McCall, Idaho, a former mining and timber town, was founded in the 1880s and sits on the shore of glacier-carved Payette Lake surrounded by pine forests with the northern Rockies as a backdrop. There are just a handful of streets lined with rustic log-cabin-style buildings and old pickup trucks parked out front.
The small population is an interesting mix of old-timers, forest-service workers, nature lovers and wealthy Idahoan and Californian families with second homes on the lake.
The town is changing, however. Valley County is going through a building boom, brought on by the opening of Tamarack Resort, one of the Gem State's largest developments, in 2004.
Some locals have mixed feelings about the changes, but despite the growth in the valley, the small-town atmosphere remains. There are still no-frills places to get a bite to eat, including several craft breweries. There are a handful of motels along the main street.
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