Announcing This Year’s Orvis Lifetime Achievement Award Winner: Lonnie Allen of Three Rivers Ranch

Lonnie Allen’s dedication to her guests, her fishery, her family, and a host of other causes is legendary.

This year’s honoree has deep roots in the guiding, lodge, and fly-shop industry. Lonnie Allen grew up in St. Anthony, Idaho, on the banks of the Henrys Fork. Her grandparents, Fred and Berta Lewies, homesteaded and started the Warm River Inn and Rendezvous Dance Hall in Warm River in the 1920s. Her parents, Harry and Lillian Lewies, operated the business beginning in the late 1940s, then transitioned the company to a dedicated Orvis-Endorsed Lodge in 1974. Lonnie spent the summers of her youth working at the family business learning all aspects of the profession.

For more than 30 years, Lonnie has been part of the Orvis-endorsed family.

In 1987, Lonnie purchased Three Rivers Ranch from her parents and became the third generation to own and operate the property. Over the years, she transformed Three Rivers Ranch from a modest fishing camp into the premier lodge it is today. Her hard work, dedication, and attention to every detail might best be described as a relentless pursuit of excellence.

Lonnie’s family enjoys spending time at the ranch.

During her first season, she welcomed just over twenty guests. Since then, the business has grown with a current capacity of twenty-four guests per week. The Ranch employs thirty fly-fishing guides and operates four full-service fly shops in Ashton, Island Park, Driggs, and Boise. Lonnie is licensed to fish in Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Wyoming (including Yellowstone National Park), and is co-owner of her own award-winning tequila brand, Volans Tequila. In 2018, Lonnie was appointed by Idaho’s Governor, Butch Otter, to represent Southeastern Idaho’s Region 6 on the Idaho Travel Council, the body that oversees Idaho’s $4 billion tourism industry.

A lifetime on the water and running a fishing lodge has been full of successes.

Of all the hats Lonnie wears at Three Rivers Ranch, one of the most important is hostess. She has sat down to dinner with her clients almost every night for over 30 years. Lonnie truly enjoys getting to know each of her guests. Over her 33+ year career, she’s hosted dinner nearly 4,000 times. Imagine how many fly-fishing stories she’s heard!

Lonnie receives her award from Orvis vice-chairman Dave Perkins at the Orvis Guide Rendezvous.

Lonnie’s generosity is boundless. Every year, she donates the entire ranch for a week to Idaho2Fly, an organization that supports men with cancer. She also donates the ranch for a full week to Higher Ground, an organization that uses recreational therapy for wounded and disabled veterans. She is an avid supporter of many great causes that support the environment and people with disabilities. Lonnie’s career in the fly-fishing industry spans over three decades. Her willingness to be innovative, take risks, build and nurture relationships, help her community, and protect and promote the preservation of resources are just a few of the reasons that we are proud to name her this year’s recipient of the Orvis Lifetime Achievement Award.

12 thoughts on “Announcing This Year’s Orvis Lifetime Achievement Award Winner: Lonnie Allen of Three Rivers Ranch”

  1. Lonnie Allen is a true Idaho Gem! I will always have fond memories of guiding for TRR and look forward to every Idaho2fly Retreat at the Ranch. Congratulations my friend.

  2. Go Lonnie ! You and your Dad are leaving quite a guide service legacy. Harry started it and you’ve kept it going.
    CONGRATULATIONS!!!

  3. Well done and deserved Lonnie; you are such a lovely person and run a top notch operation. Your values, ethics and morals shine through with every move you make.

  4. My husband and I just watched “Idaho the Movie” and I was telling him that I want to go fly fishing, then we saw you! Now I definitely want to go. I had a great time salmon fishing on Lake Michigan, now I’m looking forward to trying this. What a beautiful state is Idaho.

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