The upper McKenzie River, in Oregon, is a vast wilderness and a tourist fishing location for the past 100 years. Some 30% of the clean water in the Willamette River comes down the Mckenzie. In the latter part of the 19th century, gold mining and began and brought more people to the area. Then hot springs were found (Belknap) and several businesses began. The trail up into the upper river was very narrow, and it had to be widened to accept wagons. The first road developments were supported by Lane County. In this period the pristine fishing area was found. Rare red-sided Dolly Varden trout alongside steelhead and salmon are well known for the area.
Logging also became large in the area, with logs floated freely down into the valley and then “caught” by lumber mills at riverside. Millions of board feet were logged from the area.
In this era, Eugene city needed a clean water supply, and they created a reservoir and pumping station up the river…