Eagle Rock Park in Vida Reopens After Holiday Farm Fire Damage

Eagle Rock Park in Vida held its ribbon-cutting Monday morning, marking the reopening of a park that the Holiday Farm Fire reduced to ash and scorched earth nearly six years ago. Lane County Parks completed a redesign of the site nestled just below the rock landmark that gave the park its name, adding ADA-compliant sidewalks and parking along with a permanent shelter that was not part of the original park.

Parks Division Manager Brett Henry called the project a "rebirth" and said it signals something broader for the McKenzie River corridor. "I think there was a fear that after the fire happened that it was going to really hurt tourism; it's going to just keep people away from this area. But they're not seeing that. And you're seeing a regrowth or rebirth," Henry said at the reopening.

Residents and Lane County Parks employees gathered for the March 30 event, the latest community marker in a long recovery from one of the most destructive fires in Lane County's recent history.

The Holiday Farm Fire ignited just before 8 p.m. on September 7, 2020, starting several miles west of McKenzie Bridge before tearing through Blue River, Vida, and Leaburg and consuming tens of thousands of acres. Eagle Rock Park burned with the rest. As of Monday, scorched trees remained visible near the park.

Jonnie Helfrich, a river guide with Helfrich McKenzie Rafting, remembers floating the McKenzie with her husband about a month after the fire was put out. What she saw left a mark. "At that time, trees were still smoking, and there were still red hot spots. And I cried," Helfrich said. She described Eagle Rock Park as a local gem among those charred acres.

The new shelter and ADA upgrades position the park as a point of entry for the river tourism Henry said is already rebounding. The scorch marks are still there. So are the visitors.