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Photo by Bob Pennell Willow Lake caretaker Carole Wilson and Jackson County park ranger Bonnie Gunter, far right, stroll past three of the four cabins the county has refurbished at Willow Lake. The cabins are now available for short-term rental year-round. Cabins open cozy winter woods access By ALBERTO ENRIQUEZ The elk bugle. The Canada geese honk. The sunlight spangles Willow Lake beneath white-hooded Mount McLoughlin. If you like the woods, but don't always care to rough it, the big news of the season is that the Willow Lake cabins are back. After a two-year hiatus, the once-popular resort reopens Thanksgiving under Jackson County management. The cabins are a first for Jackson County, but the county has long operated other campgrounds and recreation spots, including Rogue Elk Park and Emigrant Lake. The county leases the rights to operate the Willow Lake facility from the Medford Water Commission, which owns the land. The cabins were the personal property of former concessionaires Alfie and Ray Ortega, who built them. The pair later divorced and the cabins, now in receivership, have been tied up since an attempted bankruptcy two years ago. Now, however, four of the seven cabins are being refurbished, and even before the county got around to releasing the news, long-time campers had snapped up the cabins for Christmas. "Families bring Christmas trees up here," says Carole Wilson, a caretaker since the Ortegas managed the property. "They bake Thanksgiving dinners. As long as I have been here, it's always been really popular." The 20-by-20 cabins overlook the 927-acre lake and have most the amenities of home: gas ranges, refrigerator-freezers, electric heat, two bedrooms each with a double bed, fully equipped kitchens and towel service. A hide-a-bed couch in the living area sleeps another two people. The electric heaters are "very sufficient," Wilson says. Lace valances and rustic peeled log interiors complete a cozy, uncluttered mountain retreat. Roughing it starts with the Motel 6-style shower. It's not a bath -- there's no tub to soak your tired, holiday-making bones in. There's a loft, but no ladder -- and no matter, since the only thing up there is the water heater. But add a dormer window looking across to the lake, and it might be the best room in the house, at least in the winter. "There's a lot of wasted space there," Jackson County park ranger Bonnie Gunter agrees, quickly adding that the county may evict the water heaters to outbuildings as soon as next year. There's no woodstove or fireplace either, but that, too, may be remedied next year with the addition of propane-fired models, Gunter says. Outside each cabin are RV hookups. Still, most folks don't come to the woods for vanity mirrors, VCRs or other such frou-frou. And what the woods have, Willow Lake has plenty of. Caretaker Don Madrid says snowmobilers and cross-country skiers particularly favor the retreat in winter. Groomed trails are just seven miles away, and Fish Lake Road is nearly always plowed. Others just like the woods in winter: the coots paddling on the lake, the rapping of pileated woodpeckers, the song of the coyote and the Vs of Canada geese crossing the sky. "Last winter, I found 15 elk in the group camp," Madrid says, smiling broadly. "You never know what you're going to see up here. I was walking and they didn't hear me coming." Such migrating groups are not uncommon in the winter. Summer brings boating, waterskiing and swimming. Anglers can try their hand at trout, bass, crappie and the occasional kokanee salmon. Site offers year-round fun Activities : Fishing, camping, swimming, boating and water-skiing. Winter-time fun includes cross-country skiing and snowmobiling nearby, birding and wildlife viewing. Amenities : Four rental cabins, a large-group campsite, 71 individual tent and RV sites. Availability : Call Jackson County Parks at 776-7001. Cost : Cabin rates are $75 per night Sunday through Thursday; $100 for the first night of weekends and holidays, $75 for each additional night. The weekly rate is $500 for seven consecutive nights. No pets allowed. The group camp rents for $115 per night and can accommodate up to 150 campers. Tent sites are $12 for two adults and kids, $2 per extra adult. Water and electric sites are $14 per night. Full hook-ups are $16. How to get there : Off Highway 62 on Fish Lake Road 7.5 miles east of Butte Falls. Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1998, Medford, Oregon USA