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Tamarack Resort in Idaho has an après-ski scene that fits perfectly with its location. The four-season resort is located approximately two hours north of Boise and offers plenty of outdoor activities year-round. Tamarack covers roughly 3,600 acres, which includes 1,610 acres of skiable terrain with 2,800 feet of vertical, a world-class golf course, and Lake Cascade. The resort plans to have a marina offering 100 slips open to the public for seasonal rental, with fuel service, rentals, and lakefront amenities to serve both resort guests and the wider community for Memorial Day Weekend.
The resort’s location is far enough from the hustle of daily life, taking you to a place where you can truly relax and enjoy the mountains and nature. Tamarack features lodging at its village, chalets, townhomes, and the Lodge at Osprey Meadows. The Village’s lodging options include condos such as Calvi I and Calvi II, which were completed as recently as 2022. The ski-in/ski-out homes and chalets are available for rent or purchase. All of these have been built between 2004, when the resort was first established, and 2021, making it one of two public ski resorts to open in the United States since 2000 (the other being Mount Bohemia, Michigan).
Tamarack’s village and lodging are conveniently located for easy access to all of the resort’s activities. The village is easily walkable and features numerous shops, restaurants, bars, spas, and après spots. Tamarack Resort hosts après events throughout the ski season, such as its winter music festival, Snowfort. The event showcases Tamarack as a fun, family-oriented, emerging destination with artistic, winter activities beyond just skiing—puppets, lights, music, and local folklore to draw crowds up to the mountains.
The fourth annual Snowfort 2026 was held on March 6 and 7, and featured live bands and DJs. The music festival took place at Tamarack’s village, where crowds gathered to watch performers and entertainers take the stage. The event featured DJ Blu DeTiger on stage, spinning tracks with local bands Mondo Pondo and Sheep Bridge Jumpers, kicking off Friday night. The music filled the air in the village, while lights and fire lit up the stage as people in all kinds of outfits and costumes danced along to the performances. Snowfort has a European/Aspen vibe, with people wearing fur coats and bright fluorescent outfits.
On Saturday, Neil Frances, Glitterfox, Deep Heaven, and Red Caroline hit the stage, with après-ski continuing at Seven Devils bar after the music. Snowfort is based on the Treefort Music Fest in downtown Boise, which takes place in late March. Treefort is a five-day event featuring over 200 artists, with concerts, film, comedy, culinary events, and community-focused programming. While the Treefort Music Fest is much larger than Tamarack’s two-day Snowfort, it still packs all the fun, energy, and excitement a person could want in a wintry mountain atmosphere.
“Sharlie” also made an appearance at Snowfort and was a huge hit with everyone. If you are from Idaho, then you likely know who “Sharlie” is. She is one of those legendary monsters associated with Idaho’s Payette Lake. According to local lore, Sharlie supposedly inhabits Payette Lake near McCall, Idaho. Similar to the Loch Ness Monster, it is a prominent piece of Idaho folklore and acts as an unofficial, beloved mascot for the town. Sharlie is featured annually in the McCall Winter Carnival’s Mardi Gras parade and is deeply ingrained in the local culture.
Sam Johnson is the founder and lead designer of The Colossal Collective, a Boise-based group of artists and engineers who create giant puppets and built Sharlie. Although Treefort is a much bigger music festival than Snowfort, Johnson still loves Snowfort at Tamarack Resort. “If you like seeing live music, Treefort is marvelous,” Johnson said to SnowBrains in an interview. “Snowfort is kind of like a pre-party for Treefort, it’s just a blast and so much fun.”
What is great about the après ski event is that skiers and snowboarders do not have to choose between hitting the mountains and attending the music festival. The music at Snowfort begins in the late afternoon, allowing people to ski and ride all day, switch out their boots, and then head out to listen to the live music.
The music isn’t just in the village at the resort; there was also a live DJ at Tamarack’s mid-mountain lodge on Saturday afternoon. The DJ was stationed at 6,700 feet, where skiers and snowboarders could hear the music as they approached the mid-mountain lodge. Hearing the DJ spin tracks as you got to mid-mountain created a great blend of carving down the mountain and jamming out to the beats.
The après event doesn’t stop once the bands stop performing at Snowfort. The crowd heads to the Seven Devils bar, which is the après spot to go to after shredding Tamarack’s slopes all day long. The bar is named after the Seven Devils Mountains, which are located just on the backside of Tamarack. The mountains are located in the Hells Canyon National Recreation Area, and are home to alpine lakes, sheer cliffs, and an array of wildlife, with peaks over 9,000 feet.
The scene at the Seven Devils after Snowfort is a mix of skiers, snowboarders, musicians, DJs, fans, and locals. It all blends with ease. Tamarack’s personality is what really brings it all together. Although there are people from different social and economic backgrounds and regions of the country, not everyone really cares about that. They are there to have fun, enjoy the atmosphere, and have a good time.
Great food and drinks are all part of Tamarack’s après ski scene, and the resort features restaurants and dining options that most foodies would flock to in an instant. For breakfast, head to the Clearwater Coffee Company, which features premium coffee, locally-made baked goods, and great breakfast sandwiches. It’s a great way to start the day and get on the slopes. For guests looking for something quick for lunch, Bella Vista serves up authentic NY-Style pizza, and on weekends, the Triple B Diner has specialized burgers and cheesesteaks, which are great for families.
There’s only one option for guests seeking the ultimate dining experience at a ski resort. Tamarack Resort boasts The Reserve—the resort’s premier fine-dining spot. The Reserve recently won USA Today’s Reader’s Choice Award for #1 Ski Restaurant in North America. Executive Chef Charlie Trexel oversees all the dining venues at Tamarack Resort. He brings a fresh, regional approach to the resort, paired with a perfectly elevated take on Idaho mountain dining.
The Reserve offers a more upscale menu, including appetizers such as wild bison tartare with smoked trout aioli and garlic-vinegar chips. The restaurant also features signature steak selections, including ribeye, NY strips, bison tenderloin, filet mignon, and a 22-oz bone-in cowboy steak. Guests can get their entrees with accompaniments like whipped Idaho potatoes, smoked Gouda mac-n-cheese, and garlic-herb pommes frittes. All the steaks are Gold Canyon Certified Angus Beef and topped with cowboy butter.
Executive Chef Charlie Trexel positions The Reserve as the star restaurant at the resort, which has recently been revamped with bold, local- and wild-game-focused mountain cuisine that has earned national acclaim as the top ski resort restaurant. He’s proud, hands-on, and clearly passionate about elevating it to world-class status. His approach to running restaurants focuses on leadership, team-building, and operational independence, while keeping a long-term vision in mind. He’s the chef that every guest would want to meet. He’s down to earth, honest, to the point, and knows how to bring dining to another level.
One of the things that separates him from other chefs or managers is his approach to building teams so strong and well-trained that the operation runs flawlessly without his day-to-day involvement, which he sees as the mark of true success. “My goal, every operation I work in, every resort I work in, all the teams that I build, is to render myself obsolete,” Executive Chef Charlie Trexel said to SnowBrains in an interview. “Rendering myself obsolete means I did a great job at training my staff, building a team to a point that they don’t need me anymore.” With an Executive Chef with that kind of mindset and philosophy, there’s no doubt the food is going to be consistently top-notch.
Tamarack Resort’s après ski scene isn’t just about the great food, drinks, and music; it’s the natural heartbeat of the resort that refuses to let the fun end when the lifts stop turning. From the pulsating beats echoing across the village during Snowfort to the great vibes at Seven Devils bar, where strangers become friends over craft beers and stories of the day’s best runs, the resort captures that rare magic of a seamless blend of adventure, music, community, and indulgence.
In the end, Tamarack isn’t trying to compete with the big-name resorts or mimic Aspen glamour. It doesn’t need to. Just two hours from Boise, Tamarack offers something more genuine: an unpretentious mountain escape where the après scene feels like an extension of the slopes themselves, which are filled with fun, enjoyment, and excitement. Whether you’re chasing powder, dancing to a headliner, savoring a perfectly seared bison tenderloin, or spotting Sharlie’s spirit in the local lore, Tamarack delivers the kind of winter (and summer) magic that lingers long after you’ve headed home. So next time you’re craving a getaway that lets you shred all day and celebrate all night, check out Tamarack Resort, where the slopes and mountains are calling, and the après is already waiting.
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