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North Bluff DGC reviews
17
0
This course blew me away!
Reviewed:
Updated:
Played on:Oct 2, 2022
Played the course:once
Pros:
North Bluff is a 27-hole course near Escanaba, MI. As I pulled into the parking area, the first thing I saw was a 3-4 foot tall rock set into a manicured pile of gravel. Attached to the rock were large black letters that read "NORTH BLUFF DISC GOLF COURSE". This really set the tone for the type of course that I was about to experience. I continued around the corner in my car and parked near the ball fields.
Behind the rock (which upon further reflection, I think may actually be a repurposed slab of scrap concrete) is the disc golf staging area. This is complete with two practice baskets, a picnic table, and one of the nicer kiosks I have seen. Besides the usual notices and rules of disc golf it has a huge, color course map overlaid on a satellite photo of the park. The whole thing is under a sturdy looking roof structure that also covers the picnic table.
Onto the actual course. This course offers two tee pads and two baskets per hole, arranged to create four layouts of varying difficulty. This review is (unfortunately) based on only a single round from the long tees to the short baskets (and a year later, a second round from the short tees to the long baskets). The long to short and short to long layouts will provide two different solid challenges for most disc golfers, with hole distances averaging around 350'. The short to short layout is still nothing to sneeze at, but I think it would be approachable for newer players. The long to long layout plays at championship level, with five par 4s sprinkled throughout the round.
There is a great variety of holes here. The first twelve holes play through a mixed age deciduous forest. The fairways are narrow enough to force shot shaping, but usually relatively wide by Michigan "woods course" standards. Definitely wider on average than Pioneer Trails down the road. There are obvious multiple lines to the basket on many holes. A highlight in this part of the course is hole 10, which is a longer one with a relatively straight fairway that plays down a valley and back up the opposite side. If playing the long tees, there is a large drainage pond off to the left that could come into play on a poor throw or unfortunate tree kick (it was mostly dried up when I visited in late summer/early fall).
Holes 13-18 are mostly more open, with only a few trees to work around on each. These fairways are cut into grassy fields, with taller grass lurking in the rough. I particularly liked hole 15, which is a sweeping right turn in another gentle valley. Holes 19-23 are more technical again and carved out of a different wooded area that has more conifers.
The infrastructure on the course is on par with what is at the staging area. The baskets are Dynamic Discs Veteran models. The short basket on each hole is painted red and the long is painted blue. These baskets were still in like-new condition when I visited. Both tee pads on each hole are large trapezoid-shaped pieces of concrete - also in perfect shape. There is even another sheltered kiosk in the middle of the course near hole 8's tee. It's as if the course designer hit some magical "copy + paste" command that duplicated the kiosk from the front of the course into the middle of the woods.
The tee signs are absolutely beautiful. They are huge, high quality, and have all of the info needed including distance to each pin from the current tee and a large color-coded hole number. The long tee signs are blue and the shorts are red. Some of the tee signs also mention OB areas. Many of these signs are mounted to smaller pieces of whatever rock/concrete chunk material the course sign is.
Navigation is pretty easy overall. The main navigational aids are white metal arrows mounted in the bottom of many baskets. I have seen these a couple times and like them.
Trash cans and benches are located periodically around the course. Many of the "benches" are actually more of the rocks/concrete chunks that are sitting flat on the ground. There are flush toilets near the parking lot along with a drinking fountain.
This may or may not help you, but when playing the first 23 holes here I was reminded of the Renegade's Trail (Devil's Den) course at Burchfield Park near Lansing. North Bluff is overall more wooded than Renegade's Trail, but the lines aren't really that tight and otherwise it felt kind of similar - four layouts with great hole design, gentle elevation changes, and outstanding course amenities.
But then here at North Bluff we also have holes 24-27. These holes are located across the street from the rest of the course, and it's a bit of a walk to get to them (you can actually head back to your car and move it to a separate lot on the other side if you want). To say that these holes are a little different than #1-23 would be the understatement of the century. I stepped up to #24 tee and my jaw dropped. This tee is located at the top of a huge ski hill with a wide field of view cleared. In the background a couple miles away is Little Bay de Noc. Way down the wide open ski hill and partially up a smaller slope in the middle of it sits the two baskets. THIS is the ski hill bomber hole you have been looking for.
But wait, there's more. Hole 25 starts at the top of that smaller ridge and plays the rest of the way down the hill. It's even steeper than the slope on the previous hole. However, from the longs there is a relatively narrow gap to hit off the tee. After shanking my first drive, I decided to throw a second attempt with my Teebird3. I hit the line perfectly and watched my disc sail away into the distance down the hill. The hole is listed at 420' for the layout I played. I found my disc some 125'-150' PAST the basket. By far the furthest my noodle arm has ever thrown a disc.
The remaining two holes do not disappoint either. #26 has a pond in play (on a ski hill!) Depending on the layout you play and how you approach the hole, you will be looking at either carefully navigating around the right side of the pond, or trying to throw over it. The finishing hole plays part of the way back up the hill. These last four holes are both epic on their own, and add to the variety of the overall course by offering something completely different. They also have the same high-quality infrastructure as the rest of the course.
Behind the rock (which upon further reflection, I think may actually be a repurposed slab of scrap concrete) is the disc golf staging area. This is complete with two practice baskets, a picnic table, and one of the nicer kiosks I have seen. Besides the usual notices and rules of disc golf it has a huge, color course map overlaid on a satellite photo of the park. The whole thing is under a sturdy looking roof structure that also covers the picnic table.
Onto the actual course. This course offers two tee pads and two baskets per hole, arranged to create four layouts of varying difficulty. This review is (unfortunately) based on only a single round from the long tees to the short baskets (and a year later, a second round from the short tees to the long baskets). The long to short and short to long layouts will provide two different solid challenges for most disc golfers, with hole distances averaging around 350'. The short to short layout is still nothing to sneeze at, but I think it would be approachable for newer players. The long to long layout plays at championship level, with five par 4s sprinkled throughout the round.
There is a great variety of holes here. The first twelve holes play through a mixed age deciduous forest. The fairways are narrow enough to force shot shaping, but usually relatively wide by Michigan "woods course" standards. Definitely wider on average than Pioneer Trails down the road. There are obvious multiple lines to the basket on many holes. A highlight in this part of the course is hole 10, which is a longer one with a relatively straight fairway that plays down a valley and back up the opposite side. If playing the long tees, there is a large drainage pond off to the left that could come into play on a poor throw or unfortunate tree kick (it was mostly dried up when I visited in late summer/early fall).
Holes 13-18 are mostly more open, with only a few trees to work around on each. These fairways are cut into grassy fields, with taller grass lurking in the rough. I particularly liked hole 15, which is a sweeping right turn in another gentle valley. Holes 19-23 are more technical again and carved out of a different wooded area that has more conifers.
The infrastructure on the course is on par with what is at the staging area. The baskets are Dynamic Discs Veteran models. The short basket on each hole is painted red and the long is painted blue. These baskets were still in like-new condition when I visited. Both tee pads on each hole are large trapezoid-shaped pieces of concrete - also in perfect shape. There is even another sheltered kiosk in the middle of the course near hole 8's tee. It's as if the course designer hit some magical "copy + paste" command that duplicated the kiosk from the front of the course into the middle of the woods.
The tee signs are absolutely beautiful. They are huge, high quality, and have all of the info needed including distance to each pin from the current tee and a large color-coded hole number. The long tee signs are blue and the shorts are red. Some of the tee signs also mention OB areas. Many of these signs are mounted to smaller pieces of whatever rock/concrete chunk material the course sign is.
Navigation is pretty easy overall. The main navigational aids are white metal arrows mounted in the bottom of many baskets. I have seen these a couple times and like them.
Trash cans and benches are located periodically around the course. Many of the "benches" are actually more of the rocks/concrete chunks that are sitting flat on the ground. There are flush toilets near the parking lot along with a drinking fountain.
This may or may not help you, but when playing the first 23 holes here I was reminded of the Renegade's Trail (Devil's Den) course at Burchfield Park near Lansing. North Bluff is overall more wooded than Renegade's Trail, but the lines aren't really that tight and otherwise it felt kind of similar - four layouts with great hole design, gentle elevation changes, and outstanding course amenities.
But then here at North Bluff we also have holes 24-27. These holes are located across the street from the rest of the course, and it's a bit of a walk to get to them (you can actually head back to your car and move it to a separate lot on the other side if you want). To say that these holes are a little different than #1-23 would be the understatement of the century. I stepped up to #24 tee and my jaw dropped. This tee is located at the top of a huge ski hill with a wide field of view cleared. In the background a couple miles away is Little Bay de Noc. Way down the wide open ski hill and partially up a smaller slope in the middle of it sits the two baskets. THIS is the ski hill bomber hole you have been looking for.
But wait, there's more. Hole 25 starts at the top of that smaller ridge and plays the rest of the way down the hill. It's even steeper than the slope on the previous hole. However, from the longs there is a relatively narrow gap to hit off the tee. After shanking my first drive, I decided to throw a second attempt with my Teebird3. I hit the line perfectly and watched my disc sail away into the distance down the hill. The hole is listed at 420' for the layout I played. I found my disc some 125'-150' PAST the basket. By far the furthest my noodle arm has ever thrown a disc.
The remaining two holes do not disappoint either. #26 has a pond in play (on a ski hill!) Depending on the layout you play and how you approach the hole, you will be looking at either carefully navigating around the right side of the pond, or trying to throw over it. The finishing hole plays part of the way back up the hill. These last four holes are both epic on their own, and add to the variety of the overall course by offering something completely different. They also have the same high-quality infrastructure as the rest of the course.
Cons:
The first 23 holes are not perfectly flat, but the elevation changes throughout this part of the course are mostly not significant enough to really affect play. There is nothing wrong with any of the holes and the variety is great, but most of them are not necessarily memorable either. More a limitation of the land available than anything.
When I visited, many of the red baskets I played to did not have the white arrow pointing to the next hole. It usually wasn't an issue, but there were a couple of spots where no arrow was present and I wasn't 100% sure where to go next. On these occasions, I walked up to the blue basket and there was always an arrow there plus the path away from the blue basket seemed a little more heavily travelled. There are also a couple of longish walks between holes later in the course where I could have used a couple more arrows, although the paths were well groomed when I visited. It would be nice if there was a sign after hole 23 letting me know that I can choose to cut back to the parking lot to skip the last four holes (or that I HAVE to do this in the winter, or that I can drive over to them). I know that there are other considerations in play on the ski hill, but a couple extra arrows on those holes would also be nice. I saw hole 26's tee pad down the hill from #24's basket before I saw #25's pad part way back UP the hill. It would have sucked to walk all the way down to #26's pad only to realize I had skipped a hole and needed to hike all the way back up.
The tee pads for hole 27 are natural, but I think that is because they are located within the preferred route down the ski hill. The tee areas for this finishing hole are still well marked and have the same signage as the rest of the course.
There are ORV trails near some holes. Just listen for them and you should be able to avoid a potential safety hazard.
The ski hill holes 24-27 are closed in the winter.
When I visited, many of the red baskets I played to did not have the white arrow pointing to the next hole. It usually wasn't an issue, but there were a couple of spots where no arrow was present and I wasn't 100% sure where to go next. On these occasions, I walked up to the blue basket and there was always an arrow there plus the path away from the blue basket seemed a little more heavily travelled. There are also a couple of longish walks between holes later in the course where I could have used a couple more arrows, although the paths were well groomed when I visited. It would be nice if there was a sign after hole 23 letting me know that I can choose to cut back to the parking lot to skip the last four holes (or that I HAVE to do this in the winter, or that I can drive over to them). I know that there are other considerations in play on the ski hill, but a couple extra arrows on those holes would also be nice. I saw hole 26's tee pad down the hill from #24's basket before I saw #25's pad part way back UP the hill. It would have sucked to walk all the way down to #26's pad only to realize I had skipped a hole and needed to hike all the way back up.
The tee pads for hole 27 are natural, but I think that is because they are located within the preferred route down the ski hill. The tee areas for this finishing hole are still well marked and have the same signage as the rest of the course.
There are ORV trails near some holes. Just listen for them and you should be able to avoid a potential safety hazard.
The ski hill holes 24-27 are closed in the winter.
Other Thoughts:
This course is free to play, somehow. I would happily pay $5 to play a round here.
It took me about 2.5 hours to play this course solo, and I pretty much had it to myself.
If it's not obvious by now, this course honestly blew me away. I played it near the end of a 11-day trip during which I tried (and ultimately failed) to finish playing every course in the UP, and also hit Highbridge Hills and Sandy Point in northern Wisconsin. North Bluff is a different experience than either of those well-known Wisconsin destinations, but just as good. Yet this course seems to be flying way, way under the radar on DGCR. I mean - before my visit, there was no hole info here, only one photo, and no discussion in the forums that I saw. So I guess the difference between this place and other great courses I have experienced was that I wasn't really expecting much when I arrived here. I was just thinking that I'm bagging the last Escanaba area course I hadn't played. But when I re-read the previous reviews and did a little digging afterwards, the small signs were there. Mushin named it as one of the best Michigan courses north of US-10 (which for those unfamiliar, basically bisects the LOWER peninsula). UDisc has this course slotting in at #2 in the state, behind only Flip City. It is really, really difficult for me to say that this is the best course in the UP - there are 6-8 really good ones UP here that I love - but the fact is this is the only one I have rated a 4.5 or higher.
This course is a must-play and a strong 4.5. The only thing that is really missing here and holding me back from a 5.0 rating is significant elevation change/wow factor on the first 23 holes. And I guess a couple more arrows.
My only regrets about playing this course are that 1) I did not make it my 150th course played (it was #149 and I would hit #150 at a church 9er near Marquette the next morning), and 2) I did not have time to play a second round. But that's what return visits are for. Come visit the UP. And while you are here, come play North Bluff DGC. It is not to be missed.
UPDATE August 2023: I visited the course again yesterday and not much has really changed, including my feelings. The only thing I'd really add is that there actually IS some appreciable elevation change on a few of the earlier holes. It just feels puny after you play #24-27. Also, disc loss is definitely possible on #25. The ski hill itself is mowed enough that you'll probably find any discs that land within it - but with such a huge downhill, discs that start fading to the left can end up several hundred feet off course in a low-lying wooded area with thick, thick grass and weeds on the ground. I stomped around for about 20 minutes and found two other discs, but not my own. I also threw one in the pond on #26, but fortunately I was able to retrieve it. The pond had some pretty tall weeds growing right around it in the summer, making the carry a lot more difficult. Working around it is a more realistic option at this time of year. Overall, this is a strong 4.5 for sure.
It took me about 2.5 hours to play this course solo, and I pretty much had it to myself.
If it's not obvious by now, this course honestly blew me away. I played it near the end of a 11-day trip during which I tried (and ultimately failed) to finish playing every course in the UP, and also hit Highbridge Hills and Sandy Point in northern Wisconsin. North Bluff is a different experience than either of those well-known Wisconsin destinations, but just as good. Yet this course seems to be flying way, way under the radar on DGCR. I mean - before my visit, there was no hole info here, only one photo, and no discussion in the forums that I saw. So I guess the difference between this place and other great courses I have experienced was that I wasn't really expecting much when I arrived here. I was just thinking that I'm bagging the last Escanaba area course I hadn't played. But when I re-read the previous reviews and did a little digging afterwards, the small signs were there. Mushin named it as one of the best Michigan courses north of US-10 (which for those unfamiliar, basically bisects the LOWER peninsula). UDisc has this course slotting in at #2 in the state, behind only Flip City. It is really, really difficult for me to say that this is the best course in the UP - there are 6-8 really good ones UP here that I love - but the fact is this is the only one I have rated a 4.5 or higher.
This course is a must-play and a strong 4.5. The only thing that is really missing here and holding me back from a 5.0 rating is significant elevation change/wow factor on the first 23 holes. And I guess a couple more arrows.
My only regrets about playing this course are that 1) I did not make it my 150th course played (it was #149 and I would hit #150 at a church 9er near Marquette the next morning), and 2) I did not have time to play a second round. But that's what return visits are for. Come visit the UP. And while you are here, come play North Bluff DGC. It is not to be missed.
UPDATE August 2023: I visited the course again yesterday and not much has really changed, including my feelings. The only thing I'd really add is that there actually IS some appreciable elevation change on a few of the earlier holes. It just feels puny after you play #24-27. Also, disc loss is definitely possible on #25. The ski hill itself is mowed enough that you'll probably find any discs that land within it - but with such a huge downhill, discs that start fading to the left can end up several hundred feet off course in a low-lying wooded area with thick, thick grass and weeds on the ground. I stomped around for about 20 minutes and found two other discs, but not my own. I also threw one in the pond on #26, but fortunately I was able to retrieve it. The pond had some pretty tall weeds growing right around it in the summer, making the carry a lot more difficult. Working around it is a more realistic option at this time of year. Overall, this is a strong 4.5 for sure.
13
0
jstr
Experience:
1 played
1 reviews
Fantastic UP Course 2+ years drive by
Reviewed:
Played on:Jan 10, 2021
Played the course:5+ times
Pros:
- Two large concrete tees and two Veteran baskets that never move (no figuring out what pin position you're throwing to) on each hole.
- The different layouts provide genuinely different experiences. The red layout is great for a quick round or introducing people to the sport while not being to boring and the blue layout is challenging. Champ level challenging. The layouts in between (blue to red or red to blue) provide a great experience for intermediate - advanced players.
- The course is generally pretty quiet. No long wait times.
- North Bluff in general is a pretty place, especially so in the fall.
- Garbage cans are plentiful.
- Variety of wooded holes and holes you can let er rip on.
- I have never been confused on where the next tee is. There are arrows on the blue baskets and the course flows pretty logically. I am not certain how some people felt lost.
- The different layouts provide genuinely different experiences. The red layout is great for a quick round or introducing people to the sport while not being to boring and the blue layout is challenging. Champ level challenging. The layouts in between (blue to red or red to blue) provide a great experience for intermediate - advanced players.
- The course is generally pretty quiet. No long wait times.
- North Bluff in general is a pretty place, especially so in the fall.
- Garbage cans are plentiful.
- Variety of wooded holes and holes you can let er rip on.
- I have never been confused on where the next tee is. There are arrows on the blue baskets and the course flows pretty logically. I am not certain how some people felt lost.
Cons:
- Doesn't have the facilities that some other courses have: no pro shop (but do check out the Beaten Path in Escanaba! That might as well be the pro shop for this course) and no bathrooms on the course.
- The course is built on what used to be a dump. Sometimes glass or other garbage will show up. It never takes away from the actual disc golf, though.
- Overall, most cons of this course (including the previoud point) can be chalked up to the fact that this course is still in its infancy. Complaints such as rough rough or 19-27 still being very raw are related to the fact that this course is literally only a couple years old in a town of 5000 people. It still has a ton of growing to do though and I think that while the complaints (garbage from the dump, rough off the fairway, not as clear of paths between holes) will only get better with time.
- The course is built on what used to be a dump. Sometimes glass or other garbage will show up. It never takes away from the actual disc golf, though.
- Overall, most cons of this course (including the previoud point) can be chalked up to the fact that this course is still in its infancy. Complaints such as rough rough or 19-27 still being very raw are related to the fact that this course is literally only a couple years old in a town of 5000 people. It still has a ton of growing to do though and I think that while the complaints (garbage from the dump, rough off the fairway, not as clear of paths between holes) will only get better with time.
Other Thoughts:
This course is criminally underrated here on DGCR. The UDisc rating for this course is much more accurate, in my opinion (4.5 stars). I play a lot of courses in the Milwaukee and Green Bay area and this course is by far top 5. Better than the Milwaukee area courses for sure and, in my humble opinion, only lacks the amenities of Rollin Ridge. The actual disc golf (the lines and especially the replay-ability) exceeds Rollin Ridge barely and is significantly better than Silver Creek in Manitowoc.
8
1
Gem above Lake Michigan 2+ years
Reviewed:
Played on:Jul 6, 2020
Played the course:once
Pros:
- professional design
- multiple baskets/tees allow for lots of options
- some good par 4s and mix of open/wooded
- lines are fair
- threw equal RHBH and RHFH off tee
- understory is beautiful
- new tee pads, signs, baskets (can tell an investment was made in this course)
- nice amenities at park, course was not busy
- maintained fairly well, some fairways were a little shaggy but it was the height of growing season
- multiple baskets/tees allow for lots of options
- some good par 4s and mix of open/wooded
- lines are fair
- threw equal RHBH and RHFH off tee
- understory is beautiful
- new tee pads, signs, baskets (can tell an investment was made in this course)
- nice amenities at park, course was not busy
- maintained fairly well, some fairways were a little shaggy but it was the height of growing season
Cons:
- Course Flow (there is a next tee stock arrow on blue basket, but) This could be easily improved with some small signs or as this gets more use paths will become more visible. Honestly I'm surprised Dynamic doesn't have a next tee indication on their nice tee signs.
- holes 19-23 felt like a bit of an add on to the course (I'll be honest didn't play the ski hill holes)
- holes 19-23 felt like a bit of an add on to the course (I'll be honest didn't play the ski hill holes)
Other Thoughts:
What a gem, will definitely be stopping in to play anytime I head up to the UP. Would love to play a tournament here.
