in the rate so our guests won’t have any unpleasant surprises when it comes to the price. The rate breaks down as follows:

Room: $80/night. Each room has one or two beds and a bathroom. Rooms in the main lodge have queen beds and/or extra long twins. (The rooms in the annex have double beds and/or twin beds.)

Meals: $80/day. Meals are served in bowls that guests pass around the table and serve themselves from. Seconds, beverages (coffee, tea, milk, hot chocolate, ice water, and juice at breakfast), and desserts (at lunch and dinner) are included in the price. Light refreshments are available in the afternoon or evening at no additional charge. Guests are welcome to make themselves a sack lunch to take with them as they go out fishing, hiking, running, or on to their next destination.

Other Amenities: $5.00/day. At Illahe Lodge, we gather history for our guests’ enjoyment, take time to answer our guests’ questions, and share stories; allow guests to use our boot dryers, muscle rollers, lacrosse balls, clothes drying racks, electric dryers, hair dryer, television, internet, telephone (for calls within the Continental US only); and have basic supplies and toiletries available for guests who need them. This charge recoups part of our cost for these items.

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Wildflowers in bloom

Many of our spring and summer guests enjoy seeing the wildflowers. The wildflowers that are currently blooming include the deerhead orchids (also called “lady slippers”), relicit trilliums (an endangered species), lilies, and Agness Iris.

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Orchard Updates for 2019

Two years ago, I ordered an Orenco apple tree. The nursery wasn’t able to fill my order, so I tried again last year. Again, the nursery wasn’t able to fill the order. As a result, I talked with the orchardist who has been custom grafting apple trees for me and he grafted the Orenco for me. In December, the tree was ready to come to Illahe. It has been planted and I’ve been waiting for it to break dormancy. Today, it started showing signs that it is breaking dormancy (the buds are swelling and there is a tiny bit of green on the tip of one bud). In addition, the plants that I’d ordered a few months ago have arrived. So what are they and why?

The biggest addition is three crabapple trees. We have planted 10 Gravenstein apple trees at the lodge over the last five years. Gravensteins are our favorite apple, but they have one minor downside. Gravensteins produce sterile pollen. In order for fruit to form, the flower has to be pollinated with viable pollen. Now that some of the Gravensteins are getting to the point where they may bloom, I wanted to be certain that they’d have a pollen source. Crabapples have a long bloom period so they’ll help pollinate the Gravensteins and the later blooming apple trees.

The crabapples are important, but they aren’t the only addition. One of the firefighters who came to the area to fight the Klondike Fire told me about a pineapple guava. He said it was the best fruit that he’d ever eaten. He said that it would grow in our area so I decided to try it. I don’t know how that will turn out, but it sounded interesting and it isn’t a fruit that our guests are likely to encounter in a lot of other places.

The other fruit that we are experimenting with this year is a black currant. When my great-grandfather was caretaking for A.T. Jergens at Jergen’s Lodge – across the river and downstream from Foster Bar, they grew a lot of currants (and a lot of apples). Over time, I anticipate expanding from one plant to several – if I find that I use them.

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Looking for Lodging on the Rogue River?

We are hearing from groups who are looking for lodging in the Illahe/Agness area of the Rogue River this spring, summer, and fall. We do have availability this spring and summer.

For the first time in many years, we will also have some availability for do-it-yourself and commercial groups who are floating the Rogue River or hiking/running the Rogue River Trail this fall.

If you are interested, please feel free to give us a call at 541-247-6111 to discuss your plans, proposed dates, any special dietary requirements, etc.

I hope we see you on the Rogue in 2018!

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2018 Update

We have been busy with our winter projects and updates for Illahe Lodge, when nature has allowed it. (We’ve had two snow storms this month and the forecast calls for the possibility of snow in our region next weekend as well.)

The fruit trees are all pruned. We’ve added eight additional apple trees of varieties that my great-grandfather would have planted or grafted if he’d had access to the varieties. These trees are at the far end of the garden where they’ll provide some shade on hot summer days. Down the road, I can foresee adding a bench under the trees. The varieties we added this year are Newtown Pippin, King, Akane, Braeburn, Northern Spy, Sierra Beauty, Grimes Golden, and Fameuse. In total, we have planted 26 apple trees over the last three years. We are planning to add four more apple trees this coming winter.

In 2017, we converted Room 2 in the main lodge from having two twin beds to one double bed. That change has been very popular. For 2018, we will be upgrading that room from having a double bed to having a queen bed. Also, Room 4 in the main lodge will be upgraded from having two twin beds to having one queen bed. By September 1, all of the beds in the main lodge will be extra long twins or queens. In the annex, the three rooms facing the driveway will each have a standard twin with a double bed. In addition, all of the beds in the main lodge and the annex will be less than four years old.

For the first time in many years, we will have some availability this fall for do-it-yourselfers who are floating the Rogue River as well as people who are hiking or running the Rogue River Trail. If you are looking for lodging in our area, I hope that you’ll keep us in mind.

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Last commercial canyon float trip of 2017

The last commercial canyon float trip of 2017 stayed at Illahe Lodge on November 3, 2017.  It has been a good season thanks to the outfitters, guides, and guests who stay with us. 

Over the next few days, we will be evaluating the results from 2017.  So far, we have made some decisions for 2018.  They include:

  • Trip size will be limited to six boats (18 people including guides) on commercial trips.
  • We will continue to allow guests to bring and consume alcohol at Illahe Lodge in moderation.
  • We had one room that was a designated single room for 2017 (room 2).  That was very well received and, as a result, room 4 will be a designated single room for 2018.  (A “single” room meaning that the rooms will each have one bed.  It will be a double or a queen.)
  • For 2018, we will be replacing some more of the older beds.  (Over half of the beds at Illahe Lodge have been replaced in the last three years.)

We are now accepting reservations from people wishing to stay at Illahe Lodge during the winter and spring. If you are interested please contact us through this website or at 541-247-6111 between 8 A.M. and 6 P.M. Thank you!

Hope we see you on the Rogue in 2018!