A lot of fun holes with interesting elevation change elements. Good course design with lots of open space. Great natural terrain to walk through. Relatively tough to lose a disc. Good parking and fairly easy access. All around solid course.

Not much of a practice area. Couple of the wooded holes are a little too wooded. Good enough to be a nice destination course but no aspect of this course will blow you away.

Proximity to SE course is a plus. BIG trees in the hole 1 area.

-Very Nice tee areas, signs are helpful and clear, tee pads are well kept concrete
-Fairways are very well kept, nothing is overgrown or hazardous. The one strange thing was a abandoned cabinet in the middle of an open area, not sure what that was all about
-Roughs are in great condition too, they are trampled to perfection so that they are accessible, but penalizing.
-Elevation is where I believe this 18 beats the SE 18, this course has the same amount of elevation, but, it is used far better.
-Trees: this is a wooded course, and so the trees should be used well, and, they are
-Very pretty park, one of the nicer settings you'll play disc golf in, I mean, it isn't like a national park or anything, but much better than some.
-There are a wide variety of shots on this course, I didn't get to play all 18 holes, but I played about 15, and had I played all of them I think I would have thrown just about every disc in my bag.
-This is one of those courses that seems like an institution, one of those that has at least one guy there whenever you come to play. It isn't really anything special in terms of design, but it definitely feels like a part of the community, which is super cool.

-Basket visibility, I've said it before, and I'll say it again, grey Chainstars are hard to see in the woods, I played as the sun was setting, so that was an added wrinkle also.
-Navigation is a little tricky here too, I spent about 5 minutes looking for hole #1, I'm sure locals have no problem though.
-I didn't see any OB cords like I saw on the SE course (I assume those were OB cords) and I think this course could stand to be improved from the addition of a little OB
-If there is anything that might keep this course from 4 stars, it's the equipment, Chainstars just aren't very good Baskets, and I know that's kinda a lame reason to not be this courses biggest fan, but they just don't cut it.

I really enjoyed playing this course, I think it is just about as good as a single set of 18 tees and 18 baskets could be (in terms of design) but there are some factors that pull it down.

In top 3 of Washington courses:
1. Well designed with a variety of difficulties -terrain, distance, elevation, and signature natural obstacles. Every shot will be tested.
2. Beautiful grounds
3. Up-to-date baskets
4. Championship level: top pros compete here every year (see FSO on YouTube)
5. 2 more courses on location and 5+ layouts between all 3 courses.
Extra: this course naturally protects players from the elements, though a few holes are obviously affected to add difficulty to the few open longer holes.

If you only have time for one of the courses on the Steilacoom property? This one is it. It's easily the toughest, but I think that's what makes it the best.

Equipment: It's what you'd expect from a championship level course. Quality baskets and long, level teepads.

Navigation: There's a map on the kiosk near Hole 1, and most of the holes have signs on the teepad.

Design: The design is what really makes this course stand out. It offers plenty of variety and will challenge every shot that you have in your bag. Odds are good that it will challenge shots you don't have in your bag too. You start with a technical, downhill right turning hole, and from there it gets easier. For one hole. Then you're challenged again. You have long open left turning, big sky hyzers, slight uphills, technical downhills... You go right, you go left, you go up, you go down, you throw out your arm, you lob a mid-range or putter, you throw a sky line, you throw a roller... And then you hit a tree and rocket off into underbrush that is easy to navigate but hard to get your disc through in less than three shots. The Grove offers everything. I feel like this is Western Washington's answer to Pier Park, even though there's only one section of trees that feels like that place and it's a more difficult course. It's 300ish holes through the woods, and it will challenge even the best players without being too soul crushing for the casual ones.

Equipment: No equipment cons to speak of. The baskets are older, but that's okay. They're still in great shape and still catch discs.

Navigation: Navigation at Stilly is pretty bad across the board. There's a map relatively close to hole 1 (but closer to hole 16), and most of the holes have signs on the tee. But the baskets need tape and there should be "next tee" signs. Especially considering how many different layouts you can play here. I remember when I first played Stilly I did some mix of all three courses that somehow flowed into 18 holes. I don't know how far off we were, but I never will because there's also been a redesign. The flow works pretty well, but there's enough confusion here that first timers will need some help. I could honestly copy and paste this section for all three courses at Stilly, and that's disappointing. If this, the best complex in Western Washington, had better signage it would rate even higher. One plus to the multiple courses and the redesigns is that locals will never get bored though. Even if they get tired of all three courses, they can always throw a mix. The last time I played there was a group playing the "old" am tees, and there's plenty of room for safari layouts.

Design: I want to call the design flawless. It's pretty darn close. If I reach for something, I guess it would be that holes like Hole 4 are nearly impossible for those of us who can't throw far AND high. The low line is pretty well non-existent. It's a very challenging hole and tons of fun to watch someone crush with a bigger arm, but I obviously don't like holes that are essentially an automatic bogey. Not much of a con overall, but it is for people like me. So I may as well leave it here.

I've said before that the best compliment you can pay a course and its designer is that playing there regularly will make you a better disc golfer. This is obviously true on some level for most courses, but every now and then you come across a course that kicks you in the teeth so hard that you want to come back and conquer it. And each time you come back you shave a stroke or two off, until you finally get kicked in the teeth again. And then you come back. Again. And again. And you start feeling like a terrible disc golfer, until you leave and go play one of your "usual" courses and realize just how much better the tougher course has made you. This version at Stilly is one of those courses. I hate my scores there, but it makes me better.

Probably the best of the three courses at the Fort, the NW run is distinct in that the terrain adds groves of fir trees to the masses of oak trees and scotch broom and grass that dominate the property. Where the SW course is more open, this one is more confined and difficult and has a more diverse mix of holes.

The course starts nicely with an elevated tee where you are throwing a a L-R shot through a forest of mature fir trees. You will get a chance to do the reverse of this shot through the "cathedral" on the 16th hole as well! You will get a chance to experience this type of elevation change again on holes 11 & 12, but the course is fairly flat for the most part. They use the forest and scotch broom as primary obstacles on the course - you won't find any really open shots to unload here except on #17. The fairways are fairly tight and technical. I loved the challenge!

The signs were really fantastic - showing a map of the hole, distance, and direction of the next tee.

A couple of navigation issues - especially trying to find #13 tee. We had the map (found on this site) and still were walking in circles to find that tee - a little sign with an arrow would make a big difference!

A first class experience - with 45 holes on the property you should set aside the whole day to get the full experience!
I rate this (NW) course a 4
I rate the (SW) course a 3.5
I rate the (Rays 9) a 3.0

The easier of two 18 hole courses on the property and more challenging then the 9 hole course on the same property, this is a great, well balanced course with enough challenge and variation to keep any player interested and unintimidating enough to allow any level player to be comfortable and have great fun.
Some in the woods, some in open grass, but no real underbrush to eat your discs (with a couple notable exceptions in the hole 13-14 world where you do really need to keep your eyes open).
Perfectly groomed and superbly planned holes with great pin placement. If this 18 hole course were the only thing here, it would be worth an hour drive to play regularly - but it is only 40% of a masterfully built and maintained DG complex.

Navigation can be tough - if you have someone nearby or anyone who has played it, bring them with your first time - if not, find someone there (this is only one of the great things about disc golfers - they are always willing to help, and frequently willing to just have you tag along).
The only 'real problem' with this course is that it is too far away for me to play every day - if I could, though,... I certainly would.

I really can't say enough good stuff about this complex - a great 9 hole shorted course, then two great 18 hole courses with varying levels of challenge - 45 outstanding holes before you ever have to get back into your car.

-Plenty of Parking
-Port-a-potties on site
-Good pads, baskets and tee signs.
- *LOTS* of practice baskets!
- Field on site for field work.
- Disc sales on site (mobile vendor)
- Well taken care of course. Little/no litter/graffitti/vandalism (YEAH!!!)
- Active club/events

- No/Few trash cans on course. Pack it out.
- Hole 1 not real easy to find for visitors.
- Navigation from Hole 12 to 13 is still tricky
- Benches are lacking.
- No running water (Bring plenty!)

Revising my review from 2011 due to many improvements made to the course which addressed many of my original 'Cons'.
(Namely vandalism/graffitti, trash, and navigation issues) Moving from 3.5 stars to 4.0.

Overview/Background -
There are 3 'official' courses at 'Stilly' - two *VERY* good 18 hole courses (NW and SE) and a good 9 hole course ("Ray's Nine"). This review is for the NW 18 hole course. The parking for this course is in the gravel parking lot adjacent to the field in front of the port-a-pottie. Parking is plentiful and I've never had or heard of issues with break ins, but as always you should hide any valuables and lock up your vehicle. The NW course is more wooded, a little shorter and a little more technical than the SE course. Of the two 18 hole courses, If I could only play one, it would be NW due to the scenery (Sgt's Grove is awesome!), elevation, and technicality (vs the challenge of pure length on the SE course).

Hole one is a little hard to find for first timers, (From the parking lot it's across the road to the right, tucked into the blackberry). Course Navigation has been greatly improved with good laminated paper signs posted on posts at every tee box. Most baskets (but not all) have a 'next tee' marker or sign somewhere close to the basket, greatly improving navigation. Contrary to what other reviewers have said, in it's current layout there are no fairway crossovers and tee pads are far enough away from them that errant discs are not a concern. Tee pads are all concrete, large and generally pointing in the right direction towards the baskets. There has been a lot of work done on this course over the past two years - and it shows. There are two new holes (11 and 12) which are very well designed and add a lot to the course. The course plays very fair, with several longer holes to stretch out your distance drivers, lots of 320-360' par 3's, and very few flat out ace runs. It's a difficult course that will test your mettle and make you a better player. This course is good enough on it's own, but when you add the SE course and the 9 hole Seick course, Stilly is quickly turning into a world class destination disc golf park. Keep up the great work Huckers!

My home course for 12 yrs. Played it 300+ days a year since 1st time playing disc. Unlimited # of holes and tees...so much you can play around other groups by making your own course. Endless possibilites to cater too time and player restraints. Sgts Grove rules.

more and more people and vandlism

-Way more than 18 holes of golf. You could easily spend all day here.
-Open field for driving practice just feet away from the parking lot.
-Great elevation shots and hilly areas that come into play.
-Bench areas for R and R.
-Nice wooded shots that almost require use of different throwing techniques (i.e. sidearm, tomahawk).
-Different ways to play 18 holes, only tried 3 different course variations to date.
-Shots exceeding 450' on some holes.

-You simply need a map or a guide for this course. The hole numbers start out making sense but quickly become confusing. If you're just looking to have fun you can absolutely skip holes and make your own 18, but some people are sticklers.
-There are a few holes that just seem too wooded. It is difficult to find the truest path of flight no matter what you try to do. You just have to deal with it.
-It is VERY easy to lose discs, despite the course not looking that way. I've found other's lost discs.
-Extremely busy on weekends. Lots of mob golf groups.
-A little more litter than other courses in the northwest. Golfers need to learn to pack it out at this course.
-Impossible to locate baskets at first glance for a few of the holes.
-A few of the holes come close to a residential area. New players run the risk of throwing their disc into someone's yard.

Definitely a worthwhile course, but a few of the holes are let downs. It's almost worth skipping a hole here or there. The first part of the course is amazing and makes for an almost-perfect disc golfing experience, but the latter half of the course (where big elevation shots come into play by the parking lot) becomes increasingly difficult to navigate and some of the holes are just tedious.

Great course with a good range of skill level play. A ton of baskets and holes. There was 5 courses from multiple tee boxes. Also met some great locals that showed me around the course and I plan on going back to play the grove which is a short skill shot course.

A little hard to navigate for a first timer to the course. Would recommend a paper map at the bulletin board or finding a local to bring you through the course. Or maybe better signage through out the course.

Overall I think this course was great and probably one of the most enjoyable courses I have played in awhile. If I lived in this area I would be proud to call this my hometown course. This course is a hidden gem!!!!

This course is truely one of the premiere courses in Washington. Not only does it have 4 awesome and challenging courses, but it also has a shorter am course for the rec players. Its hard to find a course in the NorthWest where you can play such a variety of shots and such a great variety of fun challenging holes. There are many opportunities to show off a big arm, and there are plenty of tight skill shots in the trees.

Can be a bit challenging to follow your first time out. Best to hook up with a local, or play the pro course which is the easiest of the courses to follow.

One of the best courses in Western Washington.

Northwest- tight and the most challenging, with lots of trees.

Southwest- Open with many chances to throw bombs, easiest of the big courses

Pro- Classic old school course with a variety of shots and elevation, a chance to use every shot in the book.

Alt- similar to the pro course with different tee pads, scoreable course for accurate players

There are variations of each of these courses, but without proper signs they are hard to follow

This course is very great for beginners as well as having tougher layouts for more advanced players. The highly wooded area is a great landscape making for a challenging round. New holes have been recently added and are a reason for a former player to return!

As all the other reviews for this course have stated it does have a very complex designe. Also families have been known to slow down course play, but friendly courtesy usually prevails and you will play through eventually.

The tdga (tacoma dga) website has printable map layouts for the southeast and northwest courses. There is a few hole changes to the NW course but the SE course is rated and ready to be played.I am willing to guide any new players at this course. I may not be very expeirienced in the game, but i do spend alot of time a week at this course and will play a round with people trying to learn this great coarse. Call or text me to set up a playing time.... 253-431-5909 or contact me on here and i will try to help.

This course has almost everything thing there is to offer at a golf course. There's long and short holes, technical with OB, technical with woods, some elevation, and two totally seperate 18 hole courses that can be played.

All of the teepads are concrete. The only thing missing from this course is water hazards.

I can see how this course can be hard to navigate, anytime I am out on the course and see someone struggling to find their way I'll stop my round and show them around.

Some of the signs are missing.

Got knocked down half star for less than decent signage, and another half star for the crossing layouts.

OK there are 5 main courses that get played fairly regularly and 2 more that don't get played as much.

Here are the courses:

SW- Fairly long and open and is marked decently with most marking either on signs or in yellow paint on the concrete.

NW- This one plays mostly through the woods and is technical with some long holes coming into play

Pro- This course is well marked as well playing across the entire park

Am- Follows pretty close to Pro and is probably the easiest to follow and starts up at the parking lot.

Alt- This is my favorite course but is hard to navigate towards the middle and end but offers the most in my opinion.

There are also an AM27, Pro27, and Alt27 courses but are really hard to navigate.

Give this course a chance and you won't regret it!

Great hole variety, numerous short technical holes with a nice bunch of 500'+ holes for some really big arm shots.
Many of the holes are well thought out to use the terrain well, lots of elevation change, dog legs and creatively placed baskets.
Benches all around.
Despite the odd and sporadic signage, the holes that do have signs have really nice pictures with directions and distances.
Well maintained.
Solid tee pads for the most part.
14 unique layouts.

Definitely confusing for the first few times there.
Although parts of the course are very well marked some parts lack any signage at all.
Long walkouts in areas, some places where the course could consolidated for more fluency.
Some of the baskets are very old and not regulation.
A small number of the holes have very odd tees, some are very short, or not level.

There are honestly two ways to review this course and both are valid in some ways. If you only play this course once, don't live in the area and have no reason to come back, it might leave a sour taste in your mouth. It's no secret that this course has some layout issues, and some signage issues that make it very confusing. But that doesn't mean it's a bad course; it's just a locals course in many ways. If you think they complain about the 14 unique and interesting layouts they can play, you're crazy. So you can review it as a one off experience, or as a person who takes the time to learn it's ways. If you get the chance, I'll echo earlier statements to GET A GUIDE or find someone out there and tag along. If you can't, stick to one the main courses, NW, SE or the Pro 18, if you accept that you might have to walk to a few different tee pads and back track when you find it's not the right hole, then it's definitely possible to find your way around on your first time here. Most of the holes list the courses they're part of, and some of the pads that shoot to multiple baskets have separate pictures detailing this. All in all, I'd heartily recommend this course to anyone living even remotely near in WA, if you like order and a simple style in your courses and you're driving through, skip Steilly and venture over to SeaTac or White River.

Great course with lots of excellent shots and all types of elevation. Great scenery of Rainer on many holes. You can throw lots of different lines on many of the holes as well. Lots of different layouts which change the feel of the course and I will also put in pros and cons. Very challenging because you have a mix of tight and open holes. Once you figure out the layouts, its so much fun!

Too many layouts for someone who has never played there before. Not any maps when I played there so it was very hard to navigate. Signs can be an issue.

Meet up with some locals if you can and they can show you around.

A great course with many holes and course designs to choose from. The map book I have claims 40 baskets and 70 tee pads. If you go when it isn't two crowded you wont have any problems. For me it is a joy to go when it is not crowded and pick whatever route I want. Keeps things fresh and prevents "course burnout".

There are several reviews that list the multiple layouts as a drawback. I am starting to have more sympathy to this problem. The last time I played I ran into a group that was having problems with the layout and I tried to help them. They really should make the map book more readily available AND try and sign the course better for first time players.

I highly recommend getting the map book from the local pro. This will help you understand the course options. Although there are trees throughout the course there are only a few holes that I would consider very dense. More times than not you will find a clean line. The course really has three sections NW, middle and SE. The main course layout covers all three sections but other layouts may concentrate in one area or the other. There are a few holes that throw off a steep side to the baskets below and a few that throw back up. Other than that the course has very little elevation change. A few par 4's and there are even a few par 2's as alternate holes.

This is one of the two 18 courses on sight (SE being the other). The local club has finally finished the design and the NW course, while still a little confusing is way better than previous layouts. The new NW courses incorporates just a couple holes from the original which were, for the most part, well thought out and challenging. Besides sitting in the prettiest section of the park, the NW course has nice large concrete pads, well defined walking paths between holes and most of the baskets have a nice little red arrow pointing to the next tee pad. The new signs are basic with the info you need. I happened to walk the course today during a national NIT event so all baskets were in the long and most difficult positions. These holes are both challenging in their technical aspect and daunting in their length. There are some fun downhill throws to be had on this 18.

There are multiple practice baskets up near the parking lot. The large parking lot as ample parking and there is a large open fields for practicing your drives.

SIGNATURE HOLE: Easily the signature hole on the entire complex is # 11 here on the NW course. It's 300' playing across and through a deep gorge. Avoiding all the trees is the key on this hole.

Speaking strictly for the NW course, navigation looks to be about an 8/10 which is not bad for such a wooded course.
The course is certainly not set up for beginners or family. It's a Intermediate and above course. There are plenty of long, tight holes requiring both a big arm and pin point accuracy off the tee.
Vandalism has been a problem at Stilly for 30 years but today I saw no evidence of any.

This course is now a must visit among Washington courses. # 1 is still a bit difficult to find. It's a very short walk 150' down the street towards the entrance. The tee pad is stuck back in the bushes
I can't say enough what a wonderful job the local club has done getting this courses up and running. as pleasently surprised.
The rating that I previously gave this course ( 4 stars) has been bothering me for quite some time now. After some thought, I've decided that because this course is so incredibly confusing for a first time player/visitor that it just can't be rated that high and that I was probably letting my home boy bias factor in to my rating.

RATINGS UPDATE: I've been perhaps one of the harshest critics over the years of Ft. Steilacoom's over abundance of pads and baskets. The NW course is such a upgrade over the old confusing layouts that have been in place. My rating on this course has gone from 4 to 3 and now back to a solid 4 and close to a 4.5. I can only tip my hat to the local disc golf club!