In an area with many of my favorite disc golf courses, it's rather surprising that I had never played Langes Ranch. Perhaps it's because it's labeled here as "pay to play", or perhaps the idea of playing a 9 hole when you have the option to play Pell, NAD, Fairgrounds, or Fredericksen instead is almost insulting. But I'm a course bagger and a course reviewer, so here we stand.

Equipment: Nearly all of the holes have concrete teepads now. And all of the baskets are in good shape and in permanent locations. They aren't my favorite models, but they're quality and I can't complain about them. I don't normally label underbrush as "equipment", but I've heard that this was a zoo once. It's pretty well trimmed back and beaten down now, and the felled trees have been removed. And the open areas will never be too overgrown because they're mowed by two llamas.

Navigation: When you pull up the drive you'll see the 9 basket on your left. I'm not sure what the parking situation is like up the hill, but if you park in the lot to the right you'll finish right by the car. Just walk up the hill following the fence by the 9 basket and walk until you run into another fence. The 1 pad is right there. After this, the course is easy to follow. There are white arrows throughout the course that lead you to the next tee, and each tee is visibly marked with a white sign and the hole number.

Design: For some reason the design surprised me. I expected this course to be garbage, and it was actually quite well designed. It's short, as most niners are. The longest hole is Hole 1, which is a straightforward shot across a field. Then you go into your standard mix. Slight uphill hyzer, slight uphill straight, short downhill tomahawk, level hyzer, level anhyzer, level anhyzer, straight boring hole (I hit the pin on a nonchalant flick), short hyzer. So you have what I always talk about: Uphill, downhill, left, right, short, long-ish... There's enough variety to keep you happy, and plenty of ace and birdie opportunities.

Equipment: I can't complain about the equipment really. The 9 pad was icy, but it's level enough there and short enough of a hole that you can just throw from beside it. And the 5 pad had llama poo on it. Both indicators of lack of winter use more than anything.

Navigation: The only trouble I had was finding hole 1. The property owner told me where to go though, and then mentioned the white arrows. He said he "thought" they were all still there. I'm guessing this is because nobody plays there in January, but it could tell us that he doesn't pay attention to the course either.

Design: I feel like the design uses the available property wisely. If there's more space up in the woods I'd like to see some longer and more technical holes, but as a beginner friendly yet technical course it holds up remarkably well.

Miscellaneous: It's been mentioned before and it can't be helped, but the amount of llama poop here is staggering. The only place it really bothered me was on the 5 pad where I had to plant on the front right corner of the pad for a shot that didn't require that. But it's disc golf. If you're out of your comfort zone, adjust or go focus on Guitar Hero or something.

The cost to play in the summer is kind of a con for a short course that's surrounded by so many great free ones. I think the idea is that people are paying to park for the pool, but pay to play on a course that's more of an afterthought on the property isn't a good idea.

This course isn't that difficult. The lines are evident and short, and the baskets (while guarded) are accessible. Most of you will be content throwing a putter here, and maybe a mid on 1. And the wooded areas are open enough that you still have a very real chance at par after an errant drive. But it's fun, and that's why we play. Or why I play at least... And it's a niner. I've said it in other reviews: Niners are important because they're better for beginners and introduction to the game. I'm not taking a brand new player to Fredericksen or NAD and expect them to enjoy themselves. But I'll bring them here to give them a more accessible idea of what the sport is all about.

Finding the course: Once you turn right onto Keyport Rd turn left at the parking fee sign. The basket for hole nine is visible at this point. Drive to end of the road and park, hole one is next to the neat little turn style gates made out of PVC pipe. The concrete tee pad for hole one is right there.

Although short the course has many interesting shots, mostly low ceiling or semi tunnel shots. Disaster lurks around most baskets; pick your poison between llama poop and thick ferns and landing in either one of them comes down to luck. Holes four and five feature small drops behind the basket and contain most of the elevation.

The course starts and ends kind of weak for me. Hole one isn't a terrible hole but it's mostly open, the only real challenge on this hole is keeping your RHBH throw from hyzering out too early and ending in the ferns and over a small fence, disc is easily found and retrieved however. Hole eight is the worst on the course, not too much too it just don't get carried away on a short, open hole and you'll be fine. Hole nine is almost as annoying as you are throwing to blind basket behind a bunch of bushes and tall grass and is an easy RHBH hyzer for anyone who's played this game for any length of time.

This course was surprisingly pretty good for a short nine hole course in the middle of nowhere. Six holes are really good, one is decent and two are annoying and boring which is better than I can say about most nine hole courses. I wouldn't go out of my way to play it but it's worth playing a few times when you get tired of other courses or if you want to learn how to throw low ceiling shots and shape strange lines. It says pay to park but we didn't have to do that. One of the local residents talked to us and was pretty welcoming which was nice as we weren't sure if we were in the right place or if someone was going to yell at us or something. There are llamas and people living in the area so please keep your voices down and encourage others to do so as well.

Langes Ranch Park is a recreational nine hole disc golf course nestled up in the hills of Poulsbo, WA. This pitch and putt style course was designed with the novice/intermediate level player in mind but offers enough difficulty and variety to entertain all skill levels. Par for the course is 27, with holes ranging anywhere from 165 - 300ft (although averaging closer to 200ft). With the exception of holes one, eight, and nine, the course primarily plays tight and technical through the woods. The other holes play wide open along the hillside in the tall grass. Once tee one is located, navigation is made simple with the use of basic white number signs near each pad along with "next tee" markers after each hole. The new Bentley baskets are a nice touch as well and add the overall enjoyment.

Favorite Hole(s): Hole #4 - 165ft downhill shot offering multiple technical lines toward the pin. It made for the perfect ace run with my putter.

Designed in 2013, Langes Ranch Park is still quite rugged throughout many of the holes. Several holes through the woods still lack a true fairway, making natural lines quite difficult to find at times. Although the holes were not very long, the excess branches and brush from the canopy and floor made walking and throwing frustrating at times to say the least. However, as the course becomes more broken in with time and maintenance, this will be less of an issue.

The tee pads are quite hazardous as well on a few holes. With the exception of the cement tee on hole one, the rest are a mix of gravel and dirt. The most hazardous part right now is that some are not level and others have a wooden 4x2 frame around them as they wait for concrete to eventually be poured but for now are just in the way. I just chose to throw from behind the frames so that I didn't mess anything up.

Lastly, the amount of llama poop on the course. Hole one is the "signature" hole on the course for most I am sure due to the fact that there is a group of them that lay lazily around the fairway. I assumed that since they were fenced in on hole one that they primarily spent their day there. However, like the geese poop at Trojan in Oregon, there is an unbelievable amount of llama poop throughout the entire course. Be on the lookout and be sure to clean off when done because you are bound to step in it!

Least Favorite Hole(s): Holes #5 & #6 - no real fairways with tons for growth that block throws from off the tee. Needs some serious TLC.

I made the trip over on the Kingston Ferry with my wife and son and it took us about 20 minutes to arrive at Langes Ranch Park once we got off the boat. The cost to ride the ferry was $17.30 for the driver and $8 for each additional passenger. On the way back you only pay for the driver. It makes for quite an expensive trip, not to mention gas and food. We knew what we were getting ourselves in for ahead of time and just chose to make a day of it! Although the course was mediocre at best, the ferry ride and time spent in the Poulsbo area was quite pleasant. After all the rave reviews we decided to eat at the Oak Table (located a mile off the ferry on the left next to the theatre). It had an amazing selection of fresh breakfast and lunch items along with the best bacon I have ever had! The only downer is that it closes at 3 pm every day so plan accordingly! I highly recommend checking it out.

Langes Ranch Park is a little 9 hole pitch and putt that plays around this small resort. The resort is on the small side and I imagine is busier during the summer months. Once you locate the #1 tee pad, the course is easy to follow. The baskets are the Liberty models with the ultra shiny galvanized chains. Even with the shiny chains. they're a little hard to spot in the NW forest here. The pads range from a nice concrete pad on # 1 to natural to roughed out versions on the many of the holes. I assume more concrete pads are in the plans. The signs are very simple little wooden ones which simply have the hole #. There are also simple next tee signs pointing to the next pad making navigation easy.

The holes all seem to be about 200'-250'. # 1 might reach 300'. Those holes in the woods tend to be fairly technical with tight lines. The four in the llama pastures are much more open. I found # 8 to be the only real easy hole on the course. It's just a 200' throw across a field to an open basket, an easy ACE run.

Except for # 1, the pads are pretty rough right now. On a couple of them, you're kinda throwing out of a hole. I'm never a fan of that.

# 4 was a short 200' (???) downhill through the trees and branches. I couldn't find a route here.

I thought there were places on this course where you could have been teeing off up high and throwing some neat "touch" shots to a basket below.

Playing through the llamas on # 1 was interesting. Just remember that male llamas will try to eliminate their mating competition by biting them right in their llama prize packages therefore rendering their opponents unable to breed. Keep that in mind if you happen to play through the male llamas pasture during their breeding seasons. And maybe think about holding your putter in front of your package!