Salem, OR

Cascades Gateway

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3.145(based on 28 reviews)
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10 0
Pierparknut
Gold level trusted reviewer
Experience: 10.8 years 89 played 85 reviews
2.00 star(s)

drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Aug 15, 2022 Played the course:once

Pros:

-Just off I-5, south of downtown Salem lies Cascades Gateway Park. From the large lake, I imagine this is a former quarry property donated to the city.

-The course plays through the open southern section of the park, and does not share property with other park amenities.

-The course is reasonably laid out given the land available. No holes are thrillers, but there are a good variety of hole lengths and baskets set in the limited trees available. The layout is very straightforward -- every basket is visible from the tee.

-Concrete tees and Innova baskets were well taken care of, and the tee signs were excellent, displaying all basket placements, as well as tees and baskets of neighboring holes -- a nice touch when multiple baskets are in view.

Cons:

-The park surroundings consist of an auto junkyard, homeless shelter, storage facility, RV park, Walmart, and the I-5 freeway. Previous reviewers as well as Google reviews have mentioned rampant homelessness throughout the park. I didn't encounter more than a few pieces of trash and a couple tents near the western fence. Unpleasant, yes, but not unplayable by any means.

-The layout is less than inspiring. The land is very flat with small scattered trees. At least 12 holes can be approached with a simple hyzer shot. Holes 3, 7, 8, 12 and 15 require more technical shots.

-Hole 13 may be the ugliest hole I've ever played. It's 370' across an expanse of rough concrete with the RV park behind the basket

Other Thoughts:

-It appears significant work has been done in the past few years to improve the course and mitigate the homeless issue. Thank you to everyone involved.

-Overall, the course is OK. It's not exciting, not thrilling, but a perfectly nice place to get your disc golf fix.
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1 0
Scochran
Experience: 3 played 1 reviews
2.00 star(s)

Above average course with a ton of homeless people 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Apr 11, 2021 Played the course:once

Pros:

Good baskets, Cement pads, water feature, good markings, easy to navigate

Cons:

Homeless people have taken over the park. One pad was covered with tents and there were only a few holes where you couldn't accidentally hit someone's tent. It definitely made the course more technical I suppose so depending on your preference maybe a pro...

Other Thoughts:

Overall flat, some trees were present, making some shots intriguing, a little overshadowed by the extra obstacles.
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4 0
Breh
Gold level trusted reviewer
Experience: 13.8 years 191 played 189 reviews
3.50 star(s)

2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:Dec 22, 2018 Played the course:once

Pros:

I hadn't been to cascades in awhile, and I was surprisingly impressed with what I saw. It had a new kiosk board with new tee signs. Even though course navigation is fairly simple, they added little orange arrows to the bottom of the baskets pointing to direction of next tee. The tee pads are nice and baskets catch well. This course is a very good place to come and practice or get throws in, as most holes are around 300 feet with 18 being longer. Lake setting is nice however isn't really in play.

Cons:

This course does have geese so goose poop is common on it, no elevation changes, and kind of repetitive feeling. No real standout holes

Other Thoughts:

It's a great place to come warmup or practice however not many obstacles and things to super challenge you. It has got better since the last time I was here and I appreciate that and the work to it shows
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3 0
Not McBeth
Experience: 2 played 2 reviews
3.50 star(s)

Great Day on the Course 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Oct 10, 2017 Played the course:once

Pros:

-while there were some holes that were wide open in a field, most holes offer some sort of obstacles that make you think about your line. It was fun throwing over the building on 4 and hoping for the best.
-I think this course offers something for both experts (long holes with limited approaches/lines to the basket) and novices (the obstacles aren't everywhere and you can throw an errant shot and still make par/bogey)
-grass on the fairway was freshly cut.

Cons:

-Unless you happen to really like goose crap on your shoes, you'll really want to watch your step out here. And the geese were roving in a pack and on some throws I came close to hitting them. I don't want PETA knocking on my door.
-Wind. There were gusts up to 30mph when I was trying to play, and a local told me that was pretty normal.
-Signs? We don't need no freaking signs!!!! Actually, we do. How about a course map on the billboard near hole 1? Or something beside the tee box aside from a nondescript white wooden post? Thankfully I had downloaded a course map onto my phone, so I had the layout and distances.

Other Thoughts:

I don't enjoy courses where you need a machete if your disc exits the tight fairway, and then you spend 10 minutes on safari looking for your disc. This isn't one of those courses, so between that, the fact that the grounds were manicured, and the variety of holes, I'm going with a 3.5 rating.
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1 3
Emetz
Experience: 1 played 1 reviews
4.00 star(s)

Excellent hideaway 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jul 5, 2016 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

Excellent tee pads, excellent design with a mix of styles. Excellent flow. Hard to lose a disc on this course.

Cons:

Area can be windy at times. Grass was a little overgrown in some areas, but not unbearable.

Other Thoughts:

Excellent overall course.
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4 1
JNichols
Experience: 13.1 years 54 played 13 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Updated-5/8/2019 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Feb 3, 2015 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

A combo of open and guarded holes. A fun course to play, especially with the swirling winds that come in off the lake. Not Super long for the big arms, but basket placements make up for the distance, in my opinion. Great Tee Pads that are textured for no slipping. Porta Potti by hole 1.

Cons:

Floods in heavy rains, covered in goose/duck poop sometimes. Other park goers meandering through the course keeps you on alert. Very Flat course. Nothing for elevation changes, but trying to the intermediate arm at the same time.

Other Thoughts:

FUN Course. Nice Layout. Well taken care of course. Windy, but FUN. Good basket placements, long holes, short holes, just a good blend in general. One of my Favorites in my home town, other than it EATS my discs. :)

*** UPDATE - 5/19/2019 This course has seen some LOVE from the local DG Club and it seems like a different course, altogether. SO MUCH has been cleaned up around tee pads, fairways, and baskets. If I wouldn't have known the layout, I would have thought I was at a different course. Mad Props to the Capital City DGC for their efforts in making this course Wonderful!
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1 0
thespeedokid
Experience: 9.4 years 110 played 34 reviews
4.00 star(s)

Manicured fairways 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Feb 20, 2015 Played the course:once

Pros:

Long concrete tees. Easy to follow course due the map on the marquee that you can take a picture of. Extremely nice fairways. It's very rare when you can skip discs on non dirt fairways. Good DISCatcher baskets.

Cons:

Too easy but quite fun. Not enough trees or elevation changes. Bramble bushes on one hole. Most of the hole signs were missing. (The ones that were there were pretty good though).

Other Thoughts:

Really just a fun course. There are some birdy opportunities on the shorter holes. Would I play it again? Yes.
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1 0
jnicola
Experience: 14 played 14 reviews
3.50 star(s)

Decent course, could be excellent with some work! 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Oct 4, 2014 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

Easy to get to park.
Many relatively wide open holes made beginners happy.
Good usage of terrain and obstacles to keep some challenge in play

Cons:

Annoying/Difficult to navigate.
Tee's often missing maps or numbers all together.
No directions or clear indicators of next tee.
Often multiple baskets viewable from a tee so you have to walk out and check which basket is next.
Lots of overgrown blackberry clusters or overgrown pods of shrubbery. Multiple lost discs from other groups on the day we were out there.

Other Thoughts:

This course could be really excellent. With some basic work to overhaul the tee's and baskets, the course would be a breeze to navigate. With some serious effort put in to take back some of what the invasive species have taken over, the course would also be excellent.
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2 0
mbressler13
Experience: 12 years 50 played 26 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Cascades Gateway 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Feb 18, 2014 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

-Tee pads are great
-Baskets catch well
-Close to 2 other courses
-Pretty well upkept
-Not many chances to lose your discs

Cons:

-A lake sits right next to the course. Don't throw into lake. DUH lol
-Wind sometimes a issue
-Goose crap everywhere
-Gnome Home in middle of course is a black hole for discs

Other Thoughts:

Pretty decent course. Nice and flat. A little bit of everything. 18 holes is nice. Close to Tiger Discs if you need any new plastic as well. Plenty of friendly locals to show you around if you are new to the area. Monday Night League is currently going as well!
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1 0
nat16dick
Experience: 13.5 years 95 played 16 reviews
2.00 star(s)

Simple, open course 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Mar 10, 2014 Played the course:once

Pros:

Baskets - Discatcher baskets are in decent shape and catch well
Teepads (when applicable) - The concrete teepads that are in place on most holes are well-sized and in good condition
Navigation - For the most part, course is logical and easy to play through without a map

Cons:

Teepads - Many tees are missing, and several holes tee off grass or bark chip areas
Signage - Sign at front of course is in fine condition, but hole signs are often missing, making it occasionally hard to find the pin
Design - Most of the park is open, and the back 9 especially seem to just zig-zag across a field, making for an exceedingly boring stretch of holes

Other Thoughts:

The challenge factor is very low, unless the wind is high. The lack of great tees throughout and the vandalized signage really take away from the course, making it one I would certainly not recommend. There are a couple of holes with fun design traits, but the course is overall rather boring, and not worth a stop.
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1 1
John M. Fretz
Experience: 38.8 years 153 played 8 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Easy-access 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:Jan 1, 2014 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

Nice, open course to air out your throws and really get a feel for what different discs do when thrown.
Great scenery and easy to go play a quick round if you're in Salem, as it is right by airport.

Cons:

GOOSE POOP
Back 9 starts to get redundant, but that should get better as I noticed some newly planted trees which should start to make that side more interesting in the future.
No bathrooms

Other Thoughts:

worth playing if u are in area, but not a destination course
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1 5
Bryan-Krystal
Experience: 11.8 years 3 played 2 reviews
4.00 star(s)

We like it 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jul 30, 2012 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

We like that we can try out new disk and not worry so much about losing them. the open fields really are nice. love the sun.

Cons:

That the disk were moved around and that made it harder for new players to get into the game. Not much shade so sun block is needed for some.
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1 3
MCW5379
Experience: 12.8 years 61 played 23 reviews
3.00 star(s)

2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jul 27, 2012 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

Lots of open air to work on your D and accuracy. Openness allows for beginners to feel comfortable.

Cons:

Openness makes for lack of some challenges.

Other Thoughts:

This is my "home course" I guess you would say as it is where I learned and play the most often. Would love to see some trees added to the open fairways if possible to give the course a new feel, in time obviously.
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8 0
ripcitydisc
Experience: 12.9 years 26 played 5 reviews
3.50 star(s)

My windy home course 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Aug 28, 2011 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

Some people find very open courses a bad thing, and while I agree with that for the most part, I've really enjoyed playing here and working out all my discs without fearing I was going to lose all of them. The concrete pads are very nice and it is next to a lake but the water really only comes into play when the basket for hole 5 is in the left place. The alternate tees make the course a little more fun as well, although I hate when hole 2's basket is in the trees. The course also does a great loop as the basket for 18 is very close to the tee box for 1 which is right next to the parking lot.

Cons:

It is very flat and very open. No elevation changes and I can throw backhand or forehand on every hole and most of the holes are just straight with few obstacles. I still like all the holes, except for 15, which most people are going to spend a little time looking for their disc after they throw because theres a tiny window through the forest on either side of the window. There is a lot of goose poop and sometimes there is some trash and vandalism, which is a shame because the tee markers looked very nice before that and there are plenty of garbage cans. There is hardly any shade on hot days in the summer.

Other Thoughts:

This is a great course to begin on and take friends who havent played or played much. I still get challenged by the distance of the baskets because I am not a huge thrower yet, but im not challenged by the technicality of the course. I think everyone would still enjoy it for the most part though.
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3 4
wildrivers
Experience: 14.6 years 19 played 19 reviews
3.50 star(s)

Great I-5 Stop! 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jul 31, 2011 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

Easy to follow course. Holes have cement tees with distance signs. all holes have baskets. A couple tight fairways but mostly wide open throws available. Great place to pull off some "huks" or learn the sport. Can have dogs on leash and there is a pond they can play in. Close to I-5. This course has never been crowded when I have played. Makes good use of space for a smaller city park.

Cons:

Cant say there are any for this course! I like a course with no poisen oak, cement tees and signs.
No real restrooms just "blue" rooms at the park.
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5 1
sillybizz
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Premium Member
Experience: 22.1 years 400 played 385 reviews
2.00 star(s)

Sweet Lake! 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:Jul 6, 2011 Played the course:once

Pros:

This is good place for newer players to learn on that won't be too challenging and yet still make them respect the game and not get too cocky out there. The concrete tee pads are really nice looking and grippy and are big enough that you can locate them from the last basket for easy navigation. This seems like a good place to learn without trees in your way and also you can learn rollers here when the grass is short enough. The nearby lake is really pretty and gets a ton of use.

Cons:

There just isn't enough obstacles here to really make it interesting or challenging. Open, no out of bounds and no rough means even horrible drives are getting a three from anyone who has been playing a while. I'm not not really a big fan of zig zagging across a wide open field back and forth, over and over. This course is just a little too boring for my taste.

Other Thoughts:

I'm not exactly sure much could be done to make this place challenging but not every course has to be. This place does do a good job in attracting its target audience of newer players and chuckers. Honestly though I think I would rather go fishing or swimming in the beautiful lake than rather play the disc golf course.
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6 1
Huck Plastic
Experience: 13.8 years 9 played 2 reviews
2.50 star(s)

Good for beginners and locals... 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jan 23, 2011 Played the course:once

Pros:

-Good for beginners
-Only 18 hole course in Salem
-Multiple ace and birdie runs
-Hard to lose plastic
-Wide open layout flows well
-Large tapered, concrete tee boxes
-Concise tee and basket labels
-No poison oak
-Lock box to deposit found plastic

Cons:

-Had to wait on most holes (by-product of a 50 degree day in January with no rain)
-Intermediate and advanced players will want more of a challenge
-Burnt out shed on hole #4 is a disc eater with no way to retrieve
-Trash and lots of it
-Homeless shanties amongst the briars
-Poop on ground, both human and goose
-Sketchy area with questionable looking characters (at times)
-Terrible port-o-pottie

Other Thoughts:

Cascade Gateway is a good place to toss if you are a beginner or you live in the adjacent area. This is not the type of course that you drive from out of town to play as you will probably be disappointed if you do so. Because of the unsavory characters that tend to frequent the park during low use times I recommend group play around dawn or dusk.

Remember, always play the role of "Unofficial Park Steward" as this will invariably improve the courses we play and the image of our sport.
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2 9
McDilligaf
Experience: 4 played 4 reviews
5.00 star(s)

Epic Course 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:May 18, 2010 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

Good long distance holes, a few good technical holes as well as an easy to read course. Great for beginners, this is the course I cut my teeth in back in 2008

Cons:

There are "some" goose land-mines about, ok so there are alot of them hahaha :p A small price to pay for the love of the sport I say. LOL
The course itself is well layed out and it is fairly hard to loose a disc unless you hit the drink.

Other Thoughts:

I have only played a few courses: Woodmansee Park, Keizer Rapids Park, Champoeg Park but I always come back here for more :)
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1 6
Riderflydg
Experience: 13.8 years 6 played 2 reviews
3.50 star(s)

Perfect for beginners 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Feb 8, 2010 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

Easy and flat, few difficult courses made it fun. Perfect for beginner like me. Less traffic, less pressure. Lose disc is impossible due to less berries and leafs during Winter time. Spring time would be challenge.

Cons:

I can't think of any cons except for one friendly pit bull dog on loose was chased my friend's disc on hole #13 course and marked the disc a bite holes. Bummer. Look out for dogs between 13 and 14 courses.
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4 1
reanthon
Experience: 46 played 8 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Long and Straight 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Dec 19, 2009 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

-Great Baskets
-Nice concrete Tee Pads
-Well marked, with signs at every hole
-Not that crowded
-Beginner Friendly

Cons:

- Not a huge variety of shots, a righty backhand heizer will work off the tee 90% of the time.
- Very open course, I imagine it would get boring after many rounds
- Very flat

Other Thoughts:

This is a pretty standard course with many 250-340 ft mostly straight and open holes. The course designers did a good job of working with what they had, but anyone with a consistent 350 foot drive will destroy this course.
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