- almost every hole is unique
- unbelievably cool and unique natural scenery
- fantastic elevation change
- good incorporation of water hazards
- major workout due to all the uphill and downhill walking (could be a con, but i mostly enjoyed it)
- great technical challenge
- fairly lengthy course, but a good mix of hole lengths overall
- difficult without being unfair
- garbage can/donation slot by course entrance

- some of the most impenetrable rough you'll encounter
- most tee signs are missing or damaged
- rubber tees and so-so baskets are just ok
- navigation is fairly challenging and quite tough without a map
- maintenance is pretty nonexistent
- no real amenities
- major hazards where discs can be lost (not exactly a con, but an FYI at least)

Ok, The Tailings is actually right outside the city of Iron River, but I'm not sure you'd ever know it once you're on the course. This one wins for most brutal rough I've ever played. Other reviewers were right when they said it's virtually impenetrable in places, and can be thorny on top of that. Somehow, I came out with all my discs in the end, which I'm considering a huge win.

I really loved this course, and it hurt a little to give it a 3.5, because it absolutely deserves a 4 with a little TLC. It's hard to touch on more than the previous reviews, but "unkempt" is a perfect way to describe this course. Most of the tee signs are missing, and the remaining ones are mostly damaged. The rough is crazy and with all the rocky outcroppings and elevation change, maintaining this course isn't as simple as hopping on your riding mower on a Saturday morning. This course is free to play, but there is a donation box at the course sign and I'd encourage everyone to at least throw a few dollars in for some desperately needed new tee signs.

The Tailings scores high marks for exquisite natural beauty. When I'm nearing 150 courses played and can say I've never seen another course like this, that's what traveling to try new courses is all about for me. I almost didn't make the trek over here from Iron Mountain because of how punishing I knew it was going to be at the end of the day, but I just couldn't pass up the opportunity. The elevation change is spectacular, and water hazards along and over the Iron River are incorporated as well. This leftover mining area has been reclaimed by nature and is one of the coolest settings for disc golf I've seen in the midwest.

Make no mistake, this course will use every shot in your bag, and is quite difficult. It is absolutely possible to shoot near par here, but mistakes will cost you - mostly in the form of hunting for discs in literal thickets. Amenities here are pretty limited. Tees are rubber and baskets are basic, and the maintenance leaves something to be desired - and I still loved it (the short tees are concrete, but as things were so poorly marked here, I stuck to the longer rubber tees).

It was completely dead when I was at The Tailings and I suspect it is almost never busy. It's kind of out of the way and is a tough course you aren't just going to hit for a quick, casual round. I still think I managed it in just over 1.5 hours solo, so it didn't actually end up taking that long, but you'll get an intense workout going uphill and downhill on most holes. There are some more open shots, but they still have relatively contained fairways. A lot of holes are pretty wooded and several have crazy height differential.

There are a few hole notes to be aware of - on hole 6, there are insanely deep pits off to the left that are fenced off. If your disc hooks over here, you will not get it back, and if you try to, you honestly might be risking your life. There are some no-joke slopes over this way and they are fenced off for a reason. The pits also have water at the bottom of unknown depth. Similar pits exist to the left of hole 9. Walking along holes 7 and 8, I was looking up at these crazy stone bluffs on the left between the pits and thinking how cool it would be to have holes way up on the bluff - but it sure would be a trek up there.

Hole 11 is a really cool shot from crazy high elevation down to a semi-open area along the Iron River. The landing area here could really benefit from a rough cleanout; with the elevation, your disc can go so far and around a somewhat blind dogleg left that it's a miracle I found my lie.

The course has a few benches but you're going to be doing a lot of trekking without relief. It really is worth it; the scenery here is just so different from most courses, I'd rank this in the top 3-4 of the 12 courses I played on this trip.

After throwing across the river on hole 17, the walk to the basket is a bit long since you have to go down to the bridge, but it's not a huge deal. This feels like a long round of 18 holes, but it's an excellent use of the land available without forcing extra holes in like some courses try to do.

The only safety hazard I noted was hole 1's fairway interferes with a walking path a bit. This area was pretty empty so it's not too big a deal. From the parking lot to tee 1, you do have to cross a path used by ATVs a lot, so just be aware of some very fast moving vehicles. Navigation was pretty difficult here. The course map made it possible but the complete lack of tee signs on most holes and mostly nonexistent navigation aids definitely didn't help things. Signage improvements really would put this course on a new level even without cleaning up the rough.

Overall, it's pretty obvious I really enjoyed this course. I strongly encourage anyone remotely close to give it a try as long as you have some patience and can accept The Tailings for what it is, an absolute diamond in the rough that, well... is still in the rough, big time. This is what I came to the UP for.

The Tailings is a rough and tumble disc golf experience. It looks like the course is being more cared from than it used to be judging from some of the older reviews. That being said, it's still a rugged course in many aspects.

The tee pads here are solid. There's 2 tees on every hole now. The longs are rubber mats, which were some of the better ones I've ever seen. Don't recall seeing ones like this before but they were really nice and grippy. Nice sized too. The short pads are now concrete. A little on the smaller side but plenty sufficient for the distances for the distances on most of the shorts.

The baskets are some older Mach's. These were is solid shape and caught pretty well, or as well as old Mach's can catch. One pin and pin position per hole.

The course starts and ends right near the parking area. Hole 17 is a cool shot over the river with a pretty small, maybe 30' by 30' safe landing area between the brush on either side and deep and the river short. The course features a pretty solid amount of elevation throughout. Not ski hill level, but enough to keep it interesting. None of the holes are super wooded but there's trees to contend with on nearly every hole, forcing you to shape different shots to score well.

The distances are generally on the shorter end of the spectrum by today's standards, but there's a couple holes where you can kind of let loose. Placement is key here though. You don't need a huge arm to score well here but you better be accurate.

The course probably isn't ever really to busy so you'll most likely have the run of the place most days. The course is permanent and free to play. Water can come into play on numerous holes. The mix of trees, wind and water here is the trifecta of disc golf course design and challenge. It has them all. The design to fit 18 holes in this area is really well done.

The tee signs, or lack of, is kind of annoying after awhile. The holes where you really wish there was a hole map on the sign there isn't. The majority of the tee signs are either missing altogether of damaged making the worthless other than the hole #.

The flow of the course is pretty easy to follow for the most part, but there are numerous places where getting turned around or having to wander a bit is going to be a likely occurance. There were some next tee signs throughout which were extremely helpful. Would be nice to see a few more of these. There's also a few longer walks in between holes. Bottom line is a map is recommended for first time players.

The rough here is THICK. You can tell that tey've been doing a lot of work to beat some of this back, but it's still thick. Ending up off the fairway presents a very realistic pssibility of losing a disc. Some of the areas are borderline impenetrable.

Other's have mentioned it not being in the best of areas. I didn't really get that vibe while here. The neighborhood is kind of run down looking but it didn't seem too sketchy today. Maybe I caught it on an off day.

There's a fairly busy walking trail that can come into play on a number of holes that run along the river. It's not the busiest path but I did see at least 3 different people walking it today. An errant shot from either of the big downhill holes could be problematic.

I'd been wanting to get up to the Tailings for years now and was finally able to today. It's some damn fun disc golf, that's for sure. Is it a destination course? Probably not, but it's definitely worth a stop if you're anywhere nearby. Expect to take an hour and a half at least and coming out tired and probably with a lighter bag. Nice to see the work being done here though. I just wish I could've seen it in it's truely gnarly days, just once at least. Really fun course though.

The Tailings is an 18-hole course in Iron River, MI. Iron River is a small city that is in a thinly populated area of the western Upper Peninsula - about an equal 90 minute drive from Marquette, Houghton, or Ironwood. The course plays on a steep hillside next to the Iron River, through what used to be an open pit mine. As other reviewers have noted, "Tailings" refers to the waste minerals that are left over in mining after the valuable "concentrate" minerals are extracted.

The disc golf itself here is simply epic. The Tailings has a little bit of everything. There are significant elevation changes on many holes, including some of the most extreme downhill throws I have ever seen. There is rollaway potential, not only from missed putts but also on some fairways. There is great variety in distance, from about 200' to 600'. The course lacks the tight wooded holes found on many other UP courses, but there are enough obstacles and elevation changes to force shot shaping on most holes. Water comes into play on several holes as well.

The course is full of memorable holes. A few of my picks:
- The opening hole plays 300' along a flat grassy plain to a basket perched on top of a small mound. Be careful, the river is on your left throughout the hole and also behind the basket.
- Hole 4 plays 340' downhill, with a fairway that curls to the left and then back to the right. A small creek (dried up when I played) slices across the fairway diagonally from right to left. The basket is tucked into some trees to the right. Beautiful hole.
- Holes 7 and 8 play near the old mining pit. It is off to the left side of the fairway. They built a little fence here but if you throw into this pit, your disc is gone even if it doesn't go into the water at the bottom. It's basically a sheer cliff.
- To reach hole 11's long tee, you have to pick your way up a steep rock face. Finally you reach the top of the world, with who knows what lurking in the tall grass behind the tee. Then turn around and you will be treated to an incredible view across the Iron River valley. The wind is blowing here even on a nice day. Way downhill and probably 350' away is the short tee for the same hole. Thick trees and lose-your-disc rough line both sides of the fairway. I haven't ever felt this much adrenaline on a disc golf course, other than maybe running into a moose at Kincaid Park in Alaska (by the way, I ran into two deer and a snake on this course as well). I actually felt compelled to say "goodbye" to my disc before launching it off this tee. Then I threw a great shot that pegged a tree right in front of the short tee and stopped dead, only a couple feet off the fairway. The hole turns left at the short tee and goes another 250' to the basket. Par 4 according to the hole info here, but better players could card a very memorable birdie.
- Hole 17 is the shortest on the course at only 210', but it is a NASTY little water carry across the rushing Iron River which spans from maybe 125' to 175' off the tee. A single large tree on the basket side of the river sits directly in the ideal RHBH line. This tree has probably sent dozens of unfortunate discs to Davy Jones's Locker. I laid up with my putter.

The baskets are DGA models, and despite the condition of most other amenities (see Cons) these were in fine shape. There is a kiosk at the front of the course with a course map. Take a photo of this or download the one here, as you will need it.

Most of the other amenities here leave a lot to be desired. There are two tee pads per hole, meant to provide a long and short layout. The short pads are mostly concrete and looked like they were relatively new, but the long pads are just rubber mats. The rubber was OK for me but conditions were perfect when I played. I bet these are slippery when wet, so hopefully long concrete pads are in the works. I don't mind the decision to pour the short pads first, as this course is much closer to being a reasonable play for locals from the shorts. From the longs, it is an epic adventure but it's going to be too much for most casual DG'ers.

Most of the tee signs shown in the photos here are gone entirely, and the few that are remaining are mostly broken. The "Next Tee" signs that are present consisted of scrap pieces of trash (mostly looked like red plastic plates) with arrows Sharpie'd on, pinned to trees. More of these are needed. I used the map for navigation many times, including on some longer walks (e.g. between holes 1-2 and 15-16).

I cannot stress enough that this course is 100% NOT suitable for families, non-DG'ers, or even any DG'ers who are not sure-footed. Your cart is not going to fare well either. The only people who should attempt to traverse this course are DG'ers and non-DG'ers who are in good physical shape, have grippy shoes or boots on, and are excited about a fairly strenuous hike.

The rough here is wild, and in some places dangerous. I was surprised I got through the entire course from long tees in late September without losing a disc. The weeds are probably even thicker in the summer. They will not only hide discs but also scratch and cut you. There are also steep drop offs near some fairways, and I don't just mean the mining quarry near holes 7 and 8. Even if you keep it on the fairways, some of the walks between holes are very steep as mentioned above. Someone tried to cut some stairs into the rock between hole 10 and 11 but as of my visit I would call these "out of order".

There were some other safety issues too. A few tees are very much in play near the basket/fairway of the previous hole. After the walk up to hole 11, you tee off back over hole 10's green. Sure you are well above it, but what if you hit a tree? Several other holes play near or along a walking/hiking path. I was the only disc golfer on the course when I visited, but the path was getting quite a bit of use and I had to wait on a couple of occasions for people on the path to clear from my firing line. There are also some blind throws towards the path, the worst being hole 13.

Extras like trash cans, benches, porta potty, and practice basket are all missing. Even the parking lot is worth mentioning as a Con. It is basically a rutted out dirt cul-de-sac that was partially flooded when I visited, despite the fact that it hadn't rained in at least 3-4 days. The only good thing I can say about the lot is that you can see the kiosk and hole 18's basket from it, so you can at least reassure yourself that you are in the right place.

This one had been on my radar for over a year. I found this course/page when planning a visit to the Upper Peninsula in August 2020, and it immediately caught my intrigue. Unfortunately, the course is so far away from most of the other things my girlfriend and I wanted to see and do in the UP that there was only one day where it really made sense to fit it into the schedule. When that day came, the weather turned out to be steady, cool rain - not ideal when we still had hours of driving ahead of us. Even so, we took a 5 minute detour off of US-2 so that I could walk out with my umbrella and see the kiosk and first tee. I vowed to return, and on a perfect late September day over a year later I finally did.

In short? The Tailings is an awesome course that you should experience if you are a serious and able-bodied disc golfer anywhere near the area. From the short tees, other disc golfers could cautiously take in some of the unique Tailings experience while minimizing chances of injury and disc loss. The course is free to play, but I left a few dollar bills in a donation box next to the kiosk. If you make the trek out here, you should do the same. The lack of maintenance was expected from reading all the previous reviews, but still disappointing. Like the Tailings that it is named for, this course feels kind of discarded and cast off. With some consistent TLC and a few tweaks to address the safety issues, it could be an absolute 5-disc gem.

Challenging course. but with playable challenge that has actual thought behind it.

Great hole designs

Good mix of shots needed

Nice variation of shots needed

Location is awesome- amazing use of topography.

Good tee signs, some have been vandalized though.

Nice rubber pads.

NO trash at all.

Remote- was a little hard to find, had to ask a fisherman where to start.

Tough to navigate- Next tee signs would completely alleviate this.

NASTY rough. I lose 4 dics playing a solo round here on decent shots and searched a long time for some others that were barely, if even off the fairway at all. One I hit MAYBE 2 feet off the fairway and knew exactly where it was and could not locate it. The huge downhill shot I knew for a fact I was going to lose one without a spotter, but i let it rip because it was such a cool hole, I made a decent shot, heard it hit reasonably clean, and never saw a glimpse of the disc again. I get that this is due to the remoteness of the course and lack of people playing it, but it has to be mentioned.

An occasional ATV buzzed by, but not a big deal.

Some of the hills are a little treacherous to navigate.

This is an amazing course, it really is. It's up there with some of the top courses in Michigan for sure. It has everything- uphill, downhill, blind, water in play, bombers, technical shots,ETC.

It has a "cool" factor that IMO is only beaten by Flip City, and that is saying something. The old strip mine quarry pit, railroad arches, ETC are something that you will never see on another course.

The rough is a total beast, and playing this course alone is tough.Even the fairways in some areas are pretty rugged. You can honestly expect to lose a disc or 2 during a solo round, and it's a legit risk even with a spotter just due to the growth of the rough.

The rubber pads are nice, but concrete pads would really set this course off.

What this course honestly needs is just people to play it and get it worked in a little, and a local club to take care of it. I know that's asking a lot since Iron River is so remote and such a small town.

Of The few negatives it does have - rubber pads on longs, dirt on shorts ( some shorts had rubber) is not that big of a deal. The remoteness of the course is awesome and is one of the big cool parts of it, but it also leads to the harsh rough and not much traffic to get the course beat in is probably the biggest issue with it.

Overall this course is awesome, and is one of the coolest courses I have ever played, It really is a shame that it will never get the kudo's it deserves since it is so out there.

It really is a a great course, and in terms of hole design itself, it would easily be a 4.5. It really is a shame that this course will prob never reach it's potential. If this course was in a populated area and had regular traffic and cement pads, it would be talked about as a destination course nationwide- I am being 100% serious on that.

People should really try and play this course, I plan on making the 11 hour trip back next summer to play it again, hopefully with some friends.

This course has plenty of elevation and uses it well. There are a number of really cool holes. Everyone mentions the basket in the middle of the huge arch. But also there's a hole across the river. And I thought 10 was a great, tough, uphill hole with low clearance - not super long but still a tough 3. Plus several top of the world type shots (a rarity east of mountain time). The pads and baskets are in good shape. The course was also not crowded - we were there on a Saturday afternoon in July and saw one other group (and a couple people out hiking / biking.)

The rough is the worst sort -- it's very hard to find a disc, but often not bad to throw out of. The combination of this rough and blind downhill holes is a recipe for lost discs. We used spotters on many holes still lost one disc and nearly lost several other (15+ mins of searching).

The course doesn't flow too bad, but it is a bit tricky to navigate in places -- I was glad to have a map. It also isn't obvious from the parking lot that you've even successfully found a disc golf course. I like that there are tee signs, but in many cases they aren't very helpful and you still have to walk the hole.

There are a decent number of holes which just feel like filler between the cool holes.

The course would also be dangerous if it ever got crowded (admittedly unlikely) -- a decent number of holes throw close to each other. (Between the overlapping holes and the lost disc problem, this would be a terrible course to hold a tournament at.)

Aesthetic-- plays through an old Iron mine (I think) many of the structures still remain in "ruin" form. Open strip mines remain and offer an awesome vista from the 7,8,9 pads. Off-road trails run parallel with the course and the ever present sound of two stroke engines is a little distracting.

Teepads-- the best rubber teepads that I have ever seen. Diamond plate pattern cut into them makes them super grippy even when wet. The short tees are trail pack and can be a bit difficult to find as they were added after the original build and tend to be a bit sunken.

Baskets-- Brand new DGA baskets. Highly visible with bright orange necks. This is vitally important as many of the shots are blind.

Teesigns-- where there are teesigns (many are missing, more to come) they are fairly accurate, #13 is a bit wonky trying to figure out the exact layout of the hole. The Map helps though.

Routing and nav-- easy easy. the map is essential to successfully navigating this course. Next tee signs from 1 to 2 are very helpful.

Variety-- This course offers every type of hole you could want with the exception of wide open bomber.

Elevation-- Brilliant use of elevation and natural topography. I think that every bit of creativity was squeezed into this course and it shows.

Uniqueness-- There are some very unique looks here. #5 with its ancient brick oven ruins #9 with the use of the concrete arch for basket placement, #10 up and around the bend with the crazy awesome road running around it. #11 with it's huge sweeping left with completely unforgiving rough on either side. #13, I don't think there is any other hole like this anywhere. crazy hard hyzer almost feeding back into itself. #17 is the shortest hole on the course but throws back over the Iron River.

Solitude-- one of my favorite things about playing a disc golf course like this is the ability to completely lose yourself into the course and surround yourself in nature and your game. This course has the unique ability to do all of these things in a very beautiful way. This is a very very special course.

As mentioned previously, many of the teesigns were missing but with the distances and map that are available in 4G service here, there really isn't a need and these are forgivable.

This is just such an amazing course in every way. Many minor issues are completely forgivable as the local scene doesn't really take care of this course. The Course was relatively recently mowed when we were there which was really really welcome.

2017 Update: when we got to this course in early October, course was EXTREMELY overgrown. To the point of nearly unplayable. There was something going on between holes 3 and 4 where the entire hillside was being pushed down. It's disappointing to say the least what has happened to one of my favorite courses... Needs TLC badly.

The course plays on a hilly wooded property. Elevation changes on many holes add some great challenges and some fun variety. There are a couple steep hills, including some tough uphill shots and some fun downhills. Some of the pin placements offer some cool protected greens and some rollaway potential.

Most of the course plays with defined fairways and thick woods and rough if you miss your line. You will definitely pay for errant shots here, accuracy is a premium. There's a solid mix of hole shapes, calling for a balance of left and right turning shots of all different lengths. The signage is decent, most holes have tee signs with hole length and shape, and there are a few next tee signs.

Some of the signage is missing, not a huge deal but it could be a problem if vandalism is the cause and it continues. The long tees have rubber mats, most were in good shape, but a handful were lumpy or sloped with poor footing. The short tees are small and poorly laid, most were rocky, rutted and sloped. I can't imagine they get much play, especially with signage only at the longs.

Several of the holes here offer pretty open lines, with dense rough as the only real obstacle, a little more wooded tunnel golf would be my preference. The rough here is some of the nastiest I've seen, especially since it was encroaching on most of the fairways leaving lost disc potential even for good shots (one basket was surrounded by knee high plants). The walking path is in play on a few holes, with blind shots at times that could be a safety issue with pedestrians present. A couple holes have the next tee too close to the basket, if multiple groups are playing there could be some conflict.

Beginners won't have much fun here, there are lots of tough shots with distance, elevation, and really punishing rough. More experienced players will find some great shots here, with cool variety and tough challenges. With some maintenance and improvements, this could be a really cool course worth going out of your way to play. At the moment, it's got some fun moments but it's also a disc eater, I wouldn't play it without someone to help spot.

The Tailings is situated on a very unique piece of land with interesting natural features and cool manmade structures. The designers did a great job of incorporating these features and structures to create varied shots and interesting hazards. The design has you throwing left, center, right, up, down and waaaaaay down from the tee. The river plays a role on several holes and deep pits on a couple other holes threaten to gobble plastic. Distances are varied and there are a couple opportunities to air it out. There are major elevation changes on several holes.
Course peripherals are solid. Baskets are still new and have number signs. The tees are level rubber pads. The rubber provides good traction when dry. Don't know how they fare in the rain and wet. Signs are present at the tees, providing a sufficient model of the hole with the distance. Most signs have a 'next tee' icon, which is useful.
I was the only player on the course for both my rounds on a gorgeous Friday morning/afternoon. The course was clean and mostly free of litter. Good opportunity to scope some wildlife. I saw no fewer than three deer and a very entertaining gaggle of baby ducks with parents on the river. I also get the impression that an encounter with less-friendly wildlife is not outside the realm of possibility (I'm lookin' at you, Mr. Bear).

The course is young and still raw. Even the (comparatively) tame fairways are a treacherous jumble of stones, rubble, stumps, grass, gravel and mining detritus. Departure from the fairway can be excessively punitive, as the rough in certain areas is nigh on impenetrable when attempting to retrieve a disc. The extreme terrain and the slag from clearing the course combine to force some hairy disc rescue operations. Certain areas dictate a drop as the only reasonable choice.
While the essentials like baskets and tee pads are solid, the course is a bit lacking in amenities. Trash receptacles...where are they? However, despite the lack of trash cans, the course was very clean. No benches to speak of. Adding benches on a couple of the holes would be huge. I'm thinking primarily of #11, where such a climb should be rewarded with a proper sit, and the view is deserving of a bench. Speaking of the climb on #11, an emergency rope would take a bit of the fear out of the descent (I nearly had a brownout in my shorts on the way down...terrifying).
Navigation isn't a huge problem, but there are a couple places where some additional clarification would come in handy. On a couple of the holes (the #2,3,4,5,6 cluster) the 'next tee' icons on the signs were not effective for me.
Some folks will see the rubber pads as a con. There are no bathrooms onsite. The ORV path can be a bit of a nuisance if you're looking for real solitude.

PLAY THE TAILINGS. The Tailings has the potential to be legendary. The land is full of interesting quirks and features that create serious character and charm. The river is beautiful. The crumbling brick structure between #4 and #5 and the arches on #9 are completely unique and hearken back to a once thriving mining industry. The course is distinctively 'Northwoods.' To their credit, the designers took advantage of all these things to create a fun and exciting course.
Assuming the Tailings continues to receive the present level of care and attention, use and age will benefit the course the most. It seemed to me that the course is still breaking in, which accounts for the rough around the edges vibe. If the course gets sufficient play the edges will smooth over time.
In the meantime, proper footwear (read: hiking boots w/ ankle support) is essential. Also, bring extra water. I didn't have a problem with the hike per se, but rather having to be constantly vigilant in my foot placement. Both fairway and rough present a persistent hazard of twisting an ankle. Long pants are also a good idea. If you are not confident in your ability to hit the fairway, a spotter is key. I played solo and spent a lot of time searching for errant throws. This is partially because I'm not that good, and partially because the rough is really, really rough.
From a roadtrip perspective, I'm not sure Tailings is in the 'destination' echelon just yet. However, it is certainly worth hitting if you are anywhere in the neighborhood (I drove 2 hours each way and was glad that I did). I really hope I have the chance to return at some point in the next couple of years to see how the course progresses. With some additional amenities and a bit of breaking-in, this course will be a destination.