Ducts for the heating and air conditioning system, painted to match the logs, are left exposed, simplifying the finishing process. Their curves and swoops add a striking design element.

The lower level features locker rooms, banquet facilities for 150 guests, a dance floor, a snack bar and a granite fireplace that chases up to the hearth on the main floor. Custom lockers are built of wood reclaimed from an old trestle. The same reclaimed wood is used for the paneling and cabinetry throughout the clubhouse and on the floor of the pro shop.

The wood--Douglas Fir-- had been submerged for 100 years and is essentially pickled. It was salvaged from the 12-mile long trestle at the Lucien Cutoff where the Southern Pacific Railroad made its first run across the Great Salt Lake in 1904. The high salt and mineral content of the lake created vibrant shades of yellow, orange, black, gray, purple and green in the wood. "The colors are wild," Martin says.

Outside, the lower level is faced with granite. Like the masonry of the fireplaces, these stones are the real thing. Their natural beauty is a pleasure to look at while sitting on the patio or swimming in the junior Olympic-sized pool.

Martin has been so pleased with the log clubhouse that he is continuing the log theme in a 20,000-square-foot commercial development currently under construction adjacent to the clubhouse.

Members and patrons of the semi-private club just love it, Martin says. "It's the neatest facility in Northern Colorado--very different and very warm. For a country club, it doesn't have that marbly snooty look. It makes you want to take off your shoes, relax and have a glass of wine." --