Mosinee, WI

Big Eau Pleine County Park

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4.165(based on 28 reviews)
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6 0
StezoBezo
Experience: 26.5 years 29 played 1 reviews
4.50 star(s)

Special Course 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jul 25, 2009 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

I might be slightly bias when reviewing this course, both the designer/keeper of the course and the person it was designed after are the reasons I play disc. This course was carved out of a beautiful setting disturbing nature as little as possible. It has a good mix of long and short holes with heizer and anheizer options. The course can play very long and difficult from the back tee's and give you a good run for your money. The open style prairie holes often taunt you to throw your hardest and make up some of that large open area in front of you, but if you miss the fairway you will pay the price looking for your disc.

Cons:

This course is set back from any major thoroughfare and takes some time to find if your not familiar with the area, I think this can also be a benefit. This course does not have concrete tee pads but I hear something might be in the works to make this happen.

Other Thoughts:

Please remember, we are able to play courses like this thanks to the hard work and dedication of those who maintain them. Please be aware of your surroundings and keep courses clean. Unlike Token Creek, this course like many others does not have a near full time grounds crew, please keep it clean so the maintenance staff can spend their time making it better instead of picking up cigarette buts and beer cans.
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8 0
DGWissota
Experience: 23.6 years 95 played 2 reviews
4.00 star(s)

Excellent 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jul 17, 2010 Played the course:once

Pros:

-Three tee pads on each hole.
-Signage on each hole, outlining distance from each tee pad.
-Woods come into play on majority of the holes, with distances ranging from 215' to over 550'.
-Variation of right and left dog legs, as well as straight shots necessitates a variety of tee shots throughout the course.
-Trails from basket to next tee make for intuitive course navigation; on holes where more than one trail is present a sign directs to next hole.
-Lightly trafficked course with a secluded feel throughout.
-Every hole has punishment for misplaced shots, whether the obstacles of trees or the unpleasantness of finding your disc in the thick, nettles laden rough.

Cons:

-Rough is littered with stinging nettles and thistles, especially the front nine
-Gravel tee pads
-No drastic elevation changes, terrain is fairly repetitive
-No O.B./water hazards

Other Thoughts:

I just had the opportunity to play the 18 hole layout of this course and I thought it was excellent. After each hole on the back nine I was excited to see what the next hole would bring. The day I was out I saw at least 15 deer on the course, which just adds to the secluded feel of the course. Even some of the cons of the course did not bother me while playing. The rough is ridiculous and you will spend time trying to find your disc, but I felt that just added to the emphasis of shot placement on the fairway. The mosquitoes were fairly thick the day I played, so bring along some bug spray. Some may view this as a con, but you're playing in the woods in Central Wisconsin; mosquitoes are to be expected. The gravel tee pads were very well compacted and did not hinder my footing at all during the round, but I could see them deteriorating over time. Overall, BEP is an excellent course and highly recommended if you are in Central Wisconsin.
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8 0
mashnut
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Experience: 22.7 years 831 played 777 reviews
3.00 star(s)

Some great, some not so much 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jun 7, 2010 Played the course:once

Pros:

The course plays through a disc golf dedicated area of a larger park. The course is flat and plays about half in the woods and half in more open areas with scattered trees and mowed fairways through tall grass and brush. The wooded holes have some light rough, and are thickly wooded off the fairway to punish errant shots. They have a good variety of right and left turning shots, and you will need to hit different lines to be successful. There are a variety of lengths throughout the course, with short and long holes both on the open areas and in the woods, keeping it from ever feeling very repetitive.

There are three tees for each hole, all well marked with colored markers in the ground. They are natural, but well compacted and leveled for the most part, and they provided a fine surface to throw from. They change up the course quite a bit, with different lines on the shorter holes, and large differences in length on the longer shots. There is one tee sign on each hole, but they are well placed so that you almost always walk past it no matter which tee you're going to from the previous hole, so you don't have to do extra walking to see the signs. The baskets are fairly new and catch well.

The course feels very secluded even though it's near a park road and the boat launch area. It's full of wildlife, all of which seemed to be quite used to people walking through. We found a very young deer hidden in the tall grass while looking for a lost disc, and saw several other young ones around.

Cons:

I loved the wooded holes here but I wasn't a huge fan of the prairie style half of the course. There isn't really any punishment for missing the fairway to your score, instead you'll spend lots of time trudging through tick infested tall grass searching for your disc, and then have a perfectly easy throw once you actually locate it. That's my least favorite kind of punishment in course design.

Some of the holes play right along the park road, taking away from the feeling of isolation, though the road isn't too heavily used. Some of the holes seemed long for distance sake, with the longest tee just thrown back as far as there was room for, though at least there are other tees to choose from on those holes.

Other Thoughts:

Half of this course is a lot of fun, the other half I found a little boring and annoying, making it difficult for me to rate this one. I think it's still worth a stop if you're in the area for the wooded part of the course though. Beginners will find the short set of tees to be a reasonable length, though there is lots of disc eating prairie, and some of the wooded holes are pretty tough. More experienced players will find good challenge and variety from the long tees, and will need to be accurate with good distance to score well and keep from losing discs.
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11 3
superberry
Gold level trusted reviewer
Experience: 26.5 years 364 played 98 reviews
3.50 star(s)

Very solid design, but not much variety in terrain 2+ years

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Nov 6, 2009 Played the course:once

Pros:

The design of this course is indeed awesome. With what the terrain offers, you couldn't ask for anything better. It is essentially all wooded, under tall mature hardwoods, and a few open prairies under previously cleared hardwoods. All holes offer various routes to the pin, typically via a clump (or two or three) of trees somewhere mid fairway.
The park is very scenic, quiet, and beautiful, and there were no fees from what I could see.
There are three tees except that a few are shared on #13 and 14. I prefer design utilizing multiple tees rather than multiple pin placements.
Just about every hole is great (which I will explain as a com later). Some of the more memorable holes are...
#15 an awesome and long hole that angles slightly downhill with a LARGE patch of trees in the middle which split your flight into many various routes, and then a pin which is fairly open, yet has a great look to it.
#18 a straight and narrow gauntlet run hole from any of the three tees. You have to rifle it straight and far while slightly downhill.
Honestly most of the holes are so similar that I cannot differentiate from one another now a few hours after my round, and I forgot to take notes.
I wouldn't change any of the design.

Cons:

Variety is severely lacking. Changing the design would not make up for what this park lacks in unique terrain.
This is essentially a 'Mostly Flat' mature hardwood course. A few holes venture out into some clearcuts with sparse trees, but still envelope the same design philosophy of a few clumps of trees mid fairway splitting your route into options.
The terrain is why this course lacks. There are no sharp elevation changes along a ridge or ravine. There are no water hazards. There are but a few elevated and or terraced tees or greens. No downhil bombers at all. Like I said, even 'Moderately Hilly' is a huge stretch in my book.
The greens are not on par with Standing Rocks, all are open and flat in a good 30' radius around the pin. Not much at all for risky/rewarding greens that make you think about gunning for a putt. As you can see from my score - 3 after 3 after 3 means that even a shanked drive can still allow a good upshot and an easy putt from anywhere. Therefore, not much required skill or punishment for being off fairway, but hitting some of the gaps and lines off the tee really makes your drive feel incredible.

Other Thoughts:

I played in November and the tons of hardwood leaves made losing discs under them pretty misearble. I kept my eye open like a hawk if I was off fairway and I just lucked out that the county had been cutting just before I started my round.
Basically I kept comparing this to Token Creek - an amazing setting and hugely fundamental and solid design, but it was just lacking something. With every hole being great, there were no exceptional ones, they were all about the same.
The area of the park has no unique or dramatic terrain features which create a lackluster experience just like Token. But because Token is pay to play and has great free courses nearby, it gets a 3.5 while BEP will get a 4 from me because it's free and I will be back to play again (hoping to catch peak colors and leaves still on the trees).
This course lacks what Standing Rocks has as far as all the unique terrain and physical features - amazing ridges, valleys, sharp elevation changes, all under wooded canopy and shifting from hardwoods to pines. Standing Rocks is a GORGEOUS setting, while BEP is bland and repetitive as far as a disc course is concerned. BEP however offers much more distance over Standing Rocks and Yulga. Yulga has more variety and BEP has just a bit more elevation than Yulga. All in all, these 3 courses are INCREDIBLE compliments to one another! I cannot stress this enough. Considering the excellent design of BEP along with added distance not available locally, and I do love playing wooded courses that are free, BEP is a 4, but probably a bit lower 4 than Yulga. I don't think anything would make BEP a 4.5, the terrain is just too repetitive with no uniqueness.
UPDATE: This rating has been sticking with me. I have to change it. No water, repetitive terrain, very little elevation, nothing extraordinaily unique - this has to be a 3.5. I was underwhelmed when I played it, and still am.
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15 0
harr0140
Diamond level trusted reviewer
Premium Member
Experience: 15.8 years 1512 played 480 reviews
3.50 star(s)

Awesome setting for Disc Golf 2+ years

Reviewed: Played on:Jun 26, 2009 Played the course:once

Pros:

1) This course is set in an incredibly scenic park. It is set on a lake (actually a massive flowage for those being technical) in a dense pine forest and also more open prairie areas!

2) Nice baskets including a practice basket. Nice signage at the beginning of the course is always helpful expecially when you come to a new course. Although it is obvious as you drive past about 5 baskets that are visible from the road on your way in.

3) 3 sets of tees add to the overall value of this course. They are only made of gravel but are packed pretty well and must be groomed on occassion as they were still pretty level and none had any washouts.

4) Awesome variety in shots required. There are uphill shots . . . a few blind shots . . . a few uphill shots . . . some that force you to go left to right and some that force you to go right to left.

5) There are a multitude of avenues to throw down. There is still trouble in your way but at least you get to choose your lines. Many trees in the middle of fairways, some mowed up to some not mowed around creating another added feature. You don't have much opportunity for skip ups on this course you need to be able to throw a straight mid or hyzer or anhyzer around some trees.

6) What a wonderfully scenic course . . . I saw a total of 25 deer including 5 little newborn does . . . they were just learning to walk. Wildlife is abundant if you keep your eyes open . . . I also saw a snake and a fair amount of hawks. The beauty of the deer in this park is you can get within about 20 feet before they run away. That is the ideal animal life to help compliment the idea that disc golf is set amongst nature and it doesnt infringe upon it. Many courses are where they tear out the natural habitat or over groom it . . . here they left the habitat in tact.

7) The flow of this course is perfect. It is easy to see where you need to go because of mowed down areas. This is one of very few courses I do not think arrows pointing to the next hole is really needed.

Cons:

1) Unfortunately along with dense pine forest and unmowed prairie areas also go the mosquitos. It was nasty!!!!! Bring your bug spray.

2) Some of the natural areas along a few of the holes are very punishing. It is tough to find the disc only 5 feet off the fairway. Not only is some of the vegetation tough to find a disc but it is thistle . . . Nettles (look out for these they hurt!!!!). It looks like they had begun to trim along the fairways on occassion however because there were a few areas where the thistle had been trimmed down to about a foot.

3) Teepads are not concrete but that is a minor issue because the gravel they do have is in pretty good shape and packed prety tight.

4) Signs are minimal but they do at least list all three tee distances. It is made of simple laminated paper.

Other Thoughts:

I am excited to hear this course is adding another 9. It was such a nice piece of property and I would definitely enjoy some disc golf in this location again. I don't get this way often but when I do I will make it a point to revisit this course.

I was pleasantly surprised with this course. I am guessing to say that Yulga and Standing Rocks are much better courses overall, but my guess is this is the closest course to those caliber courses. I plan to play those to to verify that statement but I will make it a point to come back here becuase I really enjoyed it. Hopefully it is 18 holes by the time I make it back in August or September to go camping with my wife!
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6 3
matrathvy
Experience: 25.4 years 108 played 9 reviews
4.00 star(s)

Tough 9 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Played on:Jun 21, 2009 Played the course:once

Pros:

This is a very challenging 9 hole course. Very diverse and interesting, never would have believed something like this was capable at a 9 holer.

Cons:

FORGOT MY DISTANCE DRIVER! Not the courses fault but again didn't expect I would need it. Very dense growth on ALL sides of the course, you throw to the rough at all and you will search for a little while. Wears shoes and long pants, Hole #3 is called Nettle Mettle (thorns everywhere).

Other Thoughts:

If you are a first timer or slightly more you may get frustrated but don't dispair, it's only a 9. If you are into the nature aspect of the sport, we saw a herd of whitetail deer throughout the course and at one point was only about 20 feet away from the big doe. BRING A CAMERA.
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8 3
jgros079
Experience: 17.2 years 36 played 3 reviews
3.00 star(s)

2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:Feb 25, 2009 Played the course:2-4 times

Pros:

great course with longer holes. It is extremely fun to play, and is great if you have a big arm, but still requires more technical shots once you get near the pin. A nice mix of tight and wide fairways.

Cons:

The tee-boxes are not cement...bummer, also, if you shank a disc, it's a pain finding it in the more open holes where the "rough" is rough on you in every sense of the word. It's real long grass filled with pickers, and is extremely easy to loose discs in.

Other Thoughts:

check this course out in the fall when the leaves are changing! It's absolutely beautiful, with gorgeous yellow leaves everywhere! Felt like heaven in the hardwood holes.
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12 2
Geoffro
Bronze level trusted reviewer
Experience: 18.6 years 16 played 16 reviews
4.00 star(s)

Excellent layout 2+ years drive by

Reviewed: Updated: Played on:May 24, 2009 Played the course:5+ times

Pros:

This is a great course cut out of the Big Eau Pleine County Park forest. The course was designed to impact the wilderness as minimally as possible, but with the best mix of disc golf challenges. Pete Hoover designed the course, and kudos to him. There is a mix of short and long, and varying tee pads offer different challenges for different players. The tee pads are gravel set in wooden bases, and are designed to be flat in downward terrain, giving them a "launch pad" look and feel.

Cons:

Fairways are sometimes narrow, play the short tees to avoid going in the rough. The rough...deep weeds and nettles. I've come home with some pretty good rashes from retrieving lost discs. This adds to the psychological challenge of the course my view - it's hard not to think about those nettles as you are preparing to drive. Again, for the more amateur player it's relatively easy to avoid by playing the short tees and laying up when necessary.

Update: Since I wrote this review, Pete and his crew have done a really nice job of clearing most of those really deep weeds and nettles. There is still a clear difference between the fairway and the rough, but it's a lot easier to find a lost disc than when I originally wrote this review.

Other Thoughts:

Update on the back 9 (7/19/09):

The back 9 holes are now open at BEP, and I played them today. Consistent with the front nine, the course design is outstanding. Good mix of left and right, short and long, and multiple paths to the baskets.

Back nine snapshots: "Double Dog Dare Ya" - long round open round-about paths to the basket left or right, or one tight window through dense brush and trees in the center. "The Dominator" is 570' from the blue tees.

The back nine only improves this already excellent course.
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