Beautiful setting, great use of the terrain.
Hole 16 is an awesome hole that you have to aim just right to get it perfectly.
The Pro Shop has a great selection of discs to choose from; I picked up a new driver today for a relatively cheap price.
As a new player, and having The Oaks as my home course, it was a little bit difficult and i only birdied one hole, but the course was very long and fun.

Our group had a few instances when we were not sure where to go, as the course is a bit spread out.
There was a misunderstanding with the signs, as we thought some holes had multiple baskets but only one was present.

Great fun course and I will definitely be back in the future.

-Awesome mix of holes. Tight and technical & long and open let you use all the discs in your bag. Lots of the open drives end up in wooded baskets so you get a good variety of shots, even within each hole
- It's a good hike/long walk in the woods
- Pars are challenging but reasonable
-Really well kept & taken care of
-Great signage and baskets, multiple tee boxes and primaries are concrete.
-Bathroom, Pro-shop & lost and found right by the parking lot

-Very popular park and VERY busy, especially on the weekends. You will almost certainly be waiting at the tee's if you go on the weekend. Also a number of general park users but there are only a few holes where you have to watch out for them.

Love this course. Easily the best maintained, thought out, and fun to play course I have experienced so far.

I just wish it wasn't so damn busy! We typically have to be on the course by 9-10am on the weekends to play an unmolested round. Sometimes the parking lot is half full by this time anyway and we are usually waiting at the tees by the time we hit the last nine as many people don't play the "optional" BCD etc. holes on 6

Guaranteed awesome round though, tons of fun!

Great mix of holes and shots required nice elevation changes. Bad shots will be punished by the abundant water hazards. Very well maintained.

A little bit of a walk between some holes. Not the best course for beginners but that's not really a con to me.

Having played a couple hundred courses around the country the canyons course is as good as I've played and were lucky to have it in our area. If your in town and only have time to play one course it has to be the "canyons"

Great variety of shots. Good mixture for big arms and those who have normal arms. The long tees make a totally different course, and a challenging on for advanced players.

Love the uphill/downhill mix, open, wooded, water hazards--makes for a great, really fun round!

Choose your shots wisely--they don't call it "The Canyons" for nothing!

A little spread out--some may feel it's a lot to walk "a little" in between some holes. I felt it had GREAT signage, very clear directions on how to get to the next hole--which shows care on the part of the designers who must have had to do it that way because of park land constraints and the type of course they wanted---it's a great play! Talked to one of the guys doing course maintenance--told me they will have a full 27 coming soon!! And a pro shop.

The Best course I have ever played ever. (currently around 120+)

-Good baskets and T-Pads
-Very scenic with memorable holes
-Excellent elevation changes
-The most mulch I have ever seen on any course
-Long, Short, tight, open, left, right, up, down, my head is spinning.
- This is the best course in the midwest, not even Illinois. What more is there to tell?

- Too busy because it is so awesome.
- Every time I play there are groups of 7+ all playing together.

-Beautiful course.
-Nice elevation, decent distances, and slight difficulty with pin placement.
-River is clean (does not smell like s*&# like west park).
-Gorgeous cliffs and fairways.
-Benches on all holes, and garbage too
-Newest baskets, try throwing a disc through the middle of these!
-Overall a great park and course.

-Can be very crowded some times. Parking lot gets full
-The new 9 is kind of redundant.
-It is a community park and does have some traffic. Watch out for families walking the river!
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Joliet is home to many spectacular courses in the Chicagoland area. The Canyons is the best course in my opinion. Although I do put Highland as a close second, The Canyons offers much more scenery and cleanliness. The cliffs, canyons, and bridges make for an entertaining experience. There are open, wooded, and mixed holes all along this course. This is a really nice addition to J-town's collection.

- - Very scenic park for the Chicago metro area. There is a creek winding through several holes, some nice hills and rock walls, and some untouched forest on the new 6 holes.
-- A few amazing signature holes (4 both short and long as well as hole 16) that you just want to throw again and again and again. These are both incredible holes that would stand out on any course, especially the long tee on hole 4.
-- Elevation comes into play on a handful of holes. While it isn't incredibly hilly throughout, it has more than most courses in the region and the amount that is there plays into the course very well.
-- Good hole variety. There are a lot of open holes, though a good amount of wooded ones and with water and elevation in play on a handful. The new 6 holes were a perfect addition to the course as they added a much-needed taste of more tightly wooded holes to round out the course's variety. There are holes where you can really open up a long bomb as well as more technical shots and putter/mid range ace races.
-- Multiple tees on every hole is nice, however, there is some criticism on these below in cons --Update Feb 2017-- New longs have been installed that have some really amazing shots (2, 6a)
-- Good signs and teepads (for most holes, though shorts and 8 long are just marked grass)
-- Practice basket before hole one

--Update Feb 2017-- The parks department here is probably the best I've seen in terms of maintaining and improving a course. They are constantly improving the course (see my update below in the comments)

-- For multiple tees, sometimes they feel unnecessary as they don't really add much but rather just add/remove 30 ft from the hole. Lack of consistency with some holes having 1, 2 or 3 separate tees. Reds don't have cement tees, and there are a few holes where the long tee is hard to find (like hole 8 where is no tee pad for long tees but rather a few hard to find stones in the grass marking the position). --Update Feb 2017 -- A few of the new long tees are pretty incredible (2, 6a) and while not all holes add a lot with the longer tees, the course definitely plays a lot easier from the shorts but a lot more fun from the longs.
-- It is a great park with playgrounds, pavilions, picnic tables, running trails, etc... While is makes for a beautiful park, it also adds a level of interference with the course. There are a few holes where I usually have to wait for people on the paths, and a few where people at picnic tables or pavilions are at risk in the case of an errant shot, and a couple buildings I've seen hit a few times.
-- While there good variety as I mentioned and some really great holes, most of the holes are pretty wide open. This is the nature of a course in a well used city park. The designer did a great job working with the land available, though a number of holes don't provide a lot in terms of obstacles. --Update 2017 -- There were 6 wooded holes added late 2016 and 3 new in construction for Spring 2017. This doesn't get rid of the open holes, but certainly balances them out.

--Update Feb 2017--
I have played this course a lot more and am changing the rating from a 4 to a 4.5. This is because of the constant improvements done on the course by the local park district. When I first played, it was an 18 hole course with dual tees on many holes. Then they put in 6 new holes. Then they put in new long teepads on a few holes (make sure you look for the longs on hole 2... you have to go up the hill by 1's basket and 2 long is up on top of the cliff behind the original 2 teepad). Then they added trees along 7's fairway to close off the wide open shot a bit. They are always out there putting down mulch around baskets and tees. They just cleared a bunch of debris from two of the newer holes to make it even more beautiful. Now they are clearing land for another 3 holes to round it out to a total of 27. The new three should be ready in a few weeks, so I will update again once those are played.

TLDR; the park's deparment here is CONSTANTLY improving this course and deserves serious thanks

I do still agree with my original assessment that there are a number of holes out here that aren't terribly memorable (mostly the open ones like 3, 7, 8, 11, 12), but with more wooded additions being added, in the new 27 hole layout it will be nice to have at least a few of these holes where you can really air it out and not have to worry about hitting an early tree.

This is a great course and a lot of fun to play. Being in the greater Chicago area - where there isn't a ton of forested land and the courses in total probably aren't quite as outstanding as other areas I've lived - it is an excellent course.

* fun
* terrainimus maximus
* limestone walled gorge
* creek that chews discs but does not swallow them.
* multi-tees, multi-basket positions
* solid tee pads
* variety

* people and pet obstacles
* long walks between holes
* I don't live closer to the course

Bag used/needed: carried 17 discs, used 15. I did not need the two floating discs I carry whenever I play a new course with water, the water here was not deep enough to bother.

Impression: Wow. Just wow.

This park is a ridiculously sweet place to put a course. A few times I had to stop to let non-golfers clear out of the path of my throw, but other than that, this was everything that I like in a course.

I did not expect to find such a severe up/down/sideways course in this part of Illinois. And the course designers really used all of it to maximum advantage. While the limestone walls were certainly the star of the show, that creek was the monster in the closet lurking in every dark and forgotten location. I hooked up with another first time visitor, and his disc ended up wet at least five times, and he got lucky and landed on the bank another three times.

I played this course on a VERY windy day, and the holes in the woods and along the banks of the creek were sheltered enough to make it a fun day to play with discs. The open holes with the high grass were brutal, of course, but even there we did fine as soon as we realized that all we needed to do was to take turns spotting.

This course is FUN. Very very fun. Fair lines, lots of variety, no two holes alike, no big long stretches of bomb/approach/putt, no "claustrophobia forever" stretches, nothing too stupid. I have played more challenging courses, but this course did a incredibly good job of completely testing my ability to throw a disc in every way I that I know how.

This was a stop that I am very glad that I made on my way to Madison.

On a scale of 0 (horrible) to 5 (heavenly):
Scenery:5
Ease of navigation:4 (but just because of the slippery clay and long paths that wind back and forth as the designers take advantage of the terrain)
Tee pads:5
Baskets (catchability):5+ (best I've ever used)
Baskets (location):5
Variety:5
Bomb factor:5
Risk/reward opportunities:4 (yes, there were some, but not many of those enticing but tiny windows leading to certain birdies, not many choose your best path out of many possible paths holes. Mostly the risks were just part of the path to the basket that everyone has to take)
Fairness:5
Use of terrain:5++
Amenities:5
Beginner friendliness:5
Non-disc golfer opportunities for fun:5


About the reviewer: I've been playing for over 20 years, and playing seriously since 2007. I throw RHBH predominantly, with a wide arsenal of other shots that I use when I need them; my drives average about 320 feet +/- 30 feet on flat ground. My PDGA rating hovers around 900, which means on good days I shoot a few below par, on bad days a few above.

About my preferences: In my opinion the perfect disc golf course is an interesting walk in a natural space, with a wide variety of challenging but fair opportunities that test ALL of your shot making skills regardless of which hand you favor for throwing discs. I am happiest when I have to think my way from tee to basket hole after hole after hole and have to weigh risks versus rewards. In my opinion the worst disc golf courses have nothing to offer but holes that a) only test of how far you can throw b) only favor one particular type of throw on the majority of holes c) feature "plinko" lines choked with obstacles where luck is more important than skill d) are so short that a putter is all you need e) are so wide open that the only challenge is one of judging distance f) feature lines that discs were never meant to travel (such as a hole with two 90 degree doglegs in opposite directions) g) force you to lose a few discs if you dare to play. I am saddest when I feel bored or cheated by a hole.

Truly one of the best all around courses I've ever played or seen. Immaculately kept and marked. This course is both beginner friendly with red tees and easier pars, and also expert friendly with beautiful and challenging tee shots and greens cruising through forests, stream made valleys, and over vast prairie fields. The course signs are SO fresh and well marked. The tees are all concrete. Every tee has a mulch path to the basket. Around every basket is a mulch green. The grass fairways are all perfectly maintained and your disc is visable from a distance. Some highlights of the course are hole 4's pro tee's elevated canyon shot, hole 6a's dog leg right tunnel shot to a small mound green, some consecutive technical woods holes, back to back open field holes with mowed OB, a cliffside down hill tee off 16, and an under bridge, over creek, through a window tee on 18. So much variation of shots and types of holes. I've played some woods courses that over do it and every hole begins to feel the same, same with open courses. But this has a perfect mix of left right and straight holes. I'll certainly be traveling back to Chicago to play this course.

idk...

Most well marked and well maintained course I've ever seen. On the Internet, in person or otherwise. Perfect condition all the time.

All around great course with an array of short and long shots, one of my favorite courses in the area. Some really fun elevation shots as well in one of the most scenic Midwestern courses I've played.

No complaints other than I wish there were more holes

7 new holes added, all in the woods making it 24 holes, Also multiple new long tees have just been installed with new signs, garbage cans, and a picnic table at each tee. The new long tee on 4 is particularly epic.
Every fairway and green is mulched regularly so no muddy areas even after rains, and no skeeter issues since they spray the course down. This is the premier course in the area, Mach X baskets, superbly maintained, scenic, and historic park. Have heard rumors another 2 holes being added also ?

None really, other than pave the parking lot area.

Amenities- long, level concrete tee pads and detailed, accurate maps on each hole. Ten holes have 2 tee pads, and many have red and blue markers in the grass as well to accommodate a range of skill levels and variety. Maps give location of next tee as well, even if you miss this the course flow is intuitive and well marked to lead you to the correct next tee. Top of the line baskets catch discs perfectly. They are labeled with the hole number as well. Picnic tables and garbage cans at every tee box. Several restrooms on site. Practice basket and course map near parking lot.

Maintanence/upkeep- perfect! Gold stars around for the Lockport park district for keeping the course in such great shape. Grass is mowed, brush trimmed, no garbage lying around. Always improving, too. 6 new holes were recently added and are beautiful and well thought out. New maps are at recently resigned holes as well. Just overall fantastic job. Big kudos!

Playability/ course design- as the course name suggests, there is some drastic elevation change here and it is utilized terrifically (holes 4 and 16....WOW!!! You won't find many shots as cool as these in northern Illinois) Great mixture of open fairways playing to guarded baskets, tree scattered fairways forcing a specific line or two, and tightly wooded holes. In addition to this variety there are also ever changing distances. With holes ranging from 195 to over 600, you will use many different discs from the tee. A creek runs through the entire park and comes into play on many holes. Sometimes it's left, sometimes right, sometime you throw over, sometimes it's waiting silently just behind the basket. Really forces you to consider risk/reward (though it is almost always manageable to retrieve a disc in the creek as it is not deep or fast moving. But be warned- missing right on hole 8A may cost you a disc). Lefties and righties will be equally challenged by doglegs right, doglegs left, and straight shots. Playing this course never gets boring! Two or three holes have alternate pin locations and both locations are labeled on the map.

As amazing as this place is, there are a few things holding this course back from the ever rare 5 disc review. While I don't necessarily think these are cons, there are certainly ways is can be better....
First, this course is situated in a very beautiful multiuse park and because of this it draws LOTS of people. Runners, bikers, ball fields, dog walkers, playgrounds, photographers, day camps are some of the activities you will certainly come across while playing a round here. Mostly these other activities are out of the way and not an issue, but there are times when people don't realize they are in the line of fire (be cautious and aware of people on holes 3 & 14 especially). Despite the presence of these other park users, there is still ample opportunity for seclusion and peacefulness at this course.

There are a few long walks between holes, but really who cares. I mean, you came out to be active right? Good. And with the beauty of the park it just seems like, well, a walk in the park

I guess it would be nice to have the signs mark which location the alternate pins are in, but really this is a non issue as you can pretty much tell from the tee.

Very minor issues for such an excellent course.

Honestly, no matter your skill level or how long you have been playing, you will enjoy and have fun playing at The Canyons. No matter what your golfing preference there is something here for you to walk away and say "that was cool." This is a course that is worth making a long trip to come play. In my opinion anybody who has serious complaints about this course as a whole should probably just trade in their discs and find something new to do like knitting dog sweaters or competitive gift wrapping or Marshmellow model building or something. Anyways, happy discing!

-Tee signs on every hole are very detailed and informative. They show the location of the next tee position as well.

-There are numerous signs throughout the park as well that guide you to the next tee position when needed. Should not have any problem finding your way around.

-Garbage cans and benches are placed on almost every if not every hole. Giving the player a chance to relax and enjoy the scenery while out throwing some discs.

-The course is constantly in great conditions thanks to the hard work of the Lockport Park District. Grass is cut often in the summer and they have even plowed fairways for us in the winter! Most of the brush is kept fairly under control throughout the entire course. Mulch is laid out on most fairways as well giving the player a clean walking spot.

-The baskets are the Mach X baskets which are some of the best in the biz. All of them have number plates on them as well so you will always know you are playing the right hole. There is also a practice basket near the parking lot with cement circles 1-9 to practice your putting.

-Overall just an amazing course to play and it has been so much fun watching this course develop over the last two years. It offers a great mix of backhand and forehand shots. A great amount of technical holes that will test your ability and patience as well. Hole 3 plays uphill and then you get rewarded on hole 4 as you throw off a hill to a basket tucked in front of a creek with OB long and to the right the whole way. Hole 5 also plays with a tiny creek running to the left of the fairway. Hole 9's basket always tends to be the most photogenic hole on the course with another creek running to the left of the basket. Hole 16 is a fan favorite as you are throwing down a sledding hill with the basket right against some of the canyons.

-6 new holes!?! Thanks to more dedication from course designer Sean Callahan, The Canyons now has a 6A, 6B, 8A, 8B, 8C, 8D. The new holes give something for everyone and should not be missed!! 6A will challenge your ability to pure a straight line at 350 ft and then 6B gives you a basket 250 ft away surrounded by mulch and a 20-25 ft ring of mini boulders. 8A plays as a really tight straight downhill shot about 275ft away. 8B plays as a sharp left turn off the tee box, you'll need good control though as the rough on the right can be tough. 8C is a straight shot with a decent fairway and guardian tree just before a little drop off to the basket. 8D plays as a anny/forehand line with a skinny tree blocking your shot. You'll need more precision as there are trees blocking an easy shot at a two.

-The Canyons also provide long tee positions for holes 1, 3, 4, 6, 7, 10, 12, 13, 14, and 17. They also will occasionally move hole 12 and 13 into a longer basket position with future plans of adding four new additional basket locations.

-This course can see a lot of golfers at peek times. Everyone wants to play it and with good reason. Some of the longer walks to the next basket can provide a good breakup of golfers though.

-Parking can be difficult when the main lot is full but the park district is already building another parking lot. (temporary con)

-Some of the creeks can get very high when it rains. You can normally retrieve your disc in the water on any given day. However, if there is some bad rain for a day or two this creek can really turn into some raging water. You will not be getting a disc back if it goes in the water. It should be pretty obvious if the creek is raging or not. The water drains fairly quickly though and does not happen very often so do not be too discouraged of it.

One of the top three courses in IL as far as this disc golfer is concerned. The Joliet area already had some good disc golf courses with Trinity Links, West Park, Highland, Community Park, etc.. but this one really stands out. People are starting to get word and are traveling from all over the Midwest to play this course. Don't be the last one here!!!!

A lot of the people walking in the park have been very friendly to us disc golfers and often spend a few minutes learning about the game and talking with you. Makes for a truly enjoyable day.

Gorgeous views all throughout the course, bring your family, bring your dog, bring everyone to The Canyons!!

Great overall course. Great mix of challenging holes in and out of the woods. They seem to do a good job of maintaining the grounds and around the baskets. They are also constantly upgrading and improving as well as adding new holes. Good tee box setup with conrete tee pads. Nice trails and easy naviagation.

The Canyons at Dellwood Park has quickly become a northern Illinois "destination course." The unique terrain makes for a disc golf experience that is hard to come by in northern Illinois. Here are some specific things I love about this course

*Scenery - as the name of the course indicates, there is some great disc golf terrain on site here. There are streams and rock formations that make for a very scenic walk in the park

*Fun Factor/ variety - this is where this course shines. Holes 4 and 16 feature tee shots off of cliffs!!! The drives off the tee force you to try all kinds of throws, and there's an excellent mix of long drives and shorter line-carving shots

*Challenge - while the white concrete tees are not particularly tough, the newly added long concrete tees (not sure if these are blues or golds) on holes 1, 3, 4, 6, 7, 10, 12, 13, 14,and 17 offer something to golfers seeking a bit more challenge.

A few things holding this course back from the coveted 5.0

*Although the long tees are nice, there is no "championship caliber" option here

*Hole 14 sticks out like a sore thumb among the 17 other holes at this course. It is a very short 225 ft hole without any obstacles. It plays near what appears to be a garden that attracts lots of people taking photos and stuff.

*The course as a whole is packed in tightly with other park activities, which can make a round somewhat slow and frustrating. Lots of pedestrian traffic here.

I think that the only Northern IL course that tops this one is the course in Round Lake. The Canyons does not offer a truly challenging championship caliber layout, but what it lacks in difficulty it makes up for in fun!!! Definitely check this one out if you are travelling through the Chicago area.

- Great signage; Very easy to negotiate, even for 1st-timers.
- Very good layout: NIce mix of lefty (forehand or anhyzer) holes and nice use of elevation; very well laid out.
- Excellent baskets: The Mach X's are the best, period.

None

Many of the wooded courses I have played in the Chicagoland area have been very repetitive, favoring those who do a couple things well. This course, however, has a nice mix of holes requiring finesse and power. I have no complaints. It was a bit of a drive for me but was well worth it. Well done.

Great Variety of holes. Challenges all players. Loved the terrain and different variations of elevation that come into play. Terrific placement of a few tee pads forcing you to make a decision to play between trees or around.

If you don't like to walk this course is not for you. Not a con to me,but you will walk quite a bit here.

Can't wait to get back and play again.

VERY scenic. Almost feels like your on a hike half the time! Tons of elevation change which is very rare for an Illinois course to have any of. Some of the wooded holes on this course remind me a lot of the DG course in Plymouth,MN. Quite challenging!

-Practice basket with markers
-Standard concrete platforms for the white tees also most if not all holes have blue and red tee markers.
-Map/bulletin board
-Parking&Bathrooms

-I don't really know if this is a con but it was unusual to have to walk almost more than half the length of the course from hole 12 over to 13. Feels like the course could flow better but its still worth all the walking you have to do. After all this is not a novice course by any means.
-Very Buggy. About 3/4 of the course is in or around the woods and creek/river so prepare like every good disc golfer does and bring your bug spray.

Overall it is worth the 30min to an hour+ drive depending on where you live. Highly recommend going early if you plan on getting more than one round in. Theres always the possibility of amateur tournaments going on during the weekends here.

Aesthetically beautiful as far as courses go. A stream runs throughout the course, which makes for manageable but challenging water hazards. Great use of elevation changes and the natural landscape. A few open holes that allow you to go big with drives, while there are moderately wooded holes creating more technical throws. The addition of 6 new holes that focus on more technical shots has only improved an already outstanding course.
Overall, a very fun course and great addition to the Chicagoland area.

Never found a readily available water source, meaning plan accordingly. With all of the outdoor pavilions and family areas, there are a few areas where people seem to be omnipresent and clueless as to what is going on around them.

While this is not the most challenging course, I personally believe this is one of the most fun courses in the state. I am excited for it to be a part of the state championship series this year.

Let me start with a disclaimer: I played and hung out at this park from my youth throughout my teens some 30 years ago or so. I always thought that it would make for a great DG course, and now my dream has come true!

The course is set in a wonderful scenic park, and mostly follows a small creek, that winds through an abandoned limestone quarry, which created the featured canyons. I have never seen this kind of elevation on an Illinois course before. You will be throwing off hills, across valleys, and along the curving creek.

The course also has large concrete tees, very nice tee signs, and all of the amenities that make for a great course.

On your way through you will see some other cool features like old bridges.

Wood chips cover the paths in wet areas.

The course meanders a little, but there are plenty of signs to make navigation a snap.

Not much rough to speak of, manicured grass fairways, and a good amount of trees, which are utilized perfectly to enhance the course.

The course is hilly, so I wouldn't recommend it to handicapped people, or people with a weak constitution.

I would describe the outhouse style restrooms as: "Enter at your own risk".

This is my favorite IL course, and I highly recommend it. It may not be the best course for beginners, as there is a lot of water, but the water was shallow, clean, and not too hard to recover discs from.