Great experience for my 3 generations of family! We took a full day trip with my son, grandson, and…read morehusband. Dave, our guide, was friendly and knowledgeable. Reservations were easy to make and changes were accepted. Questions were promptly responded to.

Our group of 7 had a really great full-day rafting trip on the McKenzie with Kamis and Ariel at…read moreOregon Whitewater Adventures! We arrived to the meeting spot around 10am and got back to the cars around 3:15pm. Reservations were easy to do online, and I received the confirmation email shortly after with details on timing, meeting location, and what to expect for the day. This was the only communication we received, so if you're someone who finds reminder emails helpful, you may not get it with OWA. We were split up between two boats with one additional solo guest. The shuttle ride was quick to Paradise campground, leaving the meeting point around 10:10am. The guides set us up with life jackets and paddles, provide us with instructions for paddling and safety, and after hopping in the boats and doing some practice strokes, we were on our way. The deli-style lunch was set up for us about 2 hours into the trip (12:30pmish). We ate at a campground with bathroom access. The lunch spread consisted of bread, deli meats, cheese, sauces/condiments, melon, veggies, chips, cookies, PB/jelly, sodas - a surprisingly vast assortment and was a treat after a few hours on the water. The entire trip was really fun. We enjoyed chatting with our guides, paddling into the rapids and enjoying the scenery. Our boat hit a rapid "just right" and two members of our raft fell out, but we moved quickly to get them back in the raft and all had a good laugh about the rapid. The only thing I wish is that OWA would offer photos (just cell phone, nothing fancy). As they carry a dry bag and phones, it would have been nice to have a photo of our group that could be emailed/texted after the trip. Or from the staff member who sets up the lunch. We all really enjoyed our day and would definitely be interested to do another trip with OWA. And as the email says, "And remember, a guide can over tip your boat, but you can't over tip your guide."

Thank you so much for the wonderful raft trip. My son snd 5 grandsons loved Martins Rapids…read more Toby was a great guide. Everyone was throughly impressed with the entire trip, even the seven year old.

Absolute professionals, the Helfrich crew was excellent and provided exceptional service on the…read moreriver. The rogue river was personally a life changing experience that I will remember for ever. Thanks guys.

leaving the review to support this business! visited from out of state for a bit and wanted to go…read morekayaking. called the owner (I believe) and she not only informed that there are algae at the lake initially chosen by us, but reccomended another one and dropped off the kayaks before the promised time. the kayaks themselves were really good and included life jackets. highly reccomend!

Even if you don't go on the trail itself, it's still beautiful. You can walk straight down from the…read moreparking lot toward the water, and the view from the bottom is breathtaking. I've been back many times throughout the year, and it's amazing to see the landscape naturally changing so drastically. In the early-mid summer, the bugs start to go crazy, so going in the spring or fall is best for a calm climate. You can see all sorts of wildlife from birds and cool plants, to even little red salamanders. Which live in multitudes in the water (but don't touch them, oil from human hands can hurt salamanders & newts). There are also cool rock formations when you walk a little upstream, from quartz deposits to sheer cliffs. Such a cool place, and you don't have to walk far to see the great views.

Nice rolling hills trail through the trees, make it as long or as short as you wish. If you follow…read morethe directions of the previous review, the Hardesty trail will eventually lead you to a rarely travelled gravel road. From there its about 3 miles downhill back to the parking lot, or roughly a 9 mile loop. Several chances to cross the stream, pick some blackberries and plenty of sunlight and shade through the canopy. On occasion you will see other hikers, (horseback) riders or mountain bikers. Most exercise good wilderness etiquette, but be mindful of the weekend warriors without a bike bell. Ground bees in some spots, so be vigilant when stepping off the trail. One pit toilet in the parking lot, and no garbage cans, so (obviously) pack out your water bottles and snack wrappers. Overall a beautiful, relaxing hike on a well maintained trail and well worth the drive from Eugene.

Hiked the lower and upper Mossy Maple trail. The combine distance, round trip, was 5.95 miles and…read moreabout 825 elevation gain. Parking lot is new and large. Restroom facilities. There were 20 cars on the Friday morning we went In early June. We encountered one bike on the way up and five on the way down. Hats off to the trail crew, excellent condition except for 100-200 yards near the top where it was a little washed out but easily passable. The first 2 miles is a 5' - 6' wide gravel trail, easy for two people to walk side by side. The last mile up was a traditional narrow dirt trail. Trail markers easy to follow. Mountain bikes are permitted but only for the uphill portion of the trail. Bikers use separate trails when traveling downhill. At the "top" of the Upper Mossy Maple trail is a very limited overlook of the valley to the south. The top is a meadow, nowhere to sit and lacks shade. The trail ends at a service road which continues up to a nearby communications tower. What quickly catches your eye is a small grove of maple trees with moss hanging from their limbs. Hence, "Mossy Maple Trail." It took us, a middle aged couple, 70 min to get to the top with two stops to drink.

Do you want to find country close to the city? Thurston Hills natural area takes all the boxes:…read more Dog walkers (with LEASHED DOGS) Birders Hikers Gleaners This is a natural area adjacent to Quartz Park. There is another entrance to the north that connects with the hiking trail over the hills. However you can also just stay to Weyerhaeuser Rd. which is a lovely flat paved surface with some irregularity that might not make it a good fit for folks with mobility issues but Overall a path it will definitely comedy to strollers. The path wanders through still active grazing and agricultural land as well as old growth that was preserved from logging. Endless stretches of apple trees and lovely views of the hills within 10 minutes of downtown Springfield. Really can't beat it.

I've been on a mission to try to see all the park Eugene has to offer and this one was a good find…read more I work over in the part of town and was looking for a quick hike. This trail is a less than 2 mile hike that takes you through beautiful trees, a nice grasslands area and some Douglas for trees as well! I used the West Kidgeline Trail and took my time at a leisurely pace since you do go uphill. You can park on the street which is easy. I saw many different birds, some lizards and of course squirrels living among the trees. I didn't see anyone when I was on the trail during the week but maybe the weekend is more popular. What is nice is you can park at either end of this trail!

For context, we have spent a lot of time on rivers and have done several rafting trips in the US…read moreand abroad. We were so impressed with Evan (the business owner) and the guide service he provided. His equipment was top notch but what impressed us most was his knowledge and love for the river. From the safety talk to the take out, Evan went the extra mile to make the trip enjoyable and educational. Cannot recommend River Trail Guides business more.

My family and I had a blast! It was the first time ever rafting, which made my daughter very…read moreanxious. However his knowledge and experience made the trip very enjoyable for us all! There were so many great memories made and even more laughs! We can't wait to go again!

850 N. Shore Drive, Lowell, OR 97452 43.9230° N, 122.7966° W…read more Located about 21 miles southeast of Eugene, or 17 miles from Springfield, Lowell State Recreation Site has become one of our favorite recreation spots in the area. For those coming from out of town who don't necessarily want to camp, its location also makes staying at a motel in Eugene or Springfield and making this a day trip very practical. Our first visit was July 3rd. The parking lot was busy, as you might expect going into the holiday, but we were still able to find parking. We liked the area enough that when we returned for several days in August, Wednesday through Sunday, we purchased the $60 annual pass rather than continuing to pay the $10 day-use fee. During our August visits, there was plenty of available parking. The recreation site is well maintained. The flushing restrooms were clean during our visits, and we observed friendly park employees greeting guests and answering questions. There are mature trees providing some welcome shade, open areas, a playground, and a few places to sit. There aren't enough shaded benches that I would depend upon finding one, however. We brought our folding camp chairs and found our own comfortable spot under the trees. For getting onto Dexter Reservoir, there are two concrete boat-launch lanes with floating docks. There is also a rocky shoreline area that works for launching kayaks. You can unload reasonably close to this area, but not directly at the water's edge, so be prepared to carry your kayak and equipment the remaining distance. See the photos for a better idea of the layout. For us, kayaking is what really made this location worth returning to. The reservoir is beautiful, with forested shoreline, surrounding hills and some wonderful views from the water. From Lowell, my map measurement put Dexter State Recreation Site at approximately 0.9 mile across the reservoir. Other destinations around the reservoir make it possible to do more than simply paddle around immediately in front of the boat ramp. We are novice kayakers and were able to paddle from Lowell to Dexter State Recreation Site and back without difficulty, even with some recreational boat traffic on the reservoir. Obviously, conditions can change with wind, weather and boat activity, so our experience shouldn't be taken as a guarantee of what another day will be like. And, for anyone wondering about the August water temperature away from shore: it's cool. I can personally verify that after flipping my kayak and unexpectedly going for a swim. Thankfully, I was wearing my life jacket. After visiting once in July and then returning for several days in August, we came away liking Lowell State Recreation Site even more. Clean facilities, plenty of parking during our visits, good water access, beautiful scenery and enough reservoir to explore that we haven't become bored with it. We bought the annual pass for a reason. We'll be back.