When you make the trip out by Cowan Lake to Quaker Knoll camp for a day of disc golf, bring a few bucks for this private course and consider them well-spent. Jay has built and maintained a (set of) course(s) with so much variety, you can't help but find a few holes you'll really like, a few that will frustrate you, and options, options, options! Each of the 20 holes in the main layout appears to have at least two baskets in place (or it seemed like it, anyway), most had alternate tees, and signage enough to really help you out once you've gone over the loop once for the experience.

The first hole plays from near the parking area downslope into either of two woods notches, allowing you to loosen your arm well. Then you get an immediate sampler of the elevations and woods on the rising, right to left, wooded hole 2. If you liked both of those holes, enjoy the next 18 on this roller coaster of a course. You've got everything from 'gappers' (hole 4) to wooded lanes (6, 7, etc.), doglegs (8), creeksiders (9: do NOT go right!), beautiful (I said b-e-a-u-tiful!) valley crossers (10) to an island hole (11), and, well, let's give big arms their due with a 500 footer (19) and a 700 footer (20) to bring you home. The woods holes seemed to me to be tight but fair: they've probably already trimmed and cut all the trees they need to: so the rest is up to the player. There are lines of flight, but you have to hit your line.

The design definitely fits all three of my criteria (safety, fun and challenge), well enough to lift it into the range of 'very good'. It has enough variety to challenge players from recreational to advanced (I think beginners will be frustrated by the longer holes, as well as the tightness in the woods. And you will get a good deal of exercise with the ridges, ravines and slopes. Some carts might be difficult to haul around this loop. This is a really beautiful piece of property. I'd love to come back after the leaves fall, and see if they have any areas that might get a glimpse of the lake. But I'd play the main course again, and the woods course, and then Jay mentioned thinking of installing a fun, even shorter 'putter course'! As much variety as a Swiss Army Knife here!

If you come out (with permission), but try to play without a guide who already knows the way, even the signage may not be enough to make sure you don't head the wrong way. Later today, I'll add a schematic map here on dgcr, which is just a guide to the flow on the main course. Somewhere around holes 5-8, you need to be careful, because it's really easy to go from 4's long basket right over to the 7th tee without realizing it (we did): then after 7, you'll pop out in view of tees for 6, 8, 14, and even maybe see 9 & 10. And those are just the 'main layout' tees near that junction. That's also the area where the 'Woods Course' ties in, with its own numbering. Having tried to build a similar 'dual course' myself, I know it can get confusing to lay out a main course, then decide that a shorter, fun course option could be blended in. I look forward to trying the 'woods course' on my next visit, but it definitely makes a twisty layout more confusing for first timers.

Next, it's awesome to have so many baskets, but again, first time players will definitely face some confusion. After the first play through, I think it would then become easier to decide to play short to short, long to long, or any combo. Speaking of variety, it is probably a con to most folks that the tees are made up of just about every type you can imagine (right now: I know they'd love to do concrete). You will experience boxed turf, turf over mat, slick mat, pavers, and so on. All fair and well installed, but constantly changing. Kind of like the baskets: a little bit of everything right now.

I have a special fondness for private courses, especially when they are maintained by one guy, or even a handful of folks who stay dedicated to the maintenance required just to keep them accessible. That might slightly inflate my numerical rating (3.5 for current status, could go 4.0 if they ever do have the chance for concrete tees and permanent signage: please donate!), so keep that in mind, and keep reading the words in reviews!