Illahe Lodge (originally known as “Schneider’s Lodge”) was built by E.J. and Florence Schneider in the late 1930s and early 1940s as their retirement home. During the construction, their friends from over in Coos County started talking about coming to stay with the Schneiders in the fall when the half pounders were running. That was the beginning of Illahe Lodge. When the Schneider’s daughter, son-in-law, and grandson bought the lodge from the Schneiders in 1959, the lodge was renamed “The Illahe Lodge” because Burl Rutledge got tired of being called “Mr. Schneider.” From the beginning, Illahe Lodge has been a family home and a family business. Illahe Lodge is both our family’s business and our family’s home.
llahe Lodge is located between Watson Creek and Foster Bar on the Rogue National Wild and Scenic River in southwestern Oregon. It overlooks the Rogue River Trail and neighbors Big Bend Pasture. Our guests enjoy the benefits of public electricity, wireline telephone service, and year-around road access.
What is Illahe Lodge
A good way to think of Illahe Lodge is as a bed and breakfast that serves lunch and dinner and shares the history and stories of our area too. The people who stay with us are guests in our family’s home. All we ask of our guests is that they conduct themselves in our home as we would conduct ourselves if we were guests in their home.
The Set Up
Guests share use of the dining room, living room, lawns, porches, garden, and orchard. Our guests often spend much of their time when they aren’t hiking or fishing in the common areas visiting. We do have internet and telephone that our guests are welcome to use, but we encourage our guests to talk with each other. When time permits, my father and I visit with our guests, share stories, and answer questions. We have gathered some of our area’s history (and are always interested in gathering more). Our guests are welcome to look at the history and read the stories.
Guests rooms are mostly double occupancy. We can accommodate single occupancy for guests who are traveling alone. (Please let us know if single occupancy is needed when making your reservation.) Most of the bedrooms have one or two beds. The bedrooms are mostly upstairs although we have one room that is located downstairs in case anyone has difficulty with stairs. In the main lodge, the rooms have queens and/or extra long twin beds. In the annex, the rooms have a double bed or standard twins. Each guest room has its own designated bathroom with a shower. (Most of the bathrooms are located inside the guest room.)
Room 1 in the Main Lodge
Bedroom in the Annex
Downstairs Bedroom
Our meals are home cooked and almost everything is made from scratch. Meals feature produce from our garden and our orchard when it is available. Many of the items are prepared using recipes that have been handed down in our family. Meals are served family-style (in bowls that are passed). Guests serve themselves. Seconds, our standard beverages, and, at lunch and dinner, dessert are provided. We are known for our “Thanksgiving Dinner” and our sliced tomatoes in the fall. Other popular items include our rice-tomato soup, homemade cinnamon rolls, fresh fruit, and warm applesauce.
With smaller groups, we sometimes eat with our guests. Some guests prefer two meals per day (dinner and breakfast). Others prefer three. We are able to accommodate either preference. One of the meals can be a sack lunch or dinner, if desired. In the afternoon, we can provide our guests with lemonade, ice tea, and snacks, if desired.
We use nuts, dairy products, wheat, eggs, soy, and other common ingredients in our food preparation and in our kitchen. That said, we are often able to work with guests who have special diets (vegetarian, vegan, wheat-free, low sodium, etc.) with advanced notice so please discuss this with us when making your reservation.
Breakfast
Dinner
Extras
We stock insect repellent, poison oak prevention, bandages, combs, toothpaste, toothbrushes, sunscreen, burn ointment, emergency clothing, and similar items for our guests’ use. We also have lacrosse balls and muscle rollers that our guests can use, if desired.
Guests are welcome to use our washers and dryers if needed. (We have laundry soap our guests can use.) We also have boot dryers.
Alcohol and Tobacco
We do not provide or serve alcohol. Guests are welcome to bring alcoholic beverages of their choice and enjoy them in moderation during their stay. We do not charge a corking fee. (Guests are also welcome to bring soft drinks, if desired.)
Guests are welcome to smoke (tobacco only) in our designated smoking areas. We ask guests to refrain from vaping while on Illahe Lodge property.
Parking
Current guests are welcome to park, have their vehicles shuttled to/from, and meet their parties at Illahe Lodge.
Public parking is provided by the Forest Service at the trail head for the Rogue River Trail and at Foster Bar. (We do not offer public parking or allow people who are not staying with us to meet their parties or be dropped off at Illahe Lodge.)
Reservations
Reservations are required. Guests often make their reservations for the fall several months to a year in advance. Reservations for the winter, spring, and summer should be made at least 10 days in advance to allow us time to prepare for your stay. A 50% deposit may be required to confirm reservations with the balance due on departure from Illahe Lodge. We accept cash and personal checks. No credit cards please.
To make reservations or for more information, please call us at 541-247-6111 or send us an email at [email protected].
Cancellations, Illness, and Injury
If you are ill or injured, please stay home and seek appropriate medical care. Let us know about the situation as soon as you are able to do so. We allow cancellations without penalty when they are due to illness or injury. Once you have recovered, we will be happy to reschedule your visit.
All bedding, towels, and glasses in guest rooms is washed between groups. We also use ozone to sanitize guest rooms between groups.
Weather or Closures
When the weather is not conducive to your planned activity, we allow you to cancel or reschedule. The same is true when a government entity orders a closure that would make it impossible for you to enjoy your planned itinerary. Please let us know when you make a reservation what your plans are so we can follow up with you if we learn of weather or closures that could impact your plans.
Farm Produce and Baked Goods
Sometimes, we have extra produce (apples, figs, tomatoes, grapes, etc.), extra tomato plants, and spices that are grown at Illahe Lodge or extra bakery-type items that we have made such as cinnamon rolls, cookies, and carrot cake. We share a reasonable amount of these extra items with guests staying at Illahe Lodge at no additional charge. When we have extra items that aren’t needed at Illahe Lodge, we sometimes offer them for purchase by the general public.
Schneider’s House
In the summer of 2019, we purchased the house that E.J. and Florence Schneider (“Grandpa Ernie” and “Grandma Florence”) built after selling Illahe Lodge to their daughter and son-in-law and their grandson. Guests who have stayed at Illahe Lodge previously may be allowed to rent part of the house for blocks of at least three days. Please contact us directly for more information.
Rate
Our rate for 2024 is $200 per person per night which breaks down to $80/person per night for the room and $120/person/day for meals, our standard beverages, amenities, time spent answering questions, parking, and all applicable taxes.
Contact
We can be contacted at 541-247-6111 between 9 A.M. and 6 P.M. Pacific Time. If we do not answer, please leave a message.
For your convenience, we can also be contacted via email to [email protected].
Our mailing address is 37709 Agness-Illahe Road, Agness, OR 97406.