Same Soup, New Name-Hurricane Ridge Chicken Chili
How Hurricane Ridge Chicken Chili Got It’s Name
Ever wondered how we name our soups? Hurricane Ridge Chicken Chili wasn’t our first idea. Read about why we changed Lemolo White Bean to Hurricane Ridge!
How It Started
We participate in lots of shows that sell directly to consumers and shows that sell to businesses. At both types of shows, people would ask us about the Lemolo White Bean Chicken Chili. With noses slightly crinkled and lips pulled slightly down they would say “Lemon? Eww.” or “Does this really have lemon in it?”
A Fluke Turns Into a Pattern
At first, we just thought it was a fluke, one random person who saw Lemolo and thought lemon. After the 2 dozenth time, however, we accepted the fact that our name might not have been the best fit. A year and a half ago we started discussing whether to change the name. Finally, a few weeks ago we decided that we would.
The white bean chicken chili that so many people love is now going to be known as Hurricane Ridge Chicken Chili. We are hoping that the change will increase the popularity of the soup and draw more people from the Olympic Peninsula to our line.
How do you like the new name? Tell us what you think. Join us on Facebook to help us name future soups.
Hurrican Ridge History:
Hurricane ridge offers unparalleled views of the Olympic Peninsula. In the late 1800’s a prospector wandered to the top of the ridge on a windy day, as he leaned into the wind he is said to have given the ridge its name. “It’s like a bloody hurricane!” he said, as the legend goes. From his spot on the summit he would’ve been able to see Port Angeles, Sequim, Mount Olympus, the Strait of Juan de Fuca and even into Canada.
As you drive up the ridge road it snakes around the south side of the hill. Looking off to your left you can see deep canyon carved by small rivers and the sprawling Olympic Rain Forest. At the crest of the hill the view pulls on your stomach and sits heavy on your body. Such beauty cannot help but awaken a small part in all of us that longs for adventure and the freedom felt only in wilderness. Wildflower meadows spread as far as the eyes can see from the Hurricane Ridge Visitor Center and mountain goats dot the steep hills.
Hurricane Ridge sits inside the Olympic National Park, created in 1938 by Franklin D. Roosevelt, to protect the calving ground of Roosevelt elk. The creation of the national park has protected wilderness lands on the Olympic peninsula and also opened the way for projects such as the Elwha dam removal.
In 2011, the largest dam removal project in history started inside the Olympic National Park, just west of Hurricane Ridge. The project had unusually wide acceptance and support on a public and governmental level because of its location within the park.
In 2013, the river now runs free. Salmon and trout have begun to once again spawn in the rivers and people have hope that maybe once again the Elwha will be know as one of the best salmon rivers in the Pacific Northwest. It’s arguable that this project would have never been approved if the dams hadn’t landed in the Olympic national forest 20 years after they were built.
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