If you go to your neighborhood park, you'll probably find some grass, some picnic tables, and maybe a rusted jungle gym. If you're lucky, there might be some mature trees to provide some shade. You probably don't go there often. So you may be in for a surprise when you enter Pier Park. Giant Douglas firs tower over the landscape and make for much more interesting obstacles than the trees you're probably used to. There are national parks less interesting than Pier Park.

After two decent holes out in the open, the course enters the heart of the park. There is some elevation here, and the course makes pretty good use of it. On hole #4 there is no elevation change but you are throwing around a couple mounds that poke into the fairway. On #5 you're throwing over a sizeable ridge to a hole on a hillside. And #6 might be the signature hill, a downhill drive to a hole just inside the tree line.

There are some pine trees and normal leafy trees dotting the course, but the Douglas firs play differently. There are virtually no branches that you could hit, no ticky tack leaf deflections. Many holes really don't punish you if you throw too high, which can be kind of fun.

The new tee signs are very good, showing pins positions and distances. This helps navigation, which used to be tougher and now is okay. At least you can see where the next tee sign is. The tees are concrete.

There is very little undergrowth here. It would be tough to lose a disc here.

The proximity to Portland can make this course pretty busy (which isn't altogether bad; I'm told the neighborhood is safer with the disc golf traffic that the park has attracted). We went in the evening before sunset, and it wasn't bad.

I'd like to see more baskets situated on slopes. Other than #5, I don't remember a lot of baskets with dangerous putts. In a lot of ways this course makes your drive very interesting but your approach and putt more mundane. That's a little nit picky, though. You won't be bored during this round.

It's difficult to describe (without sounding corny) the sense of awe you get playing here. It even smells nice. This is a really fun place to play.

This is a beautiful, championship-length course. It is easy to navigate, almost completely shaded, with little undergrowth to lose discs in. The pads, baskets, and signs are all in great shape. It is nearly impossible for a non-open caliber player to shoot under par on due to its length.

Someone was near tee 1 selling discs for reasonable prices on the Saturday afternoon I stopped by. It was busy, but not insane. Everyone I met was pretty friendly.

The best part about this park is it is huge. The designers took advantage of this to make every hole pretty epic. There are no filler holes here. That said, you occasionally have to walk a bit between holes, especially from 18 back to the parking lot.

The locals tell me there will soon be 12 more holes added into the park next door and the two parks will be connected by a bridge. That would make for a sweet 30 hole golf tournament.

Not a lot of variation on hole length. Nearly every hole is 350-450. The "birdie holes" are 300 feet long and there aren't many.

There was also a strange phenomenon of a pile of beer cans and gatorade bottles next to every tee. There were no trash cans, but every one went to the trouble to put the cans in one big pile. There weren't any between tee pads, but every tee pad had a pile. It was like they were waiting for some homeless guy who comes by every afternoon to pick them up and recycle them or something. I cannot believe how much effort has gone into this course to not have a few trash cans on it.

I wouldn't miss this course if you pass within 100 miles of it. It is better than the best course in dozens of states. Add in trash cans and a little more variety in hole length and it would get the illusive perfect 5.

P.S. I only made it to first base on hole 19. Home plate would be an impressive drive.

Well designed; Nice Elevation on many holes; Good mix of short and long holes; Beautiful new signage (Thankyou Next Adventure!); Good community of Disc Golfers; Gorgeous Old Growth Doug Firs on every Hole; A nice mix of Sequoia and large Shade Trees- this course really puts you in touch with the PNW beauty. All Par Threes, but good opportunity for skill Dueces; nothing is luck at Pier so bring your "A" game- not a course for beginners.

Not many. The course can get crowded; this is a park so you will encounter children, walkers, joggers, etc- but rarely do they cause delay to play

I play this course every Saturday at first light with my fellow Discmen- and each and every Saturday, the weather and light change the apperance of the course, it is an amazing serene place. Please be a steward for the park and pack out anything you bring in, and even trash, bottles, etc that others leave behind- enjoy!

This course is on a beautiful park that is mostly wooded, but has some holes in the meadow. Holes 1 - 6 are my favorite, they have great scenery, and a challenging yet fun layout. It's hard to loose a disc here because there isn't much underbrush.

You need a course map because the tees are poorly marked and you can get lost looking for the next tee. The course needs those signs at each tee that says what number it is and how many feet to the basket with a little diagram of the flight path.

You can play this course on a really hot, sunny day because its mostly shaded to keep you cool.

18 holes!
Challenging.
Wide variety of features.
Dog friendly (thus far).
Shady!
Fairly tough to lose discs!

It's easy to miss different baskets.
Hole 17 and 18 are not well maintained.

Bring a map!
Pack water!
Plan on spending at least two hours!
Prepare to hit a lot of trees!

1st tee is directly next to the parking circle. The grass was very well kept, there was a nice amount of trees and lots of long holes.

Pier DGC is located in a city park so it shares all the fine accommodations one could offer. Trash bins EVERYWHERE.

Drink and smoke appears to be kosher.

When I played it was pretty crowded with all kinds of people so I would go early
Had to dodge a few tennis courts.
Holes 6-9 made some confusing switch backs but I noticed what looked like the bed for a new concrete tee pad so that may have been why things where hectic around there.

This is my friends home course that I had the pleasure of playing last summer under perfect conditions.
I was really blown away coming from WA.

concrete tee pads are always a plus, all the days i've gone there was a guy by the first tee selling drinks and food, hole 12 with the dream catcher in the tree!! it's in a public park but it's laid out well enough that they don't interfer with your game.

not many except a few of the holes are blind, no am tees, and some of the hole are super long and still par 3's,

enjoyed the course very much, not to many chances for lost discs, lots of trees but still pretty open

Large scenic course with well maintained equipment. It offeres some of the most variety from hole to hole I've played so far. Excellent use of elevation thru out the entire course. The same can be said for the use of the numerous fir trees that occure thru out the course. I'm hoping that this winter those trees will offer some shelter from the inevitable rain that I am bound to be playing in. I didn't need a map most of the time, and when I did have a question there were always plenty of other players to point me in the right direction. I loved the "putting green" that they had set up near hole one. Great for a game of HORSE.

My first trip was during the summer and the mosquitoes ate us alive!!! So bring some repellent! My second time was begining of fall and it was just fine. My only other complaint is the location. It is a popular park for more than just us disc throwers. Not too long ago I saw on the news where there was a shooting (gang related) here.

I really like playing this course, but I won't bring my family when I do. A few days after having played this course for the first time there was a shooting covered by the local news (gang related as I recall) at night. Since it is day time when I play, I'll still risk it (have never seen anything remotely suspisious). But I'de rather erre on the side of caution when it comes to my wife and child. Wouldn't feel right to not share my concerns. Take them for what they are worth.

Very nicely wooded city park setting. Holes are a great mix of trees and elevation. You can even use public transit to get there.

Can get over crowded on weekends. Not an easy course for beginners. During the winter Park staff removed holes for vegetation restoration so it becomes a 12 hole course.

Probably one of the best courses in the state and maybe the nation, Pier park is a beautiful course with everything you would want in a disc golfing experience. My first impressions were good as there was someone selling discs and hot dogs on hole number one, not sure if this is a regular deal but that was fantastic, he also had bug spray! Good amount of length to this course but don't let that fool you, this is an extremely technical course with many trees, doglegs, elevation, and tight fairways. The 200 foot trees are amazing and there are a lot of them. No underbrush which is rare in a northwest course.

*****UPDATE*****

New tee signs went in provided by The Stumptown Disc Golf Club.

Biggest con would signage or lack thereof; it is incredibly difficult to find your way around if you do not have a map or a guide.

The other reviewers speak of crowds and navigation problems, I'm not sure you can have both, if there are a lot of people then you can follow the next group or ask one of the many locals. I drove from Everett, WA to meet a buddy who is working down there, it took me three and half hours each way but it was totally worth it.

- The amount of trees were used well to require players to carefully choose how and where they are going to throw.

- Also, the trees provided a lot of shade which is really nice during these hot Spring/Summer days.

- The hole lengths were great, not to long (so they're good for beginners) but not so short to the point where advanced players have no fun.

- Doesn't give an advantage to right handers or left handers. I like this because it requires me to work on my forearm and my anhyzer shots.

- Some added signage could add a lot to this course. I was lucky enough to play the course with someone who had played it before but I can imagine I would've got lost a couple times if I didn't.

- Along with the signage, some of the baskets are not visable from the tee so a map at the holes would be good too.

A great course with a lot of holes that require a lot of different shots: long hyzers, anhyzers, straight shots through trees, low, high. It really is a great course for any type of player, whether it's a RHFH, a RHBH, a LHBH, or a LHFH.

Where to begin...Pier Park DGC is located in a beautiful multi purpose park surrounded by 200 foot Douglas Firs. As you enter the course there is a skate park, soccer field, ball field, and warm up basket. Towards the inner part of the park a basketball court, fountain (where the kiddos play in the summer), restrooms, water fountain and tennis courts.

On the course Pier Park provides Mach 2 baskets which were in great shape, multiple pin placements, and tee pads that were a mix of concrete and fly pads that seemed to provide good footing (even though it was summer so it might differ in the winter/spring).

The general course design was exceptional, with great flow, defined fairways (which were a mix of very tight to fairly wide open), and plenty elevation changes which made it quite challenging at times. Foliage and maintenance was apparent, with no underbrush, and only a few areas towards the last two holes with brambles (but with accuracy, easily avoidable). Trees were trimmed accordingly, and appeared to be cut regularly. Along the way benches and trash bins were present and at the time were in good condition and emptied regularly.

Pier Park DGC was truely unique experience for many reasons, but the mix of tight technical and open bomb holes which catered to both left and right handed players and the scenic beauty sold me. This course had a variety of hole distances and required a lot of shots. Camping was easily accessible (Milo McIver in Estacada 20 minutes away for about $17/night).

This course truely was one of the better courses I have ever played putting it easily in my top 20 thus far. However, during the rainy season I could see those fly pads being a bit slippery. Also, the walk back from hole 18 to hole 1 (parking lot) was a bit of a walk (but considering it was Pier Park, it was well worth it).

In playing this course there were two holes that truely made this course epic. Hole #6 provided a wonderful elevation drop and a righty could throw the perfect hyzer which would head towards the pin which was heavily guarded. As the sun came through those massive Douglas Firs it was as if a halo was surrounding the basket. It was truely magical. Second was Hole #15 which was deffinately a hole which required pure skill (for the pros) or a whole lot of luck (for the rest of us) as you had to shoot about 250 feet straight down the fairway with pin point accuracy at the basket, between massive trees about 10-15 feet apart creating a long and tight tunnel. If you happened to hit a tree along the way and it spit off outside of the fairway, there was a good chance you might not make par. I felt it was by far the most difficult hole on the course with a high risk/reward.

Portland truely is an amazing place, with a great atmosphere, amazing food, and incredible disc golfers/courses. I recommend this course to anyone who passes through and if you can make a weekend of it I would also head east towards Milo McIver which is as good if not better depending on your game.

Incredible variety of terrain. Just a really fun course to play. mostly very friendly regulars. Lots of tight holes, long holes, and tunnels. This course seems to reward accuracy. Wish I had some! I love Pier Park and don't play it nearly enough.

Gets very crowded. The usual sketchy types that seem to be on every course I play can ocassionally be stinking up this course too. Best played early.

I'm blathering a little bit, but I think this is a great course. It's probably a bit much for people just getitng into the sport, but if you're an intermediate or advanced player(which I am most definitely not), this is a course you'll keep thinking about.