Kincaid Park occupies a huge, rolling piece of land on the southwest side of Anchorage, AK. Apparently there used to be a Cold War missile base at this site, but today it feels (somehow) like both a vast wilderness and a multi-use city park at the same time.

One of the many attractions of this park is an 18-hole disc golf course. Having played three other courses while cruising around south-central Alaska on vacation, I decided to wrap up the disc golf portion of my trip at Kincaid Park. After reading previous reviews, I had pretty high expectations for this course. It didn't take long here for me to see that those expectations would be met, and more.

The park is located at the end of Raspberry Road, so I was already smiling before I stepped out of my car. There is a large kiosk at the end of the parking lot showing a map of the course (newer than what is shown here, but similar layout) and the pars for each hole. From the practice basket there is a nice view of the Cook Inlet over some brush.

The course essentially plays out and back from the parking lot along a ridge. From the top of the ridge there are plenty more views of the water to be had. The water is always in the distance, never close enough to come into play. The elevation changes are utilized well on the course too. I don't think any hole is perfectly flat, but I would say the elevation changes range from "very mild" to "extreme". Some of the most memorable holes are:
- Hole 3 plays down a steep section of the ridge, with a view of the water from the tee. A well-controlled drive could earn you a birdie here. Fade out early and good luck finding your disc. A downed tree trunk sits across most of the fairway as you approach the basket, adding to the scene and perhaps making that birdie a little more difficult.
- Hole 18 plays up the ridge to an elevated basket. From the short tee, it's only a 250' hole but it feels like about 400'. Another great view behind you when you reach the basket.
Either of these holes would be awesome signature holes on most courses. Here, it's difficult to say which one is better.
Several other baskets are perched on steep slopes, creating risk/reward chances. I threw uphill at hole 14's basket from maybe 30' out and hit the front of it, then saw my disc roll all the way back down to where I was standing.

There is great variety as well. From the Am tees, distances range between about 200'-500'. From the Pro tees, it's 250'-700'. Some holes turn left, some turn right, and some play straight ahead. There are no wide open holes here, but a good mix from moderately open to tightly wooded holes. Control is a must throughout the course.

The baskets are yellow banded DISCatchers. The tee pads are long, concrete, and all in good shape. There are two tee pads per hole. The red Am tees provide a challenging but approachable round for noodle arms and newer disc golfers. I did not get a chance to play the blue Pro tees, but I think they would provide a difficult technical round even for experienced disc golfers.

Although there are no water hazards here, hole 16 felt like one. On this hole there is a valley of thick brush stretching across the entire fairway, for maybe 150' off the tee. If your disc falls in that, it could be almost as difficult to find as if it were in the bottom of a pond.

Other than the kiosk, the signage here could be improved. Actually even on the kiosk, the pars for each hole are nice but I would like to see the distances added too. The tee signs have a weird charm, but I couldn't decide if I actually liked them or not. They are located at both the Am and Pro tees and are labeled "Am" or "Pro", which I liked. They have a very rough map of the hole showing the two tee pads, two pin locations, and a few representative trees in between, which I didn't really like. Similar to another course I played in Alaska, it seemed less like a map and more like a sketch of tee pads and baskets with random trees drawn in between. Not enough info to really determine what a good line to the pin is (with the elevation and foliage, many baskets are not visible from the tee). Like the kiosk, the tee signs show par but not distance which I didn't like. Several of the signs were missing as well.

Wait, back up. There are two pin locations? This was my reaction when I looked at the first tee sign. If that is true, there was no indication on the kiosk (or anywhere else that I saw) which pin location was currently in place. There was definitely only one basket installed per hole.

There is also a shortage of Next Tee signs. The first couple of holes are marked really well, with signs pointing to both next Pro and next Am tees. After that the signage fell off significantly. Maybe a refresh is currently in progress? There is a long walk between holes 12 and 13. I don't really have an issue with the walk itself, but that area in particular needs more signage especially where the path you are following forks off in different directions.

Non-DG walking/hiking trails come near a few holes. They would only come into play on very errant throws though. When walking back to your car after hole 18, you might want to use the paved trail instead of walking in front of hole 2's Pro tee pad.

The brush in the rough (or off the tee on hole 16 per above) was often a little thick. You could definitely lose a disc or two in it. I would have lost one, but a group playing behind me caught up and one of them found it.

Come prepared for moose and bear encounters. Seriously.

Even after 10+ days in Alaska, I read the other reviews of this place and kind of thought, "yeah OK but no way will *I* see one." Still, playing solo I started out my round with bear bells jingling, treading carefully and looking all around on each hole. I saw some other people on the walking/hiking trails and by hole 6 or 7 I had relaxed quite a bit. Around hole 9 or 10 that group caught up to me and found my disc, then let me pass them again on 11. I still had the bells going but wasn't really thinking about it.

Then it happened. On the walk from hole 12 to 13, I hit a fork in the path. Without the signage to direct me, I looked down each fork trying to figure out which one to take. That was when I saw the adult moose sitting on the edge of one of the forks, maybe 100' away. I stopped dead in my tracks and she (? no antlers) turned toward me for a second. Then turned away and started munching on some grass. I took the other fork which turned out to be the correct one. The moose encounter definitely added to the experience for me, but it's something you should be properly prepared for. I would recommend bringing bear bells or some other noisemaker when playing this course, to alert wildlife to your presence before you may see any. Considering that there have been bear reports here, bear spray isn't a bad idea either especially if playing solo.

I had good cell phone service here.

As others have noted, there is signage indicating that the park gates lock at 10 PM sharp. You must be out of the park by that time or you will have to walk out.

Not really a Pro or Con for me, but I think the Am pars as posted on the kiosk are very generous. Shooting par from the Am tees is attainable even for a noodle arm on his/her first visit.

This is the second 4.5 rating I have given. Like the other 4.5 (Flip City back in my home state of Michigan), I would give this course a 5.0 if it had better signage. Everything is subjective, but by my logic if Flip belongs in the Top 10 conversation maybe this course does too. It is certainly a must-play if you are anywhere near Anchorage. I am already dreaming about a return trip!

Beautiful
Good mix
Well marked

I love this course. It's fun and challenging at the same time. It's wooded but the fairways are usually fairly open with the exception of a couple of holes on the back 9. Good elevation change across multiple holes. Can be a bit much for beginners but it's easy to learn. If you go in early spring you're almost guaranteed to find some discs. Most people will let you play through if you're moving faster.

WILDLIFE. Cannot stress this enough. Obviously not a whole lot you can do about it but we've skipped one or two holes multiple times or sat waiting because of moose. Usually pretty crowded but people are considerate and will let you play through and also if you mind if they play through. Still can take a couple of hours.
If you're a beginner have patience...

One of my favorite courses and not just cause it's my hometown. It's a truly beautiful course. Gates do close at 10 pm but feel free to hike the mile or so back to the course. There's a bathroom in the chalet.
Enjoy!

-Like my title says, this is without a doubt the best course in the state! If you're in Anchorage and can only play one course, this should be the one. I promise you that.

-18 holes with Pro and Am tees, A and B looks.

-Signature holes: 3's pro tee, 6b is a hanging basket, 14 may cause you to roll away, and 18b is a Goliath basket. You'll see what I mean

-You will see moose there 85% of your rounds.

-I played the course on 3 different layouts in my 11 years there and only saw one bear (black). Many of my friends have seen them out there several times. Yes, this is a Pro, not a Con.

-Plenty of parking. However, Kincaid caters to DGers, hikers, bikers, walkers, soccer, viewers, archery, biathletes, weddings, etc. so it can be tough to find a place to park on certain summer evenings.

-Good use of elevation.

-The course has great flow. Number 1 starts 100 yards from the parking lot and 18 is a 150 yard walk back to your vehicle.

-Kiosk with a full color map and upcoming events.

-Bathrooms at the Chalet and there is usually a portapotty out side of the chalet.

-Lost and Found in the chalet.

-It does get overgrown with all the rain and sun Alaska gets. Parks and Rec does not maintain the course. Volunteers of the Alaska DG Association do it all out there. Play the course after the State tournament to play it in its best condition of the year (minus early summer and before winter).

-Since the summer closure of Westchester Lagoon, Kincaid has unfortunately taken a toll from all the extra use.

-No garbage cans and too many people who pack it in but don't pack it out. It's quite sad.

-That damn Devil's Club and Stinging Nettles, haha. Keep it in the fairway and you won't have to worry about either.

-Join them for their Wednesday Night Doubles between May and September. They easily draw 30+ people for their events which makes for a nice payout should you cash.

-Even if you're playing the Am tees, take a second to snap a picture of the view from 3's Pro tee. That will become your background FaceBook picture.

-My favorite course in the state is Peter's Creek but Kincaid is the best course in the state. Not an opinion, just a fact.

-Lastly, if you have your mountain bike with you, check out the single track trails at Kincaid. There are miles upon miles of single track out there and everything is clearly marked. Irrelevant but if I was attending Kincaid I'd want to know about this too!

One of the most beautiful and challenging courses I have played. The constant elevation changes, ravines, cliffs, and wildly deep brush present plenty of obstacles.

Plenty of chances to loose your discs by over shooting some of the many ravines.

Really miss playing this course. It is one of my all-time favorites.

Great mix between long and short holes. Pro & Am tee pads. Maps of each hole at each tee. Plenty of benches to give you a break after climbing the hills and waiting for other people to throw. Challenging course, but fun.

Thick underbrush making it easy to lose discs. A couple instances of poor directions between hole and next tee, probably because of vandalism but it's not a huge deal.

Very advanced. Controlled throws a must! Can't even see the holes from the pads at times, check out the map on each tee for an idea of where to throw. Expect to spend about an hour and a half playing 18 holes casually with one other person. Lots of elevation and distance. Some holes aren't affected by wind because of trees. Great view of shoreline as well. Definitely will recommend this course!

A combination of scenery and challenge make this our favorite course to play in Alaska. There is a good mix of short and long holes, plenty of benches at the holes to wait while your party tees off, and not to heavy on traffic.

Although well marked for a course this size, it wouldn't hurt to have a couple more signs between some of the holes that are a little farther apart. And be prepared to get your legs scraped up a bit if you go into the rough on some of the holes. Also, notice a lot of empty beer/alcohol containers...no problem having a drink here and there, but carry it out when you are done.

Gourgeous course, with plenty of challenge. My wife and I have been able to improve our scores each time out, but the improvements are slow enough that it is still a fun place to play; far from easy.

If you like a long tough course this is it. Excellent layout with creative basket placements (like a 10ft. basket on a hillside as you see in the profile picture). Quite possible you will see wildlife to go along with your round.

Again, wildlife. Be aware of your surroundings. Bear and moose are very common in this area. Mosquitos can be bad at times so always have bugdope.

Gates close at ten but you can still park outside, walk or bike in, and then play all night during the months of June and July.

Beautiful scenery--I've seen moose and porcupines on this course; forces a lot of creative shot making; long summer days mean playing late (be out by 10!)

Bring water because this is a long course without any real ammenities nearby, particularly once you get going; very wild course--take spotters if you can; a lot of Devil's Club--consider wearing pants

This course was redesigned/relocated in '08, and they did a great job with it. As with much of AK, bring your bug dope if you play. If you don't like having to wait for others or don't like the "riff-raff" of other courses, this is a great course for you.