This is the first of a five-part series on the Nakoma Resort & Spa located in the mountains of the High Sierras.

In 1924, during a low point in his personal life, famed architect Frank Lloyd Wright designed a spectacular clubhouse for the Nakoma Country Club in Madison, Wisconsin. The unique 24,000 square-foot building, with five spires resembling elaborately stylized wooden teepees soaring toward the deep blue Wisconsin sky, was designed as a tribute to the American Indian. Whether due to high building costs -- $70,000 at the time -- or Wright's personal image, Nakoma's board of directors scraped the project.

Wright's Nakoma design honors the American Indian.

His detailed plans remained stored away for over 75 years, until Dariel and Peggy Garner decided to build a resort and clubhouse on their 1,280 acres in California's High Sierras. Wright's Nakoma was suggested.

"We seemed almost destined to use his design here," said Peggy Garner. "One day while walking through the property, Dariel and I came across an old pile of debris. In cleaning it up, we found an envelope with a Frank Lloyd Wright stamp on it. We knew then that we had to build Nakoma."

Nestled along a pine tree-covered ridge on Gold Mountain in Plumas County, California, Nakoma stands today as a shrine to Wright and his creative genius. It took 80 fine-skilled laborers, who called themselves the "Nakoma Craftsmen" to build the clubhouse over a 15-month period. Constructed of red cedar, natural stone and decorative copper beading, Nakoma is comprised of a series of octagonal, square and rectangular shapes. The largest of its symbolic "teepees" - dubbed "Wigwam" by Wright - is 52 feet wide and soars 70 feet high.

Inside, Wright's plan was executed in exact proportion and style. The Wigwam Room, originally designed as a gathering place for the Nakoma members, is now a dining room overlooking the golf course and offering breathtaking views of the Sierra ranges and peaks. But what really draws the eye in this magnificent octagonal pyramid is the four-sided stone fireplace which rises 45 feet above the flagstone floor. Resembling a large campfire, it evokes an era of genteel dining and camaraderie.

Surrounding the room is a 17-foot high intricate Indian-motif wooden frieze accented by giant stained glass windows. Secondary "teepees" crown a smaller dining room, a cozy tea room, the lounge and golf pro shop.

The clubhouse, which melds beautifully in its natural setting, is the centerpiece of a planned community which includes a Small Luxury Hotels of the World resort, a full-service spa and the Dragon, a 6,400-yard championship golf course literally built on the mountain's undulating slopes and magnificent homes sited on several of the community's 400 multi-acre lots.

With plenty of recreation (hiking, fishing, golf, swimming) and enough room to feel like you have the place to yourselves, Nakoma is a picturesque paradise for a pleasurable escape from city tensions and the demands of urban living.

For more information, visit www.nakomaresort.com.

- Judi Janofsky & Rich Steck