McCall Area (p. 2)

Tamarack Resort

Tamarack Resort in Donnelly, just south of McCall, is essentially a real estate development -- a very large real estate development -- with an equally large assortment of amenities including a well planned and integrated 25 km system of Nordic ski trails. The most obvious and omnipresent of those amenities, though, is its downhill ski area. While it is the first new downhill resort in Idaho in many years, it does not have as much vertical or as extensive skiing as many, but it does have 2,900 acres of terrain including some on National Forest property and a section on the back of the mountain.

At first glance one might conclude that Tamarack is positioned like Aspen or Vail, but more on a “boutique” scale. While it has, on the surface, a considerable amount of lodging, much of it is privately owned, though rented to the public. During my visit, construction was on-going with the development of another lodge and a Fairmont Hotel.

Interestingly enough, the ski trails at Tamarack were among the first things built. The trails were designed and laid out in tandem with the golf course, so that not only would the trails ski properly, but so that five km of snow making could be dovetailed with golf course irrigation.

While the resort was under development, the Nordic operation was based out of series of yurts. Now it has a home in the lower level of one of the lodges in a small but nicely appointed space complete with retail, rentals and out-the-door access to the trails.

Some of the lodging options at Tamarack Resort.

The trails begin on the golf course, rolling though aspens and winding along and through an assortment of “cottages” and executive homes. All are ski-in properties with trails connecting to the core trails and linked by bridges to the rest of the village.

Decidedly high-end, everything at Tamarack is tastefully designed and constructed. A high level of environmental consciousness pervades the entire resort – there are even bat houses on the golf course. As the trails leave the golf course they move into the trees and terrain becomes more of a component, with wide rolling climbs and descents.

Moving on up, a couple of trails, Blue Bird and Woodpecker, climb higher into the side of the mountain. They’re classified as most difficult trails, but earn that designation more due to the daunting climbs than difficult technical descents. There are good descents, of course, some with fairly sharp turns, but are easy to step, skid, wedge or snowplow around.

The majority of the trails adopt bird names: Red Tail, Osprey, Blue Heron, Meadowlark, Golden Eye – you get the picture. A more recent addition, the Loon Trail, was a nod to Tamarack’s Nordic director Llona Clausen who, during the summer, works as a loon researcher. Clausen joined the team at Tamarack last year after a long stint at Wisconsin’s Minocqua Winter Park.

Variations in snow cover can be significant, despite the Tamarack Nordic trails 5,320 foot elevation at its highest point. The lower trails, for example, might only hold an eight-inch base, while the middle and upper trail base might be as much as 28 inches. It is understandable, then, why snowmaking was factored into the development of the golf course trails.

Tamarack is a thoroughly enjoyable ski, thanks to the nice mix of trails, some in areas of aspen and the rest in deep conifers. The trails at Tamarack are groomed daily, regardless of the amount of traffic. On the whole the trails have a great flow and the excellent grooming made for very comfortable skiing.

As the resort moves forward, additional beginner terrain is under consideration as a new par-three golf course is constructed. The developers will again work to positively marry golf with Nordic skiing. As the project continues, there’s even potential for a set of easy trails along the lake that Tamarack uses for boating and water activities. And cross country and downhill skiing are not the only snow activities, as snowshoeing is very big at Tamarack with 15 km of snowshoe trails including a route high up the mountain.

There’s a lot going on at Tamarack, with a packed calendar of events from early December through early April: moonlight tours, parent’s and kid’s camps, women’s weekend, women’s winter tour, Factory Team camp, U.S. Ski Team day, Jon Engen masters and teen camps, Winter Trails Day, romance retreat, Tamarack Loppet, Winter Games of Idaho and concluding with the Tamarack Taste of Chocolate.

Read about Sun Valley on the next page

For more information

Tamarack Resort
2099 West Mountain Road/P.O. Box 840
Tamarack, ID 83615
877/826-7376
Nordic@tamarackidaho.com
www.tamarackidaho.com