Oregon/Nor Cal in August

[Mando]

Making my first trip to the west coast since 1975;primarily a family sight-seeing trip,but hope to squeeze in a few courses.Was surprised to see Whistler's Bend re-design rated so low.
Anyway, looking for suggestions...and not just limited to disc golf. Lake Tahoe to Portland (mostly along coast)

 

[mhulkman]

Stafford Lake north of the bay area is beautiful n challenging. If you go to wine country in Napa Skyline Wilderness is beautiful and unique. The #1 course in the Sac area is Shady Oaks. If you make to Tahoe then Zephyr Cove is a must! Beautiful property in the pines with views of Tahoe and the beach right across the street. Several solid options in the Tahoe area with Bijou and North Tahoe Regional Park as well. Plus both Truckee courses are solid, Sierra College and Truckee Regional Park.

 

[jeverett]

Making my first trip to the west coast since 1975;primarily a family sight-seeing trip,but hope to squeeze in a few courses.Was surprised to see Whistler's Bend re-design rated so low.
Anyway, looking for suggestions...and not just limited to disc golf. Lake Tahoe to Portland (mostly along coast)

In my opinion, even the old layout at Whistler's Bend was a bit overrated. Yes, the setting for Whistler's Bend is maybe #1 in Oregon, and the 'top of the world' shot in particular is awesome. But despite having ~9 holes that were absolutely top-notch, it also had a number of long, uninteresting ones too.

The new layout kept all of the exceptional holes, removed a few of the moderate ones, but added a number of extremely short, gimmic/trick shots.

 

[Mando]

Leaving in a couple of days. Looking at playing 3 or 4 of these;
Lucky Mud
Hornings
Pier park
Milo
Birds of Paradise
Brooktrails
Something around Lake Tahoe

 

[TempleOfDoom]

Kirkwood > rest of Tahoe

 

[Mando]

Kirkwood > rest of Tahoe

Thanks. I was surprised to hear that heat/mosquitoes are an issue in Oregon during August ...what about Norcal ? We are a rec level bunch, in it for the scenery. Kirkwood or Zephyr ?

 

[jeverett]

Thanks. I was surprised to hear that heat/mosquitoes are an issue in Oregon during August ...what about Norcal ? We are a rec level bunch, in it for the scenery. Kirkwood or Zephyr ?

Yep, Oregon can be quite hot for the next month or so (forecast is currently calling for 105-109F here on Wednesday). Mosquitoes are definitely around in areas that have a lot of standing water (e.g. lakes and ponds), but otherwise shouldn't be an issue at all.

If you make it farther south than Portland, I'd be happy to show you around a local course or two, too. Oh, Milo is of course amazing, but even from the short tees it is a monster of a course btw.

 

[Mando]

Yep, Oregon can be quite hot for the next month or so (forecast is currently calling for 105-109F here on Wednesday). Mosquitoes are definitely around in areas that have a lot of standing water (e.g. lakes and ponds), but otherwise shouldn't be an issue at all.

If you make it farther south than Portland, I'd be happy to show you around a local course or two, too. Oh, Milo is of course amazing, but even from the short tees it is a monster of a course btw.

We are flying into Portland early afternoon tuesday and wil be there all day wednesday. Heading towards Bend/oakridge thursday and need to be in Yosemite by tuesday. Biking/swimming/sight-seeing much more of a priority than dg, but want to play some privates and Milo.

 

[Discette]

Thanks. I was surprised to hear that heat/mosquitoes are an issue in Oregon during August ...what about Norcal ? We are a rec level bunch, in it for the scenery. Kirkwood or Zephyr ?

Zephyr has a view of Lake Tahoe, as does North Tahoe Regional Park. Kirkwood is about 45 minutes away and only has views of the tall peaks around it - no lake view. If you don't like ski resort courses, you will prefer Zephyr.


Zephyr Cove Resort has a private beach with kayak rentals and a bar (on the beach) so it is perfect for relaxing after the round. The Lake Tahoe is amazingly clear, has sandy bottom and is very refreshing! Nevada Beach is a public beach very close by. I think both have fees.

 

[JTacoma03]

If you're "rec level" - you'll enjoy Bijou more than Zephyr IMO. With the harsh elevation changes and runaway slopes Zephyr can be a real grind. Both have beautiful views...from Hole 8's green on Zephyr you can see down to the lake, and in the middle section of Bijou you get a wide open grandiose view of Heavenly. Take the flippiest disc in your bag, and bring 2 extra discs even flippier than that for Tahoe courses...and no I'm not exaggerating.

I haven't played BoP or Brooktrails, but from what I hear around the water cooler at GGP Brooktrails is the one to pick out of those 2.

I just made the trip to PDX for the first time - and Pier Park is maybe the best course inside of a city park that I've ever played. Milo is a bit of a drive but IMO worth it to say you played it. I wasn't as big of a fan of Horning's...I found it fair, but not much fun. FWIW my group disagreed with my Horning's assement though.

These recommendations take into account what you said about skill level, and trying to think about fun for a group. If your group is a bunch of 950+ rated friendly-yet-competitive types you could step up a notch. When I'm traveling or on vacation and want to just play some fun rounds, I'll step down the course difficulty and just enjoy the golf. So yeah...just my framework for the review.