-On James Conrad's MVP page, he's asked favorite event "Anything at the Blockhouse Disc Golf and Country Club".

-The Darkside is an 18-hole where 14 of 18 holes are heavily wooded with canopy, tight fairways and gaps, and gentle up and down hill climbs. Most of these holes are straight away, and other doglegs. The other 4-holes have elevated tees hitting gaps into a valley, then back up hill to a wooded basket placement. A few holes have water hazards, and a few roller greens.

-Holes 13 thru 16 are unique with elevated tees flying thru gaps lined with branches, where your line is into the fairway on the other uphill side where basket is placed in the woods. The valley is briefly open. Despite short distances, can be difficult to reach C1.

-The Darkside is a woods player paradise, from tee 1 to basket 18 it's a grind with a variety of discs played. I teed with putter, mid's, fairways, and a few drivers.

-At a distance of 5578 feet and a par 54, it's the most difficult course to score on at that distance I've played.

-Baskets catch great, tees are turf and just about all are in good shape.

-Navigation is a figure eight with holes 1 thru 9 counter-clockwise, and 10 thru 18 clockwise. A few signs to point you to the trail and next tee. Didn't need UDisc help.

-Beginners and Recreational will get an introduction to woods golf like no other. Intermediate and Advanced if you know your bag, you're going to be using just about all of them.

-There are two other 18-hole courses on the property Sunnyside, and a Tiki putter course. Camping is offered with other activities.

-Holes 1 thru 12 play very much alike tight wooded fairways, and will seem like a blurr. Before looking at pictures for this review I could only remember holes 7 where you can see the highway, and 11-12. However, each hole has its own uniqeness and variety in difficulty, it would just take a few visits to remember the course.

-A few turf pads are wearing down, but still enough good turf to find your spot. #14 tee sign was damage.

-Lost disc will be high on holes 13 thru 16 with thick brush lining fairways and three of the holes with water. The other heavily wooded holes not so bad, the rough is sparse and I was able to walk up to my disc without looking for it. I spent some time disc looking on hole 16.

-The course is private, there will be times when it will be difficult to get permission to play.

The Darkside course offered one of the best heavily wooded course experiences and had my juices flowing. The Darkside will make you think on the tee pad, some holes you're going to be looking straight down a hallway to the basket and wondering how to get there. I didn't pull out an 11-speed until hole 12 when I saw a line for a Wave, up to that point putter, 5, 6, and 9 speed discs to stay on fairway. Discing up on some holes for approaches where I might normally use a putter, instead to glide a 5-speed to avoid guardian trees in the Circle's. Holes 13 thru 16 I used driver where your line is at the dirt on the other hill hoping to skip up to basket. I found unique variety with each hole making me think about disc selection. The course was a joy to play and a grind, and an easy one for me to favorite. I have no personnel cons on the course, and no personnel preferences. I hope to come back and play again.

My overall rating is anchored on the extreme wooded play, the variety within the woods, and the relentless play from tee 1 to basket 18 at a 5.0. The 4.0 rating just seems a good place to rate the course at this time. The time to play taking pictures was 85 minutes, longer than normal for a course of its length.

The Wooded Holes:

-The hallways narrow from 10 feet wide to no more than 25 feet. Some are clear to the basket, others have trees in the fairway, and guardians in the circles. A few roller greens. It's intimating, pick a gap, first impression disc, and love it!

The Valley Holes:

-All are elevated tees shooting out of gaps with branches sticking out, gaps wide enough but no wavering. Except for 14 offering a smaller gap. The lines will take you into the hill side on the other side of valley after crossing water. Baskets are back in the woods.

Featured Holes:

-#11 Par 3 at 314 feet narrow gap of 15 feet up slope for a hundred feet, turning into a down slope, doglegging right at 200 feet, with the fairway sloping down left to right. Fairway opens up some to the basket. Per tee sign there's supposed to be water past the dogleg, but I only saw high thick grass and not a good place to land a disc. I threw an easy six speed staying short of water.

-#14 Par 3 at 348 feet is elevated down the hill thru the valley, and back up hill to the basket in the woods. There are trees protruding into the fairway 120 feet down from the left, offering a 15-foot gap to pass into the valley that opens up. Water is behind the wall of trees to the left, not likely to pass thru the trees to reach it. Wall of trees all the way down the right. Tree kissed a protruding tree from the left and into the woods on the right. Pitched out to save bogey.

Signature/Trouble Hole:

-No. 16 Par 3 at 303 feet is one of the most scenic/difficult holes I've played. Elevated tee shooting out of a gap of overhanging branches crossing a brook with a pool of water in the valley, and up the next hill to a basket with guardian trees all the way up. From the tee the fairway slopes down left to right towards the brook. A gap of overhanging branches about 70 feet down, and one of the oddest gaps I've seen. The gap of branches moves up from the ground and curves left to right arching, creating an odd window to the fairway, the window is only about 15 feet wide. Cross the far end of the brook at about 190 feet down, at that point the fairway shoots back up hill with a lazy dogleg left and sloping right to left towards the brook. The bank on the far side of the pool of water in the middle of fairway that filters into the brook, hit it and your disc is likely to fall into the water and a little deep. The brook is no more than 10 feet wide, and in a few places a few feet deep. Guardian trees protect the basket with a rolling green. On the tee I was stumped on how to hit the gap, decided to throw my straightest driver deflected off a branch left out of sight, and after a little bit of looking found my disc in one of the deepest parts of the brook. Took my penalty stroke, pitched back into fairway for a double.

The Blockhouse is a phenomenal disc golf "country club" located a few miles off I-95 in the Virginia countryside. If you are in the area, passing by, or if you reside a drivable distance from Fredericksburg, make plans to get here! You can read my reviews of Sunnyside and the Tiki Course. Of the three, Sunnyside was my personal favorite. But I can see why certain people would prefer Darkside. I thought that Sunnyside was more fun, but Darkside was more technical and challenging. I'm an intermediate player and preferred Sunnyside, but I could see some advanced players preferring Darkside.

+ Sunnyside and Darkside are both technical, mostly wooded courses. I would say that the difference between the two, and the reason for the name choices, is that Sunnyside does have some open holes. Darkside is straight-up woods golf. And tough. The fairways are fair, but there are some long, wooded holes. And missing your line could be fatal, depending on the kick.

+ Great course design and variety. Even though it's heavily wooded throughout, there are uphill holes, downhills, valleys, hyzers, anhyzers...you name it. There are multiple ways to play certain holes. Put your thinking cap on when you play Darkside.

+ This is what disc golf is all about. This course is super fun, extremely well designed and challenging, and aesthetically beautiful.

+ Did I mention challenging? I thought Darkside was a lot tougher than Sunnyside...and one of the most challenging woods courses I've played. If you're looking for a course that will really test your game, you've found your course.

+ Navigation is simple and intuitive, for the most part. It's not quite as good as Sunnyside in this category. After hole 9, walk past the hole 1 tee box to get to hole 10.

+ I should mention the other amenities at the Blockhouse. You've got to play all three courses. There's also an arcade with old school games.

Not much to mention as far as cons. This whole facility is what disc golf should be.

- I wish there were some more par 4's on this course, as there are on Sunnyside. As an intermediate player, there were a lot of tweener holes that I had no chance at birdieing. Alt tees and/or more par 4's would be amazing here.

- Don't be an idiot like me: bring bug spray.

- I played Sunnyside before Darkside, so keep that in mind for this con: I was pretty well whipped halfway through Darkside and didn't have as much fun as I did on Sunnyside. Perhaps that would be reversed if I played Darkside first. But I still believe Darkside is the more punishing course and Sunnyside is the more fun one.

Make plans to get to the Blockhouse. You can make a case for why each of the 3 courses are the best. All 3 are fun and worth the trip in their own right.

Private course with 18 very tight and technical holes to test your mental game and needle threading skills playing through thick Virginia woods, rolling elevation, creeks and ponds. The Darkside is very straight forward, hit this line all the way to the basket or else you are taking a stroke, and then the basket is often on a fast green with OB lurking nearby. Every hole here is solid with a defined fairway.

The large astroturf tees here are my favorite, nice Mach III baskets with flags, navigation and signage, tee area shelter and interesting nicknacks. Very little underbrush, which is surprising given how thick the woods are.

Other amenities on site include a second professional 18 hole course, awesome Tiki course, arcade, concerts, camping, pool and bathroom.

Some of the seating like couches were home to some bugs. Holly in the rough. Deer flies.

Not really a con for me, but the Darkside will absolutely destroy beginners and even many pros like the fully operational Deathstar. There is going to be a war between your discs and the trees. If your X-wing veers off the trajectory of the fairway, which is fair/well defined, and trust me you will veer off it, you are most likely facing a pitch out recovery shot and hoping for bogey unless master yoda can levitate you from the muck with the force.

The course can feel repetitive as it's all par 3 and you are forced to hit a certain line on every hole, the front 9 is mostly straight tunnel shots, and the couple "open" holes on the back 9 don't really change things much. There's no real signature hole, no chances to air a disc out, no holes to mentally relax on.

I find your lack of faith disturbing as you have no idea the power of the Darkside, it's a true mental challenge and one of the toughest courses you will play. You are probably best off playing with Han Solo's attitude and telling yourself before every shot, "Never tell me the odds!" You can typically see the basket, it's right there and it's reachable from the tee, but trying to actually force your disc to the basket is another story, as the tunnels make them play further than they appear. You will be forced to use lots of midranges and understable fairway drivers off the tee because you can't afford to have your discs fade off of the line.

The Darkside course has a place in disc golf history when Brian Skinner shot a 41, first ever 1100+ rated round, and still one the highest ever at 1117, and IMO that is the best round ever. Having played with Brian, I can attest he is well deserving of that record. I can't even imagine shooting a 41 on this course, I'd be stoked to just shoot a 54.

The Blockhouse(formerly Grange) is a true country club experience for disc golf. If you get the chance to play here, consider yourself lucky.

With two 18 hole courses on the property this place is very cool. The Darkside is appropriately named as every hole plays in the woods. It has some minor elevation in places.

The course has some great tee signs. Very descriptive.

The tee pads are very large and astro turf. They were great throwing off of.

The DGA Mach 3 baskets were in good condition.

Although this entire course is in the woods locating discs was not a problem.

There were several water coolers on the course.

There were some great seating areas throughout the course.

Navigation can be an issue in a few places. Bring a map.

This course gets repetitive as every hole plays in the woods. There are 9 holes in the 297 to 317 foot range.

This is traditional par 3 golf for the most part. There is only 1 hole over 400 feet.

This was well worth the stop during vacation. With the 2 permanent courses on site and the super fun tiki course you have to check it out.

Nice layout and well signed. Easy to navigate and has a lot of shot variety with some water coming into play on a few holes. Liked the rest areas at each tee box with the car bench seats and the fish themed hole. Really fun course.

Not many open holes, almost all of them are wooded, but thats why its called the darkside I suppose.

Nice private course with 2 other courses on site. Not quite as good as the Sunnyside but still one of the best courses I've played.

Very fun, interesting course that was clearly made by a person who loves this course and plays it themselves. The darkside is 100% in the woods with a ton of skill shots to both the left and right down tree lines. Varying lengths and elevation changes.
My favorite part about this course was probably the placements of baskets, they are very creative throughout the entire course.
Some of the holes near the end play through various water areas ranging in sizes.

We drove 2 hours out of our way to hit this course back up and play the darkside. We didn't have time to the first time through. Had a blast here!

Not for beginners, tons of insects. The owner has made really excellent sitting areas, but they are overwhelmed by bugs living in them (bees, ect)

Course has an excellent selection of discs in an on site pro store. Tons of stamped discs, shirts, ect. There's a 'country club' that is pretty fantastic!

The tees are great. It was easy to find each basket and the next tee pad. Really enjoyed the "Themed tee pads and fairways" it is a must see experience! Loved the elevation challenges. On the way out we did play a few holes on the Tikki course for the kids and I threw a hole in one on #7 - made my day

We got there around 4:30 in the afternoon and were able to complete the course but it would have been nice to play all the different courses.

The entrance is only a driveway marked with a basket and we drove past it and had to turn around.

It had rained real a lot the day before and the course for the most part was not overly muddy as I would have thought. We drove over 2 hours to play here and it was worth it. 3 kids, 5 adults

Woods Golf Baby!

The appropriately named Darkside is a wonderful example of technical woods golf. That is not to say that the entire course is in the woods but the pain you suffer on the tightly wooded holes will be what sticks with you after you are done with this course. This plays as a nice contrast to Sunnyside

The design of this course really makes you focus on accuracy, shot selection, mental toughness and bad tree kick recovery. Even the more "open" holes will require you to at some point hit a tough gap if you want to steal a deuce. I really think every hole with the exception of #2 is dueceable but aggressive play can just as easily yield a 4-6 if something goes wrong. For us lesser mortals, 3 is a good score on each hole except #9 which should probably be deuced. The tight lines on the wooded holes, the OB on the more open holes combined with some tough pin positions make for a very good challenge. In my opinion the pin positions on this course are significantly more dangerous/difficult than on The Sunnyside. They seem to be guarded by more trees, often on slopes or surrounded by fast greens. There is a very nice balance between RH/LH holes, some gentle elevation throughout the course and a complete absence of pinball type holes. Each hole has a distinct, reasonable "fair"way. The flow to the course is pretty good so that just when you think the beating in the woods is too much then you get a few open holes to get some relief before heading back in to finish up.

Even though this course is carved out of thick Virginia woods the fairways are clear and well kept. The tees are in a little bit poorer shape than their Sunnyside brethren but still provided excellent footing on every hole. The seating and wooded shelters are a great touch providing ample places to take a break or escape the weather. The baskets are in great shape and the tee signs are great. They show an accurate overview of the hole and distance.

Once we found the first hole we had no navigation issues even without a map except for the gap between #9 and #10.

The Blockhouse pro shop/arcade/clubhouse area is awesome. It was a great place to chill out before and after playing. There are lots of baskets around to warm up your putting (tiki course)

There is a completely separate 18, Sunnyside on site to play plus the super cool Tiki putter course and a mini disc course that is really widespread.

There is camping onsite.

Going over to the Darkside was not as easy as the emperor claimed. Maybe I just didn't get angry enough. Seriously we did not see a single sign that directed us to where the course was at and the only path that lead there was blocked by a huge fence. We just kind of walked around in the general area of where we thought it might be, found #18 and circled out from there. Even after playing the course I am not sure what the proper way to get there is. Maybe just walking through the Tiki Course? This was repeated to some extant after we finished #9 and were looking for #10.

Only one tee and pin for each hole. A beginner would get destroyed on this course especially since most of the fairways are tight and lined with hollies which are uncomfortable to throw out of.

This course is another part of the great Blockhouse experience and a shining example of private courses doing it right. The $7 or $5 after 5 o'clock is easily worth it. And with Hawk Hollow and Loriella in the area this becomes a true destination course. I was able to play all four in 1 day.

The course emphasizes accuracy and consistency. That unfortunately means if you like the wide open bomber courses, then this is probably not gonna be a good time for you. But you should try it anyway!

I had a great time on this course since it is the type of golf I really enjoy; the feeling of complete seclusion out in the woods, hitting tight lines and having to do some real scrambling when you miss. There is lots of personality through out the course in the forms of faces on trees, the fish hole and signatures in the tee sheds that just makes you feel welcome.

My favorite hole was #1. Not a difficult hole, only 280ish through a tight fairway and over a bit of a gully but man, standing on the tee it is just beautiful to me.

Overall the Darkside is a nice challenge, tons of fun and I am really looking forward to coming back here to play in the future (though I will make sure to bring some kind of fish to add to the collection next time).

It is another great addition to a must stop location. Blockhouse is a must play destination in Spotsylvania.
Lots of elevation and good use of trees.
large flags made baskets more visible.
Good level of challenge for a variety of players.
Nice tee signs and elevated Tee pads
Benches at nearly every hole.
Shade from the heat.
Pro shop (the Stupid Store) is right on site.
All of the guys at the Blockhouse are very helpful and laid back.

The tunnel shots get redundant
a few small navigational issues.
Gravel tee pads were flooded.
every player in my group was attacked by hornets.
It seems this course is second to Sunnyside for attention and maintenance, some locals did not even know where the Darkside was, but this meant we had the Darkside to ourselves.

$7 a day, $5 after 5pm is well worth this experience. Course is right off 95 with in a quick drive from Loriella, Pratt, and Hawk Hollow.

The Darkside is a tour de force of pain in the par 3 world - a constant barrage of mental intimidation that starts right from the *relatively easy tunnel shot on hole one to the toothpick alleyway that lines the finishing hole 18. When the course finally gives players a chance to breathe in the mid-section, a more sinister less visible danger in the form of out-of-bounds areas waits for shots that are off the mark. All players will absolutely need to have a well-honed bag of technical shots to save pars when the tee shot is anything less than perfect. In addition to trick saves, players will need to keep a cool head when they encounter serious trouble so that they can pitch to a better position and cut their losses. Become impatient and the course will gladly add another stroke or two to punish greed and overzealousness.While the Sunnyside is a better test of a player's well rounded physical skills, the Darkside complements by testing a players mental mettle. Once doubt starts creeping in after a shanked tee shot or a lazy approach, only the strongest mental game will be able to survive with minimal damage. Great players shooting hot rounds on Sunnyside can erupt on Darkside and shoot well into the 60's (a good round is ~54 or better) - it just tests a very different set of skills and course management than Sunnyside.

Hole #2 profile: Hole two is often seen by players as a hole they have to 'get past' in order to keep a good scorecard in tact. This hole very, very rarely yields a '2' and frequently drops 4 strokes or more to an otherwise clean scorecard. From the tee, the right-hand backhand thrower immediately encounters a classic choice between aggression and defensive play with two diverging fairways which are split with a row of small trees. The left (aggressive) fairway is a straight tunnel which runs rather tree-free to within 80' of the pin. Players who can land a drive or midrange shot with minimal fade in this tunnel will be set up great for a three. However, if the shot fades out or kicks further left beyond the defined fairway, a nearly impossible wall of trees spells certain trouble barring a miracle roller. Choosing the right-side more conservative fairway is the answer to avoiding the death-zone on the left side of the fairway. Players choosing this route will be throwing a long hyzer which has to avoid several guard trees and will ideally land about ~150-180' from the pin. The penalty for choosing the safe route is that the second shot will have to navigate many more trees on the approach than the well-placed aggressive shot. From the landing zone, players will have to think creatively to get past the remaining trees though tight windows or with shorter trick shots. While I think the aggressive choice is more likely in the long run to yield a three, players who miss the drive are almost certainly looking at big numbers. Those on the conservative side are usually conceding a large percentage of 3's but will rarely score higher than a 4.

The main drawback of the Darkside is the lack of many par four and five holes (hole 2 is likely the only hole which approaches a true par four). I do feel that some of the unique flavor in having such a brutally challenging stream of par 3's would be lost but a lot would be gained in having holes with multiple drives/approaches. Par four and five holes force players to plan and develop course maintenance skills that 'regular' par three holes just aren't able to do. However, it would be extremely difficult, if not impossible, for the designers to add holes with adequate length to create multiple shot holes without absorbing some of the Sunnyside course as well - a trade-off which is probably asking too much. The only other 'con' that comes to mind is that this course plays almost entirely over mud-covered hills and can get sloppy when it rains. The course drains fairly well but you might want to make a quick check of the
recent area weather before heading out.

As others have said, the Grange facility is at the tip-top of private disc golf world with two championship-caliber courses, an awesome tiki par 2 course (with late night illumination), a mini course, and a giant arcade. With side-trips to Loriella and Hawk Hollow also within a short drive, there really isn't much else to ask for in a weekend of disc golf fun!

The front nine is what most wooded courses strive to be. Literally carved out of the thick Virginia woods are nine tight but fair fairways of varying lengths, three will feel good on all (especially #7) except for #9. The premium here is accuracy off the tee, hitting any of the fairway trees likely means a struggle for par, but not to find your disc. The back nine wends in and out of the woods towards the back part of the property, and includes some water and/or swamp hazards (depending on the time of year). The back contains a few more birdie opportunities but you'll still have earn them.

Another championship course and the world famous Tiki course are co-located with this gem. Three other championship course located within 15 miles makes Spotsylvania The disc golf destination for the Mid-Atantic, imo. Well graded and sized turf or carpet tees on each hole, with shelters on several tees.

Only one tee and pin position per hole. Bugs can be a pain, particularly the flies in the spring. It can get muddy following rainy weather, but not too bad. You can lose a disc in some of the rough on the back nine.

This course is arguably the crown jewel of the disc golf resort that is The Grange. I say arguably because Mike has been tweaking The Sunnyside and adding diffculty. I've been coming here since shortly after the first course opened and seen it evolve from a really nice 19 holes to a full blown disc golf resort. There's a nice clubhouse to provide shelter from weather, and an arcade stocked with vintage games from the 80's and 90's. Please take a moment to consider all of the costs and labor that has gone into this place when you're passing the donation box, and remember that you're sharing a family residence.

Elevation changes on almost every hole, that provide very unique holes, no two holes are alike. Combine that with a great variety of short, medium and long holes, not to mention the evenly distributed left, straight and right turning holes, gives you one challenging course.

The tee pads are large and are either crush stone or synthetic turf, nice and flat. Each hole has its own tee signs, with the hole number and location of the pin. There is a tee box shelter at most holes, which include a seating area and some form of shelter from the weather.

Course navigation is good, so you don't really need a map to get around. Some next tee signs through out to help out.

Because it's so wooded, there is plenty of shade for the hot days.

A bathroom, snack bar, and pro shop on site. Very convenient to I-95, about half way between Richmond and DC.

Gets kind of swampy when wet, and thus, some tee pads don't drain very well.

Distance on tee signs missing.

A very unique disc golf experience on this course and disc golf complex. Of the three courses on this site, the dark side is the hardest IMHO.

Privately owned and operated, it has certain perks that public parks are not able to do. There is an old school disc golf vibe I get here, with all the tie dye shirts and stuff, it's like I'm back in the 70s again.

The Darkside is what wooded courses should all strive to be. Every hole is different, and even though it's a wooded course there are still opportunities to let it rip. After a round on the Sunnyside course, being in the shade for most of the round is awesome. There are a few open holes toward the end of the round, but for the most part this course is very technical.

Like the Sunnyside course, you can really see how much work has gone into the place when you play here. The teepads are all excellent, the signage is perfect, and there are plenty of interesting things to look at (I won't spoil it for you). If you're planning on coming out, be sure to give yourself enough time to play all 3 courses here. After two long rounds you'll be worn out, but the Tiki course is a great wind-down to end the day.

I could complain that this course isn't open enough, but that would be silly, huh?

There really are few cons to speak of here. Some of the guys I played with had a very frustrating round on the Darkside because they were tired (we played Sunnyside first) and were hitting lots of trees. It is a challenging course but it's great for your game.

If you live in VA, the Grange is a must-play. It's only a little ways off 95, so if you're passing through it's convenient to play - but I'd plan on making a day of it so that you can see all that it has to offer. It is pay-to-play, but it's definitely worth it. If you're looking for a technical course, the Darkside is one of the best around.

Mike Trapasso and company have created a most enchanting and hospitable disc golf experience. Two 18 hole championship courses plus a bonus Tiki (par 2 night course) await you. Plan an entire afternoon to enjoy this labor of love.

This course was the second edition to the property. As Mike told me "we purchased the land and just started carving away!". With a thin blade did they do some carving, as this layout is almost fully in woods and technical. The lengths are not terribly long, nor do they need to be. Accuracy is required to score well, yet there are many opps. to birdie. You will want to take something off your throw to keep in the fairway- it's the best chance to get par. Many playful elements (carvings nailed to trees). Check out the fish hole, which has a hut behind the tee with seats and a marlin mounted on the wall, and little glass figurines. There's even a mystery "spotter" on one hole who never says anything.
The course opens up a little on the back 9 for a couple beautiful holes then goes right back to thick woods again.

The only improvements I can think of were that there were a few holes that would be fair to call par 4's and think it would be just fine to label them as such.

The pro shop is being built and is nearly complete- hundreds (maybe thousands) of discs are available. Many have "Grange" stamps that will commemorate your visit.

This course is consistently tighter (and possibly more difficult) than the Sunnyside, but is a must play if you have the time.

This is an exceptionally well maintained course. The tees are all well packed and have rakes alongside to fix any problem spots. All the holes have seating available for the rest of the members of your party and many of them even have covered spots to get out of the elements or the sun. The seating is everything from wooden benches to old connected "airport" chairs. There are new looking tee signs on every hole and they look great. While heavily wooded this is one of the easiest courses to navigate that I have played. There were signs pointing to the next tee in almost every situation where there would be a question as where to go next. Additionally even though there is a great possibility of a couple of throws going off the fairway this is not a huge problem because it is very easy to locate your disc. There is really no underbrush to speak of and most discs stand out well in contrast to the leaf covered ground. While many have said that this is a "technical" course completely in the trees that is not totally true. There are several holes on the back nine that allow you to play across some open space (once you get out of the tree line where the tees are located).

Not too much to say here. A little more of a mix of open holes would be nice but I think it is wrong to request this because this course is complemented nicely by "Sunnyside" on the same property. Also a lot of the holes felt like "tweeners" to me. They are difficult to birdie but almost more difficult to bogey (if you can stay on the fairway with your drive). Of course this observation might just because of where I am as a player right now.

This was my first experience with a privately owned course. I have to admit I was a little apprehensive at first. It seemed very strange to pull into someone's driveway and then get out and play disc golf. I quickly got past this because of how welcoming Mike and his family/friends. It is amazing the amount of work that they have put into these courses and continue to keep them open to the public. The five dollar requested donation is a small price to pay.
I appreciate very accurate directions on the "course info" section of this site because when navigating my way to a new course I am always wondering if I am going the right direction. Once exit I-95 and get on Rte 606 it turns into Rte 208 after about 6 miles. If you go straight through this intersection then Rte 648 is two miles down the road. The rest of the directions are perfect.

As part of my father's day gift my wife told me to go play golf for the day and I chose to play the 3 courses here at the Grange. What a women!

The course is referred to by the locals as old school and it is.With its tight fairways and obvious sadistic charm.

The baskets are well placed with the area surrounding them well maintained. They are all in good shape and do a good job of catching the disc.

The tee pads are built up stone dust and chips. There were a couple of them that had worn down areas but I saw rakes available and Preston the caretaker ( I played around with him and had a great time) makes sure they do not stay that way for long.

They have just put up new tee signs and I like them very much. They are colorful and easy to understand.

They have used the course topography as well as any I have seen. The fairways are kept clean and are manageable.I saw no crossing fairways and the no areas where you could be in harms way when someone else is throwing from another basket. The fairways are exceptionally well defined. Accuracy and patience are the name here. Forcing the throw and getting into the woods will add many throws. While there are a lot of trees finding a disc was not abnormally hard because they do work at keeping the undergrowth down. There is a variety of straight, left to right and right to left. Some will give you multiple looks. There is enough variety in distances to have an ace chance and to go for distance (no open bombs of any kind though).

To me the best part was the flow of the course. It just seemed to fit. Because of this and the obvious wear on the paths it was a gem to get around the course. Even without a map.

I did not see any foliage that was hazardous (poison ivy, oak and such) but I do hate those prickly hollies that are everywhere.

There are plenty of benches and several of the tee areas have small covered structures to get under (don't forget to sign the wall on 6. Its tradition and sharpies are provided).

There are regular events to take part in. Every Friday is a glow game, The monthly played on Saturday mornings, and the Virginia Open is played here.

The attitude of everyone I met was great and Mike, the owner, is one of a kind.

There is a good pro shop on site.

There are not many cons here but its not perfect.

Bring plenty to drink.The physical exertion is high here and there are no water fountains. There are a few 5 gallon water jugs spread out but I could not bring myself to use them. Its not Mike and the gang but not everyone is as trustworthy.

Parking could be tight on a busy day.

This course is not for the faint of heart. Which could be a pro also. Depending on a persons perspective. One of the guys I played with said it is played less than the other 2 because most people view it as being harder.

I would have liked a couple of open bombs because I like a course that mixes it a bit more evenly. Almost everything here is too wooded for that.

There are no par markings on any of the baskets and it is assumed that all are a 3. Some of them are 4's and 7 (which hasbeen increased to 460' and that added another slight left to right to it) maybe should be 5.

They serve beer here and while I did not see anyone acting inappropriate it may be an issue with some.

While this course kicked my hind quarters it was one of the most enjoyable places to play.

Everyone from Mike to the players were nice and willing to work with a first time player to this course.

With its old school charm (hippie and course) and overall quality experience I now understand why this place has become sort of the holy grail for disc gold in Virginia.

There is also a nice in ground pool here. So bring the family and they can swim while you play. Then dive in when you or all of you are done playing golf.

There is a certain purity in the quality of the Darkside. This course is a 90% woods course, with but a few "open" shots. The purity I refer to is a purity of line. The Darkside is a rarity, in that neither its length, or its technical difficulty are overly imposing. But in order to score well, your lines must be pure on virtually every single shot.
There is only one or 2 holes which are not considered duecable (but they are still gettable) - and yet it is not uncommon for players to walk away with no dueces.
This course was literally carved out of hilly, wooded terrain, with only a few of the holes using already available alleys.
Control is at a premium,combined with moderate distance (most holes are over 300') - the use of overstable/high tech plastic is a risky proposition on the Dark Side.
So how do I summarize the PROS of the Darkside.......hmmmmmmm.
Technical
Tight but fair
Lots of fun, visually appealing/intimidating shots
Great teepads - some of the best anywhere - Built up boxes 8'x16' filled w/compacted stone dust and sometimes either carpet or astroturf filled w/sand - no ruts.

It'll make yo mama cry.

Lots of other fun qualities on this course; there are a number of sculptures on trees, and a number of stone monuments (get the birdie - add a rock) scattered throughout the course.
The Darkside is the course where the highest rated round ever was recorded (Brian Skinner shot an amazing 41 and got a 1105 rated round - breaking my own course record of 46 by 5 strokes).

Any score under par of 54 is regarded as a good round on the dark side. When you couple this course with the Sunnyside, add in Tiki, and the rest of what The Grange has to offer - the DG experience gets rated a 5 - it really doesn't get any better than this.

Old school feel. This course is on private land owned, I'm sure, by Disc Golf enthusiasts from the old school. Baskets everywhere! Not even counting the ones on the courses! A tent clubhouse with old arcade video games and a Lost & Found for missing dics. It has an honor system box for Pay to Play ($5) and just feels like its owned by one of the original Frisbee Golfers (Didn't get to meet the owner, got there early and it was in winter!)

Now on to the course! Tough! Make no mistake, The Darkside (there are three courses on the property; Darkside, heavily wooded, Sunnyside, good mix and Tiki, small novelty par 2 course) is a hard course. Very wooded and unforgiving. I'm not a beginner, but I'm not on Tour either, and it was a rough day for me. Very nice atmosphere. Each hole has a sponsor and signs to show the way. Baskets have a flag on top so you can see them from far away (Blue flags for Darkside, Yellow for Sunnyside). Benches at almost all Tees. Nice Tee boxes (Exception; played in winter and all were frozen over, no X-step in the winter here!) Excellent array of throws, BH or FH you will all have your turn on this course. Nice basket placements. Overall, a well laid out and wonderful course. Flowed well from hole to hole and pretty easy to follow. Challenging to any player.

No Restrooms that we could find. There were no distance markings on the signs other than what was handwritten by players (Not sure how accurate). No Par markings either (someone told us they were all Par 3). Which brings me to the other issue. I'm not sure if this is a Con or not, but Par 3 for this course is asking a lot. Unless your a Pro or been at this for years, Par 3 on all Darkside holes can be a bit much for the casual player. The only reason I make this a Con is that this can become frustrating to a recreational player. Some holes should at least be Par 4. Not much else to complain about.

As I mentioned before, this course is a great visit. Its like going back in time to an era of early Disc Golf. Like stepping back to the roots of the game. Everything from the old school video arcade to the Cookout/Music area. Look for all the displayed VA License plates, all DG themed at the cookout area. Loved DG NE1.

Favorite Holes: 13 an uphill throw over a creek and across a small bridge. 14 downhill throw back over same creek. I might have liked these two because of the scenery or the fact that they were a bit less wooded the the rest!

This would be the higest rated course I have played yet, except that New Quarter Park in Williamsburg is maintained slightly better and has more amenities. The fact that three courses are on this property makes it a hard call. Both are great DG Courses.