WI to TN road trip

[ReinZ_96]

I'm going to be driving down to the Smoky Mountains in a few months for a family trip and I'm planning to make a course bagging adventure out of it. I don't have much time (or money) to spread out the drive any longer than necessary so I'm going to be taking 3 days down and 3 days back up, with 5 days in TN. Looking for some insight on my course plans, if I'm missing out on any hidden gems along the way, or any other relevant information anyone has to add.

Course itinerary ahead:

Day 1 out: Driving to Madison and playing both Elver Park and Heistand Park in preparation for possibly playing the Mad City Open over the summer. These two aren't really negotiable for that reason. Might need to find a way to squeeze in Vallarta-Ast for the same reason, but that's another $8 and some time I probably don't have. And, I tend to actually not play too bad when I play tournaments blind so maybe it's better I don't play it. haha.

Day 2 out: Driving all the way from Madison to Cincinnati. Playing Mt. Airy Forest that night then heading to my hotel.

Day 3 out: Playing (read, getting my ass kicked by) Idlewild in the morning then heading out on my way down to TN. Thinking about maybe stopping at Panther Creek State Park in the afternoon before I get to our cabin rental...but that seems like a long and rough day.

While in TN: I'll be very close to Gatlinburg, so I'm planning to hit the little 9-holer there just for bagging purposes. If I don't stop at Panther Creek on my way down, I'll be debating between heading up there for a Panther Creek and Morristown Kiwanis double header OR heading over to Harmon Hills. If I stop at Panther Creek on the way down, it's Harmon Hills 100%. This is that part of trip I've been debating the most on.

Day 1 return: Leaving in the morning and going over towards Knoxville to play The Claytons. Then up to Louisville to play Charlie Vettiner Park and sleep for the night. I'd be open to other suggestions in the Louisville area, for sure, as nothing in the area really stands out to me except for....

Day 2 return: Seviren Lang, which I'll be playing early in the morning out my way out of Louisville. Stopping in Madison again with no stops between Louisville and Madison to make sure I can get there early enough to return my rental car on time.

Day 3 return: Leaving Madison hitting a brand new course, Eagle Pines. Fingers crossed it's still unreviewed at this time and I can be the first one...but I'm not expecting that, haha. The heading towards Marshfield and playing North Park of Wood County to prep for a tournament I'll be playing the next weekend and maybe also hitting Braem Park in Marshfield before making the final 2 and a half hour drive home.

So, that's anywhere from 12 to 14 courses, if I can count properly, over 11 days depending how I plan it. Also, as many as 11 courses played for the first time if I get greedy, which is a good start to my very aggressive plan of getting to 150 before winter comes around again.

 

[wolfhaley]

Day 3 return: Leaving Madison hitting a brand new course, Eagle Pines. Fingers crossed it's still unreviewed at this time and I can be the first one...but I'm not expecting that, haha. The heading towards Marshfield and playing North Park of Wood County to prep for a tournament I'll be playing the next weekend and maybe also hitting Braem Park in Marshfield before making the final 2 and a half hour drive home.

If you wanted I could show you around North Park and Braem. Braem is about 2 blocks from me and North Park is about 15 minutes away. They're kind of my joint "home" courses. Both are pretty fun in my highly biased opinion but not spectacular. I got vacation to burn up anyway if it's during the week.

I can't speak for the last half of your trip since I haven't been to TN yet. But I liked Lincoln Ridge in KY better than Mt. Airy. Not to take anything away from Mt. Airy, but LR is like a mini Idlewild.

Sounds like a great trip though :thmbup:

Edit: I still haven't played Eagle Pines, but I plan on it once it gets warmer. I can save the first review for you if someone else doesn't get there first lol.

 

[ReinZ_96]

If you wanted I could show you around North Park and Braem. Braem is about 2 blocks from me and North Park is about 15 minutes away. They're kind of my joint "home" courses. Both are pretty fun in my highly biased opinion but not spectacular. I got vacation to burn up anyway if it's during the week.

I was expecting you to reply since I knew you were in the area and saw you were frequently in this part of the forum, lol. That day will be Wednesday May 19th and I'd definitely be up for being shown all the local routes on those courses.

I can't speak for the last half of your trip since I haven't been to TN yet. But I liked Lincoln Ridge in KY better than Mt. Airy. Not to take anything away from Mt. Airy, but LR is like a mini Idlewild.

I'll have to take a closer look into Lincoln Ridge. Sort just overlooked it since I've had Mt. Airy and Idlewild in my wishlist for years at this point so I didn't really consider anything else in Cincinnati.

Edit: I still haven't played Eagle Pines, but I plan on it once it gets warmer. I can save the first review for you if someone else doesn't get there first lol.

Haha, how considerate. I might stop at the course on my way back across the state to play the spring opener at the end of March if the weather is good so maybe you won't have to hold off your review for too long, depending when you get out there.

 

[wolfhaley]

I was expecting you to reply since I knew you were in the area and saw you were frequently in this part of the forum, lol. That day will be Wednesday May 19th and I'd definitely be up for being shown all the local routes on those courses.

I'll have to take a closer look into Lincoln Ridge. Sort just overlooked it since I've had Mt. Airy and Idlewild in my wishlist for years at this point so I didn't really consider anything else in Cincinnati.

I'll put in a vacation day for it tomorrow. I'll show you the local routes and then you can show me how to throw them. :hfive:

As for the second part. I've only played Idlewild, Lincoln Ridge, Boone Park I think it's called and Mt. Airy in the Cincy area. Idlewild is a must play (obviously), but Lincoln Ridge is pretty fantastic too. If Idlewild wasn't so close it'd get a lot more love than it does. But Mt. Airy is pretty damn good too.

I was kind of thinking of a TN trip next year for Harmon Hills actually. Yet to be determined, I need to take it one year at a time :doh:

 

[InnocentCrook]

Cincy/N. Ky local jumping in to back up what wolfhaley said. The Lincoln Ridge fun factor is through the roof. It really is an awesome little brother to Idlewild. Mt. Airy is definitely no slouch, but I enjoy LR a bit more. LR has the most elevation out of all of them.

If you skipped Mt. Airy you could get a hotel around Florence, KY and be very close to both LR and Idlewild.

-Shameless self promotion-
If you're passing through the area between Cincy to Louisville (and you have the time), feel free to hit me up for a round at Hidden Ridge. It's my own personal playground so to speak. Tons of elevation, ponds and creeks, true par 4's, wooded and open lines, etc. I can almost guarantee you'd have the course entirely to yourself regardless of the day and time you roll through. (To my knowledge you'd also be the first from Minn. to play the course.)

 

[thrembo]

The smokies have some of the best disc golf anywhere. We were up there a couple of years ago and were blown away by the courses. Morristown Kiwana's is very polarizing lol. I liked it. Kinda short and wonky but completely covered in rock formations and hills with a nice tree canopy. Harmon is nice of course. We paired it with the sweet Sugar Hollow course so we could bag VA. I remember liking the Tommy Shumpert course. There are a plethora of great courses in the area, but some of them are long and brutal, especially from the longs. Several trips will be required...

 

[discNDav]

I'd put Lincoln Ridge on your list, it's so close to Idlewild too. I've done both in one day but was exhausted. I've said it before, "Idlewild is a better course but Lincoln Ridge is more fun."

 

[ReinZ_96]

With 3/3 people who have input on the Cincinnati courses saying Lincoln Ridge is a must play, it seems like my plans are going to be Lincoln Ridge instead of Mt. Airy. Might need to leave a bit earlier from Madison that morning, but it should be doable.

 

[BogeyNoMore]

Sounds like a great trip. If you can fit them in, Panther Creek and Harmon are both phenomenal courses, with real elevation. Don't plan on just playing one, immediately followed by the other. A decent lunch break between the two should suffice, but both are totally awesome.

And I love me some Mt Airy!

Happy and safe travels to you!

 

[wolfhaley]

I'd put Lincoln Ridge on your list, it's so close to Idlewild too. I've done both in one day but was exhausted. I've said it before, "Idlewild is a better course but Lincoln Ridge is more fun."

I couldn't agree more. I also played them both the same day. Idlewild, grabbed some lunch quick, then Lincoln Ridge. I was wiped out after but it's definitely doable. We don't have hills like those two courses around here :|

And as for the last line, I couldn't have said it better.

 

[ReinZ_96]

Sounds like a great trip. If you can fit them in, Panther Creek and Harmon are both phenomenal courses, with real elevation. Don't plan on just playing one, immediately followed by the other. A decent lunch break between the two should suffice, but both are totally awesome.

And I love me some Mt Airy!

Happy and safe travels to you!

Right now I think I'm going to try to play Idlewild and Panther Creek on the same day then take a day for just Harmon Hills. I really would like to play them both as they do look phenomenal just from photos and video but it's mostly going to depend on how I feel after driving for 4 hours post-Idlewild. Either way, between hiking in the mountains and all the disc golf, I'm going to get home after this trip and want to sleep for like 3 days straight. haha.

 

[BogeyNoMore]

"Idlewild is a better course but Lincoln Ridge is more fun."

I think all but a few players would agree with this.

...and we're probably watching most of the players who don't agree.

That said, they're a wonderful pairing, because they complement each other well.