Steamboat Inn Today
In 1975, Jim and Sharon Van Loan purchased the Steamboat Inn from
the Moores, after working at the Inn the previous two summer seasons.
Again, the ownership change signaled the end of one era - Colonel
Jim Hayden had died and many other original Steamboaters were reaching
the age when fishing and wading became difficult - while a new generation
of anglers were stalking the banks of the North Umpqua.
Flyfishing equipment was changing rapidly, with the old bamboo rods and silk lines giving way, first to fiberglass rods and plastic lines, then to rods made of spaceage materials such as graphite and boron. All the equipment was lighter and stronger, so skilled anglers could now cast to even the most difficult holding lies of the summer steelhead. Downriver near Roseburg, a young Steamboater named Dennis Black had brought his flytying business from California to the North Umpqua. In the next decade, his Umpqua Feather Merchants would grow from a one-man operation to become the largest wholesaler of fishing flies and flytying materials in the country, mirroring the skyrocketing growth of the sport of flyfishing in the 1980s.
At the Steamboat Inn, changes were also in the works. Although Jim Van Loan worked as a textbook representative for a major publisher before purchasing the Inn, his visits to country inns in Japan during his years in military service had given him strong ideas about a new image for the Steamboat Inn. He was also careful to carry on the Inn 's traditions, such as the skilled guide service he provided for guests. Along with caring for their two young children, Sarah and Jed, Sharon Van Loan taught school in those early years at the Inn . But her reputation as a chef spread so rapidly that her services at the Inn were soon required full time.
Sharon was joined by Pat Lee, who later took the title of Inn Manager and now partner. Their skills in the kitchen were particularly complementary - Pat and Sharon 's sense of organization and precision blended nicely with their natural flair for matching colors and textures in food preparation. In addition, Pat Lee showed her versatility by becoming one of the most patient and respected fishing guides on the river. Tutored in the beginning by master anglers, such as Dan Callaghan and Joe Howell, she later broke through the stereotype of the macho river guide and took her rightful place as one of the most skilled steelhead fly anglers on the North Umpqua .
In the late 1970s and early 1980s, the country inn movement was gaining strength in the United States. During this same time period, Steamboat Inn and a number of other Northwest inns established a network now known as Unique Inns. Magazine articles, guidebooks, and organizations such as Unique aided travelers who searched for an alternative to the plastic sameness of lodging found along the nation's interstate highways. As the Steamboat Inn appeared in guidebooks with increasing frequency, the Van Loans began to make subtle changes at the Inn to adjust to their new clientele. The riverside cabins were modernized and two more were added, bringing the total to eight. In recent years, a cluster of new cottages has been built on the bench of land above Steamboat Creek that formerly housed the Forest Service pack station in the 1930s.
The Inn itself has been extensively remodeled. A new shake roof, fresh exterior paint, and additional landscaping are the most visible changes, while the old screened rear porch has also been glassed in and weatherized, the kitchen modernized, and the family living quarters upgraded. The central dining room, with its large stone hearth and the long sugar pine dining table from the Gordon camp, has been preserved to maintain the original atmosphere.
Perhaps the most extensive changes have come in the Fisherman's Dinner itself. Still served one half hour after dark during the fishing season, the evening meal has gained elegance, while maintaining its conviviality and warmth. In keeping with modern tastes, meals are lighter, with more emphasis on fresh, native foods, prepared in a crisp style that preserves their natural flavors. Under the direction of Sharon Van Loan and Pat Lee, the Fisherman's Dinner has evolved beyond simple camp fare and become a distinctive element of the emerging Northwest cuisine.
Today's guests at the Steamboat Inn run the gamut from long-time members of Steamboat's "family" to a distinguished list of innkeepers and restaurateurs, who enjoy being pampered at the Inn while they escape the tensions of their own big city establishments. Internationally famous anglers, such as Ernie Schwiebert, Billy Pate, Dave Whitlock, and Pierre Affre, still visit the Steamboat Inn while they search out some of the most challenging summer steelhead fly-fishing in North America .
And Jim Van Loan, following another tradition at the Inn, capped his many conservation activities by gaining an appointment to the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission.
Moreover, while today's Steamboat Inn remains firmly rooted in its fishing camp traditions, the Van Loans and Pat Lee are unafraid to experiment with new ideas or styles of food preparation. Situated far from the urban pressures of fads and trends, they are free to take what they feel is the best of the fast-changing, modern culture around them and incorporate it into their traditional setting. Best of all, they always welcome surprises.
As David Lett, the Oregon winemaker who has been called the godfather of pinot noir wines in the Willamette Valley, puts it: "Without a lot of fanfare or fussiness, Sharon and Pat create some of the most artistic and interesting food I have experienced. They incorporate an awareness of American food trends, without being 'trendy,' and would probably put a lot of 'New Wave American Cuisine' restaurants to shame. Harry and Dolly - the originators of the Fisherman's Dinner - would be proud."
