Temporary Closure: Finn Rock Boat Landing

Finn Rock Landing is temporarily closed as our staff and contractors work on an improvement project for the area. Construction began in December 2023 and will likely extend through June 2024. An alternative put-in/take-out for boaters can be found upstream at Forest Glen Landing. This landing is operated by Lane County and requires a parking pass. Putting in at Forest Glen increases river trips to Helfrich Landing by 3 river miles (roughly 45 minutes on the water). 

Finn Rock Reach

Owned Property

Size: 278 acres
Acquired: December 2015 and March 2016.
Location: Just downstream of the town of Blue River, between mile makers 38 (Quartz Creek Bridge) and 40 on highway 126.
How it was Protected:

The McKenzie River Trust purchased the property in fee title from Rosboro following a closed-bid auction. A low-interest Conservation Bridge Loan from Craft3 helped pay for the purchase while grants and private funds were secured through the McKenzie Homewaters Campaign.

Emerging ice cold and blue from the volcanic filter of Cascades basalt, the river drops through thick forests, nurturing bull trout and Chinook salmon along the way.

Meet Finn Rock Reach

Why It’s Important

The headwaters of the McKenzie River are renowned for their clarity and consistent flow. Emerging ice cold and blue from the volcanic filter of Cascades basalt, the river drops through thick forests, nurturing bull trout and Chinook salmon along the way. At its first major convergences with its South Fork and with the Blue River, the McKenzie takes on a new feel, meandering among side channels that offer new habitats and more approachable waters. This unique place, Finn Rock Reach, is now protected, forever.

Finn Rock Reach includes two miles of riverfront on both sides of the McKenzie, numerous side channels, ponds, wetlands, and floodplain forest with old-growth cottonwoods that measure 20 feet around. At the downstream end of the property, the popular Finn Rock Landing is the launch point for thousands of raft and drift boat trips down the McKenzie River every year. The property was also home to the former Finn Rock Logging Camp, where Rosboro employees lived from the 1940s through 1980s. Rosboro sold both parcels to MRT following a closed-bid auction.

Finn Rock Reach was the centerpiece of the $4.6 Million McKenzie Homewaters Campaign, completed in spring 2018, with hundreds of generous community members contributing to permenantly protect and care for this unique place.

 

How it was Protected

The McKenzie River Trust purchased the property in fee title from Rosboro following a closed-bid auction. A low-interest Conservation Bridge Loan from Craft3 helped pay for the purchase while grants and private funds were secured through the McKenzie Homewaters Campaign.

Major funding was provided by the Bonneville Power Administration and the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife through the Willamette Wildlife Mitigation Program.  Another major funder was the Eugene Water and Electric Board through their source water protection program.

Restoring Floodplain Function at Finn Rock

From 2020 – 2023 partners from McKenzie River Trust, the US Forest Service, and McKenzie Watershed Council worked together to implement a large-scale floodplain restoration project at Finn Rock Reach. This project has great benefits for the fish, wildlife, and people of western Oregon.

A haven for native fish

In the fall of 2015, McKenzie River Trust staff and friends observed Spring Chinook salmon spawning in the mainstem river and in the extensive side channels of the property. Bull trout have been tracked foraging in this reach of the river, and just downstream of the property, Elk Creek’s confluence with the McKenzie has historically been important as a nursery for Chinook fry. In addition to these keystone fish species, the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife manages angling on this section of the river as a stronghold for native Redside rainbow trout.

 

Wildlife on the property

Two other notable Oregon species have either been observed on the property or are likely to be found. The numerous ponds and side channels of the property may provide a home for western pond turtles (Clemmys marmorata marmorata), while yellow-breasted chat (Icteria virens), a songbird, may live in the dense thickets along the streams and the mainstem McKenzie River. Both are listed as sensitive in the Oregon Conservation Strategy, a document that provides a blueprint and action plan for the long-term conservation of Oregon’s native fish and wildlife and their habitats.

 

Surrounded by conservation lands

While the site is within a matrix of privately held commercial timber lands, Willamette National Forest land is immediately upstream and beyond that, public lands dominate to the crest of the Cascade mountains. The National Wild and Scenic section of the McKenzie River starts 17 miles upstream of Finn Rock Reach. At its downstream end, the property abuts the Howard J Morton Memorial Park (currently managed by Lane County). Proceeding downstream, the river is further buffered by further Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management ownership and Lane County’s Eagle Rock Park.

Visit Finn Rock Reach

This unique site is owned by McKenzie River Trust and cared for by its members, partners, and volunteers. We invite you to enjoy the boat landing, facilities, and river path during daylight hours.

The Finn Rock Boat Landing is a popular launch point for day trips down the McKenzie River in a raft, kayak, or a drift boat. Working with other friends of the river, including the McKenzie Guides, the McKenzie Masters, and the Friends of Finn Rock Reach, the boat launch has remained open for public access free of charge. We rely on our members, partners, and volunteers to maintain this area and the surrounding natural habitat for spawning salmon, birds, and other creatures who call this land home.

Join the Friends of Finn Rock Reach

We rely on our community to help protect and care for this iconic McKenzie River destination. We invite you to join the Friends of Finn Rock Reach every first Friday of the month between March and November. Projects include removing invasive species, managing litter, and caring for trails. Join us, and be a part of a community dedicated to recreation, retreat, and wonder in the natural world.