Pros:
- Variety in Hole Design
- Distance Variety
- Moderate Elevation
- Various Terrain Used
- Fun basket placements
- Mediocre Rubber Teepads
- Rustic and Secluded
- Beautiful Scenery
- Solid tee-signs, but still confusing layout (see cons)
- Baskets were in good condition
Cons:
- Rough was really thick in spots
- Some of the wooded holes were repetitive
- Some of the fairways could use a bit more clearing
- Needs one tee sign per hole, the tee signs from the old 9 hole course still remain and makes navigation a bit confusing the first time around.
Other Thoughts:
Overall, Roche Harbor disc golf coure surprised me in a good way. My family traveled out to San Juan Island and one of the main reasons was to play this course. The course designer(s) is definitely knowledgeable and passionate about disc golf. The course design reflects that as you will need every shot in your bag. There were open holes, tight wooded holes, moderate wooded holes and holes that transitioned between these settings. Many shots required the thrower to hit a line, while others were more forgiving. It was a solid blend of challenge and fun. One hole even had an elevated basket on a tree stump that changed a simple hyzer ace run into a hole that had a higher risk/reward green.
The course was however very overgrown and it was difficult to locate errant shots. It became especially frustrating when the shot went errant because of a bad tree kick. I'd imagine this is not much of a problem in the Spring Winter or Fall. My only gripe about the course design is that some of the wooded holes in the middle get repetitive.
As far as the course equipment, the teepads were manageable, concrete could be better. The tee signs were good, but confusing. They left the tee signs from the original 9 holes in the ground. With that said it would not be a problem if we were to play the course again. the baskets were in good condition.
With the clearing of some of the overgrown fairways, clarification with the tee signs, and concrete pads the course could easily be a 4 or 4.5. Its tough to call this course a destination course because of its access-ability. As others have mentioned it is on San Juan Island and must be accessed by a ferry. Looking back, I personality thought it was worth it and would take the ferry to play it again if I was in the area.