Old School
12 Helpful / 0 Not
Pros: Nine decently done holes placed around the east and south side of the school. Some decent elevation, mostly good baskets, and some long bombs to close out the round.
Some elevation around the middle makes getting in the circle all the more rewarding since rollaways are possible on 3, 4, and 5.
The tee signs that are there are decently helpful. Distance and tree markings to help decide how to shape your shot.
Big distance throws are hard to come by around a school, but California Trail does it twice! Hole 8's tee is about 12 feet above the pin elevation-wise, and hole 9 comes back the other way. There's just enough room that - even if the course was busy - it wouldn't feel dangerous to play one hole while someone else was throwing the other.
Cons: Several iffy hole placements. Hole 1 plays directly over volleyball courts, 3-5 all play over a trail leading to the track, and 9 plays next to the access road to the back of the school.
While the holes are all fairly open, they're pretty long for beginners. Seasoned players won't have much trouble, but they also won't be the ones making the trip here too often. Hard to tell who the course is supposed to appeal to.
The baskets look like they were set up in 2002 and haven't been touched since, and many of the tee signs are gone.
Multiple flat, bland holes. 2 and 6 suffer from nothing-itis and the only thing saving 7 is the few trees on it.
Other Thoughts: If you're looking to get in a quick 9er in Olathe, this is the one for you... maybe. It will likely be too long, or too easy. There isn't really a good in-between. Still, it's worth your time over the other 9s nearby.
12 of 12 people found this review helpful.
Not great, and poor upkeep
8 Helpful / 0 Not
Pros: A few holes are pretty long, and the basket of 3 is on a hill, making a blind drive. A few holes have some trees, and one hole has a fence.
This is a fairly accessible course for beginners, and with the two par 4's to finish, gives them an introduction to longer holes that aren't intended to be deuced.
For more advanced players, it's a good way to bomb it out and see how close you can get, and on the shorter holes, upshots from 200-350 feet.
It's easy to find the next tee, and the layout is easy to follow, so this makes a really quick round, especially if you're just ticking off another course.
Cons: Tee signs are only sometimes present, and are sideways on the post they are mounted on. Holes 1 and 2 had no post that I was aware of. Tee pads are dirt. Every basket except the one on hole 8 was in pretty terrible condition.
Around half the holes are completely uninteresting, with no trees whatsoever that come into play. They're just long upshots, with only a little elevation change.
For VERY beginner players, this course might not even be for them, since only a few holes are under 250 feet.
Other Thoughts: Nothing on this course is something to get excited about, but it's not completely trash. New baskets, tees, and signs would help, but trees are the main thing this course needs.
Other than that, this isn't a super interesting course with much unique here.
8 of 8 people found this review helpful.
This Course Was Designed For Whom?
8 Helpful / 0 Not
Pros: As with most middle and high school courses, this one has witnessed it's share of physical abuse. Many of the old rusted out single chain Discatchers have been pulled and beaten on until they're leaning. The small, almost indestructible signs have also taking a licking. There's nothing like a 13 boy with hormone and anger issues!
When you do find signs, they list the distances in yards. Too many of these holes are too long, too boring and too open to hold anyone's interest, yet alone middle schoolers with the attention span of mud.
# 1 starts right in front of the school and plays over or around the sand volleyball courts. The course then plays in a clockwise direction around the football field. Most are open and straight although # 3 forces you to hyser your tee shot around the corner. # 8 seems to have a newer basket, maybe a replacement?
Cons: First four holes are missing the signs.
Discatchers are single chained rust buckets. Some have the lean.
No tee pad.
Open with few obstacles.
School activities would make or all part of the course unplayable at certain times.
Too long for middle school kids.
Windy!
Other Thoughts: I have to wonder about the designers of this course. Did they really believe that 12 and 13 year olds can throw 300 feet? Or did someone design a middle school course so they could throw 350 foot drives? How else can you explain the last five holes being 325', 376', 273', 489' and over 550' ? Trust me, I taught four long and miserable years in a middle school and we only had one boy who could even throw 100 feet. A course that would excite middle schoolers should be a beginner type course with holes in the 100-200 foot range. These kids would like to experience a little success and the occasional birdie or Ace Run might provide that. Long, open boring 500 foot holes will just turn them off to disc golf.
I guess if you lived very close to the course, you might want to show up for the occasional round. Other than that, only serious course baggers need to enroll at California Trails Middle School.
8 of 8 people found this review helpful.
Why the Neglect??
6 Helpful / 0 Not
Pros: There's nine (albeit 1 broken) baskets on the school grounds.
Easy to follow flow.
Couple of long throws to be had...
As previously stated, good warm-up type course.
Cons: Rusty baskets... including #7's who's basket had fallen to the ground.
Lack of tee markers on #1 and #2.
Minimal elevation and obstacles.
Other Thoughts: Played this as #3 of 6 (day 1) on a two day Kansas City metro area road trip. Was fine as a precursor to the next courses.
Wouldn't venture here for just this one.
Wondering why the neglect, with the rusty, broken baskets, and missing tee markers?? While it is definitely better than no course, it is disappointing to see courses neglected.
6 of 6 people found this review helpful.
Convenience is King
3 Helpful / 1 Not
Pros: Good for beginners and those looking to practice driving on some wide open shots. It's a short 9 hole course that's fairly conveniently located, and a full round or 2 is completely doable with limited time. Parking is well-placed, and the overall flow of the course is nice.
Cons: Very few obstacles and differentiation from hole to hole. There is a missing tee marker on Hole 2, and for the most part the tee signs are worthless. While not usually an issue, the dirt tee pads can get pretty sloppy after heavy rain. Also, with the wide open design, wind becomes your worst enemy.
Other Thoughts: I play this course very often, because it's close to home and I can bust out a couple rounds in no time at all. It's not very challenging, but it is a nice course to unload your bag and let some drives rip. Overall it's a good course for what it is, but nothing to write home about. Cheers!
3 of 4 people found this review helpful.
3 Helpful / 0 Not
Pros: This course was a little longer than I expected and with the exception of the #2 tee box, easy to navigate. The last 2 par 4's were a pleasant surprice. Wide open throws, so its a nice place to practice any throw you want. The grass was mowed nice and short, so no time spent looking for errant throws. Had the course to myself, so no trouble playing multiple discs or feeling rushed.
Cons: No technical throws required at all. It felt more like a practice facility than a disc golf course. Very little variety to the course.
Other Thoughts: I stopped by on a whim when my son had soccer practice in the area. I had low expectations, but still enjoyed my round. I will probably come back when I want to try out some new discs or practice some new techniques.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful.
California Trail
6 Helpful / 0 Not
Pros: - Course is short with little to no obstacles so it is good for people just starting.
- Holes are, for the most part, on wide open fields around the east and south side of California Trail Middle School.
- Easy to locate baskets.
- Grass was mowed and the chances of losing a disc here are slim to none.
Cons: - Tee boxes are not maintained one bit.
- Pretty boring course to play but I wanted to give it a shot anyway.
- The tee box for hole number 2 is non-existent. I could not locate it so I picked a reasonable spot where I thought it would be.
Other Thoughts: Overall, if you are in the area and have time to kill but not enough time to go to Blue Valley or Olathe, this is a good option. I must add that Academy Sports right across the street has a wide selection of discs at fairly reasonable prices. I picked up one before I went which is the reason why I went here. I would say this is a good course to work on your form, technique and "bomb" shots. However, I would not tell people to drive more than 10 minutes to play this course.
6 of 6 people found this review helpful.
Only if you're in the area...
6 Helpful / 0 Not
Pros: I found this course about ten minutes from my work. With an hour lunch, I can throw the nine in under 30 minutes and still make it back with time to spare. Therefore, the course is only good for beginners and for practice.
Side plus, which gave it an extra .5 on my rating, is the lack of trees and grass. No fear of losing a disc!
Cons: No trees or grass to create fairways. Its located at a middle school, which is overrun during school season with activities. Very, very little elevation changes. The baskets are short in height compared to other courses Ive been to around town. Little to no signage and the tees are bits of dirt that you'd be lucky to find.
Other Thoughts: I'm not sure what to feel about this one. I like it that its close to my work. I enjoy being able to practice almost daily out here, if I cant play my home course out at Shawnee Mission Park. However, the course is in need of major improvements. If only a beginner/practice course, improvements still seem neccesary.
6 of 6 people found this review helpful.
plain jane course.
5 Helpful / 0 Not
Pros: Easy to find and surprisingly easy to follow the course.
Good course for quick 9.
No trees....
No chance of losing a disc
Cons: Where to start.....
-No tee pads (ur lucky to even see a patch of dirt to throw from)
-Signage is no help and missing at some holes.
-No trees.....
-No restrooms or rest areas.
-No trash cans
Other Thoughts: I almost didn't play this course cause of all the poor reviews but in the end I'm glad I did. It is a very very simple and easy course (about aced 3 holes and had 3 birdies) but gave me a great opportunity to practice on drives and because it's so open u can really see flight patterns without any fear of losing a disc. Overall do NOT play this course if u want any sort of challenge but if it's just u and a buddy wanting to kill some time it's a great course to just screw around on.
5 of 5 people found this review helpful.
Flawed
5 Helpful / 0 Not
Pros: Variety of Distances
Cons: All holes are essentially the same.
No obstacles.
There's a 300 foot par 4 on the course (which might actually be a pro for beginners).
Other Thoughts: I like this course, but only as a place to practice. It has a variety of distances which is perfect for working with many discs. That being said, the actual holes aren't very good at all. It would almost be easier on this course to just play 8 and 9 (the long holes) to work on driving.
Overall, don't go to this course if you really want to play a serious round. However, if you'd like a place to empty your bag on a couple of holes, this would be the place.
5 of 5 people found this review helpful.
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3 / 360ft.
Par / Distance:
5+ 
8/12/2012 
8/13/2012
Review By: austinpetz 
This review was updated on 8/16/2012
Hole #6 (Taken 7/2013) 
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