Tamarack Resort, the first all-season resort to be permitted in the U.S. in 22 years, has received national attention for having not one, but three spectacular crown jewels: a world-class ski mountain, a Robert Trent Jones II signature golf course and beautiful Lake Cascade, suitable for swimming, sailing, fishing, sea kayaking, and boating.

There will be 5 lifts opening this year, featuring two high-speed quads, the Tamarack Express and the Summit Express, along with a fixed-grip quad for the beginner slopes and two surface lifts.


Located just 100 miles from Boise, picturesque McCall, Idaho, on the shores of Payette Lake, is the home of a new destination ski resort, named Tamarack after the stand of unique decidous conifers near the resort's entrance. This four-season, destination resort is the first such ski area to open in the U.S. in over 20 years. Deer Valley, Utah, was the last, in 1981, and every subsequent attempt to create a major destination ski resort in this country has failed.

But skiing's new kid on the block had its debut in mid-December, opening to rave reviews from homeowners and visitors alike. Tamarack appears, to an outsider at least, to be firing on all cylinders in its rookie year. The resort already sports five lifts serving 2,150 acres, with a 2,800 foot vertical drop, and offers a 500-foot super pipe and terrain park, full-service Nordic and Snowshoe Center, and backcountry skiing at the doorstep to the largest wilderness area in the lower 48 states.

The fledgling village already boasts the 45,000-square-foot Discovery Village, which houses Tamarack's ski and ride services, bars and restaurants, kids' center and Crane Creek market. Underway are the resort's spectacular 89,000-square foot Members Lodge & Spa, set for completion this December, and a Robert Trent Jones II signature 18-hole golf course due to open this summer.

The resort's first real estate offering of 107 ski-in/ski-out units sold out in just three days in January of 2004, and it's second offering, comprising 64 units on the golf course, sold out in one day. The resort's third real estate release, which occurred three weeks ago, sold out 134 properties in a single day, raising a combined $170 million dollars to fuel continued build-out of the resort.

Tamarack is the vision of CEO Jean-Pierre Boespflug, who grew up in Nice, France, and skied the Alps from the time he was 5 years old, going on to study electrical engineering at Stanford. He's already gained a reputation for political and financial savvy, soothing environmentalists' concerns and working closely with the local community to bring cash flow to an area faced with a depressed timber economy. Even more importantly, he says, he has worked to win over potential buyers "with service, not concrete."

With that attitude at the helm, a great site and the resort's early successes, it seems a sure bet that this is just the beginning for Tamarack. We would certainly have to place it near the top of our "ski resorts to check out" list.