The First Peoples lived in the McKenzie River Valley and the Cascade Mountain ranges thousands of years before the pioneers named them. They returned each spring to use the obsidian for tools and weapons, hunt game, and pick berries, vegetables, and hazelnuts that grew naturally. When the weather turned inhospitable, the First Peoples made the journey back to the Willamette Valley until the winter passed. This map from 1934 shows the trails they created. Early French traders called this way of life the Grande Ronde.