If you were to take a Disc Golf vacation...?

[LanceInTacoma]

...where would you go?

I am trying to set up a trip, sometime in the spring or the fall, preferably (I just hate the heat/humidity of summer and I want to play a bunch of golf. So, I am curious. If you were to fly into some city, rent a car, play 2-3 rounds a day for 5-6 days in the surrounding area, and wanted to play lots of great courses, where would you go?

I started thinking about this while I was reading some reviews of a couple of courses in the Cincinnati area. It sounds like there are at least three really nice courses right there fairly locally, and lots of other decent courses nearby.

Are there any other areas like that? What does everyone think?

Lance in Tacoma, WA

[magictenor1]

Fort Worth area is loaded with nice courses. Z-Boaz, Bear Creek, 36 holes at Cedar Ceek, Bicenntennial, Jimmy Porter, Greenbelt, Lake Louisville and there are some new courses that I Have never played. My brother and I have done that many times there. You can't even get to them all in 5 or 6 days.

[mobster]

I say go with the Cincinnati or Louisville approach. Lots of good courses within driving distance.

[Doktor John]

Oregon...

[basmith42]

Minneapolis looks like it has a bunch of courses.. I hope to be playing some in the MSP and Eastern Wisconsin area this next week. I'll let you know how it the courses work out for me.
Other plus of Minneapolis- you can get to IOWA and Wisconsin in about 90 minutes. You might be able to get courses in 3 states. :-)

[Olorin]

Cinncinatti
Charlotte NC. with Rock Hill nearby
Minneapolis
even Raleigh NC would offer lots of courses

[JR Stengele]

Bay Area................Northern California has it all. Great weather, women, food, beaches, and a nice night life. To be able to play in S.F. AND Santa Cruz would be truely amazing.

[DannyM]

Only played 1 Charlotte course so far and that was Hornet's nest. Tough course but had a lot of fun. Rumor has it that it will be the home of the Am Worlds in 2012

[capedcodder]

I just did a Maine trip and hit up 9 courses in 3 days. Things are spread out up there but the drive time is spent on winding mountain roads so its pretty nice. DG is spreading like wildfire up there and the attitudes are so great. Clean courses, great pro shops, and some good players who are very accomodating to out of towners.

[darnella]

COME TO KY from top to the bottom of the state good courses all over

[goob069]

Michigan courses all over you could play all summer, never leave the state and never play the same course twice.

[Midnightbiker]

Austin, TX. The disc golf capital of Texas. I am taking a vacation up there in November.

[ZMan44]

If you don't mind driving a ways, a good place to fly into is Baltimore. You can make a circle through a few states hitting, Seneca Creek, Paw Paw, Codorus In PA, Brandywine in Deleware. Plus as many other courses along your path.

[gravedigger]

We just got back, and let me recommend Colorado. Don't wait for summer to be over go now. No humidity or heat to contend with there. Mountain courses are exciting if you've never played one. We played Colorado Springs, Pueblo, Poncha Springs, Aspen, Leadville, and Vail. All the courses were great. If you want to stay fairly cheap and centrally located, let me recommend Salida. A little driving is required, but it's some great site seeing.

[Innovadude]

Trust me, the I-35 corridor centered in Des Moines, Iowa, for hundreds of miles north and hundreds of miles south, is just packed with great world class courses, many right off the highway. If I were to hit one spot it would be along that route, even down to Texas, I-35 is probably the best Interstate to play along.

[Donovan]

Trust me, the I-35 corridor centered in Des Moines, Iowa, for hundreds of miles north and hundreds of miles south, is just packed with great world class courses, many right off the highway. If I were to hit one spot it would be along that route, even down to Texas, I-35 is probably the best Interstate to play along.

Hmm, so what we are saying here is, to hell with route 66.
Disc Golf has a road of its own....Disc Live I-35! ;)

[radsnowsurfer]

It's not to far from Tacoma, I'd recommend Portland OR. With top notch courses like, Pier Park, Milo Mciver Park and the up and coming Trojan park, it's a great place for disc golf, and there's great weather all summer. And if you wanted more golf you could take a day to go down to the Eugene area to play the newer Oakway course.

[Texconsinite]

Sorry guys, but its no contest.Fly into Minneapolis, and make a beeline for Highbridge, Wisconsin. Its only three hours away, and home to a Disc Golf Resort with 5 18 hole courses (more being built) and a 9 hole course. All designed by Chuck Kennedy. You even have to option of camping there OR even staying at The giant lodge.

Plus, before and/or after highbridge, you can play in the Twin Cites, which have TONS of great courses like Blue Ribbon Pines, Kaposia, North Valley, Plymouth Creek, Acorn, Lakewood Hills, to name a few.

Not to mention the cities in between the two with multiple courses, like Menomonie, Rice Lake, and Chippewa Falls (also home to Leinienkugels Brewery, the perfect place to tour between rounds)

In both Quality and quantity, you can't go wrong. I've been here almost 3 months, playing several times a week, and haven't even played half of what the Twin Cities have to offer. You will not run out of courses to play here. Its impossible. South Dakota is just 3 hours west, and there are TONS of courses there and in MN on the way there.

For this reason, my friends from Texas are scheduling just such a vacation up here to go to Highbridge. Its gonna be awesome

[petecarp]

highbridge sounds amazing and affordable. i think i have my next spring break destination.

[Amorybulldog]

When you guys up North get snowed out come this way. Might I recommend Tupelo, MS where you can stay for $55-$75 a night or really cheap in the state park cabins.

Here is what you will find, all within a two hour drive.

Tombigbee St Park very nice in the fall for foilage(not Tenn type but not bad)
Veteran's Park- 27 holes
Trace St. Park-18 holes with two lakes on the course, very nice.
Tallahatchie Trails-18 holes along the Tallahatchie river
(these courses along with Veteran's hosting the Southern Nationals Doubles Championship this year)
Panther Prowl disc golf course in Amory(my home course)
Lake Lowdes St in Columbus. Could be the most beautiful 20 holes in N. Miss.
Bulldog DGC in Starkville, MS. 18 holes in Miss. St. campus. If you have never seen co-eds at the Miss. Universities you are in for a treat.
Rebel DGC in Oxford, MS on Ole Miss Campus, see co-eds bit.
Two courses at Wall Doxey state park, 36 holes of killer golf.
Two courses at Tishimingo State park, foothills of the mountains in TN. Have some great outcroppings with one of the courses playing through them.
Pickwick Plantation in Pickwick, TN
Almost all of the Memphis courses are within 2 hours drive.

There are at least 20 courses within two hours of Tupelo with most of them accessible by four lane highways for the majority of the trip. It only pains me to say I rarely play any of them except for the one in my home town.

[garublador]

Minneapolis has a few things going for it. First, it has the highest concentration of disc golf courses in the world. If you want to play lots of different holes it's the best place hands down. Second there's lots to do besides disc golf if you want something else to do. There are two cities with professional and collegate sports, tons of museums and parks and more shopping than you'd know what to do with.

Kansas City has several really good coures and lots of stuff to do as well. If you're looking for activities besides disc golf, MPLS or KC would make good destinations.

If you're willing to give up some courses compared to MPLS, but are OK with enough courses nearby to hold both pro and am worlds simultaneously then Des Moines might be worth checking out. There's less to do besides disc golf compared to MPLS or KC, but the city is smaller so it's easier to get around and might be cheaper to stay at, but flights might be more expensive.

[PhattD]

Michigan Detroit, Ann Arbor, Lansing, Ludington.
Detroit area has: Riverbends in shelby Twp
Addison Oaks in Romeo
Stoney Creek also in shelby
Ann Arbor Has: Hudson mills 2 24 hole courses, nicest I've played
Kensington very nice 24 hole course
Lansing Has Grand Woods ,Nice but crowded.
Grand Ledge not worth a special trip but cool enough if you're in the area
Ludington Has Flip City (actually in the village of Shelby, not to be confused with shelby twp.)

There are quite a few more but those are my fav's

[Olorin]

Lance,

Please let us know where you decide to go. Then after the trip it would also be great to hear your impressions.

[t i m]

My brother and I are doing a week-long disc golf trip in mid-August to play a lot of the PA/NY/NJ/DE courses, many of which are supposed to be just stunning.

We'll get in all 54 holes at Codorus (PA), the 36 holes at Pinchot State Park (PA), all the 2005 Pro Worlds courses in PA (Jordan Creek, Little Lehigh, Nockamixon, Tinicum), Warwick (NY), Campgaw (NJ), Tyler State Park (PA), Brandywine (DE), and Iron Hill (DE).

We're skipping some obvious great courses that should go in that loop because we've been to then before (Seneca and Patapsco in MD, Whispering Falls in PA, The Woodshed and Whipping Post in WV, etc...).

I think that if I could head anywhere, it would be Minnesota, but depending on what your flights and other arrangements look like, it is worth considering what fits your budget and schedule, and its worth having several options depending on where the flights are cheapest the week you want to go.

I would also recommend NC/SC/GA as a great option -- make the short loop from Charlotte to Augusta, and hit up Raleigh as well if you have time -- some amazing courses in all three places, many of which are legendary.

Another option would include a Massachusetts week, with Maple Hills, Pyramids, Buffumville Dam, Borderlands, Barre Falls, and some nearby courses in VT, CT and RI as additional courses.

If you just want a great vacation, then the SF Bay Area is worth considering -- a handful of top-shelf courses there, including DeLaveaga and Golden Gate Park, but also stunning weather, beautiful vistas, wine country, microbreweries, and lots of great camping and hiking. It's not where I would go for a disc golf only excursion, but definitely a place I would consider for an overall awesome vacation. Same goes for Seattle and Portland -- a handful of awesome, awesome, awesome courses, but also a lot of other diversions if you want a break from DG.

The other thing to consider is what your home courses are like. Do you want courses that are similar or courses that are entirely different? Different parts of the country seem to have their own flavor when it comes to their courses. Think about what you want out of your trip.

Also, do you want to go to a handful of courses and just relax, enjoy, soak in the beauty, play the best courses 2-3 times each; or do you want to rush around and hit as many courses as possible?

My favorite disc golf retreat is Paw Paw in WV -- two world-class courses on the same bit of private land. Some of the best camping I know of and some of the friendliest people as your hosts. It's a place you can pitch your tents, leave the car unlocked, build a campfire, play beer-in-hand the whole time, swim in the pond, just r-e-l-a-x. And shoot on two of the best SSA-64 courses I know of, with a crazy mix of woods, open shots, and elevation changes. For sheer enjoyment, I'd plan a trip that started in Pittsburgh, played the 3-4 world-class courses near Pittsburgh (Moraine, Knob Hill, others...), then headed down to stay at PawPaw for two or three days. Then make sure to hit Whispering Falls on the way back up to Pittsburgh, and hit anything else you can to round out your trip. That would be a relaxing week... all the golf you want, but also several zero-stress days with no hotels or traffic to worry about: just you and the discs.

[sidewinding]

If you are planning for the fall Austin is the place to go. Not too hot and not too cold. I have 28 courses within 67 miles of my house.

[Luke@DiscTrips]

Without a doubt, if you're looking for both quantity and quality, Minneapolis is your best bet. There are 25 courses within the metro area alone (the most in the U.S., I believe), and 60 courses within 60 miles of downtown Minneapolis. If you're up for more driving, you could fly into Mpls. or Milwaukee and make a pilgrimage to the massive High Bridge complex (I think it's up to 6 18-hole courses?) in northern Wisconsin. Milwaukee and the Green Bay area have some gorgeous courses, too. There are over 350 courses in MN, WI, and IA alone, so those states should be on everyone's list.

I just moved from MN to Boston, where I only have 18 courses within 60 miles of home... I do miss the unlimited DG options in the upper Midwest!

[austinirish]

FWIW Houston has a ton of courses in the metro area, would not be a bad winter dg destination. Fuggetabout the summer time

[kvanorsdel]

highbridge sounds amazing and affordable. i think i have my next spring break destination.

The way my family and I did it this spring. We stayed at Sandy Point Disc Golf Resort (http://www.dgcoursereview.com/course.php?id=748). Sandy Point is absolutely beautiful the cabins are great and the owners are super cool. The course is 27 holes that even after a week long stay you will not become bored with. One of the days at Sandy Point we made a day trip up to Highbridge, its about 45 min north of Sandy Point and played there and then returned back to Sandy Point for a glow round.

Take a look at the pics of each hole that are linked off the above link.

[memphisDGdestroyer]

Lance, this may be a little farther than you want to go but Memphis, TN and the surrounding areas offer several great courses for us disc golfers. There are at least 12 courses within an hour drive of the city. Several of those are in state parks where there are multiple courses at each location. Since travelling is an option, you could then go into western Arkansas and northeast Mississippi and middle Tennesse and play at least 15 more courses. These range from long, open courses to shorter, wooded courses, and anywhere in between.
On top of all that, Memphis has a thriving disc golf club that plays as a club every Thursday night in Memphis and every Tuesday night in Millington (just north of Memphis). To the South about 10 miles is the Southave Disc Golf Club that hosts doubles tournaments every Tuesday (I think).
Memphis doesn't have the absolute best golf in the world but it is pretty. Definitely worth a trip.
-Sam

[ehillis]

Here are my Top 10 Disc Golf Cities in America:

1. Charlotte, NC
2. Cincinnati, OH
3. Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN
4. Des Moines, IA
5. St. Louis, MO
6. Austin, TX
7. Madison, WI
8. Raleigh, NC
9. San Francisco, CA
10. Grand Rapids, MI
Honorable Mention for Beauty: Boulder/Denver, CO

I didn't want to clutter the thread with explanations, but if you want to read them or tell me why I'm wrong, you can see them here: http://lifelongdiscgolf.com/top-10-disc-golf-cities-in-america/. I've only been to 5 out of the 11, unfortunately, but that's the order I would rank them if I were taking a trip.:D

[WillA]

Top Disc Golf cities, interesting..... Here are my top three.

1. Bowling Green, KY
9 courses, the gem being Kereiakes

2. Louisville, KY
I love Iroquois, Freeman Lake and Radcliff DGC

3. Nashville, TN
Sanders Ferry and Crockett Park are both very nice and Seven Oaks and Cedar Hill are both good courses too though I don't especially like them.

[ptsawyer]

Cincinnati is a great choice. Be sure to hit Idlewild in Burlington, KY, just accross the Ohio River. I live in Dayton, OH, and there are a TON of courses in the greater Cincinnati area, over 20.

I also just got back from a road trip to Bowling Green, KY. A great place to play. Lots of top notch courses within a few miles of each other. Cheap places to camp too. Definately would go back in a second.

My next trip (next year) will be to Charolette, NC.

[t i m]

I just got back from my roadtrip with my brother, and have to say that I would move Allentown, PA, up the list of best places to go. I've played disc golf in more than 20 different states, and I think Allentown is at least the equal of Charlotte for exceptional courses and variety, and Charlotte was my previous favorite.

Within 40 miles of Allentown are ~30 courses, but several of these are of exceptional quality -- courses that in their own right would each be the crown jewel of most other area disc golf scenes -- Jordan Creek, Little Lehigh Parkway, Tyler State Park and Nockamixon. Runners up on the list of courses to play include Tinicum, Hackett's Park, Hickory Run and Francis E. Walter Dam. Those eight courses should keep you busy for a week, since you'll want to play each of them through more than once. If you finish with those, you can start in on the other courses...

I've played most of those courses one or two rounds each now, and can't wait for a long weekend to go back and take another stab at them.

[Olorin]

Lance,

Did you make your trip yet? I'm curious to know what you decided.

[iDisc]

i would take a trip to Kensington Tobaggon (not sure how to spell) it is a few hours from where i currently live. that is my dream course to play

[DSCJNKY]

Oregon. Too many great courses and Micro-breweries to visit. There are disc golf courses in almost every town along the I-5 and after the round you can quench your thirst at the town local brew-pub. That's how my vacation went... 9 courses 8 breweries 3 days.
DSCJNKY