Camp of the Tall Pines is on a terrific plot of land. From the drive there you will be fairly confident that it is going to be captivating visually. The folks that greeted us were extremely nice. They escorted us to the first tee and summarized the track.

Starting near the lodge, the first few holes play short to mid range through a fair amount of trees and a bit of variation in elevation. There are directional throws that need to be performed to set up pars, much less birdies. The fairways can be extremely narrow, and cut through narrow gaps between trees or low ceiling approaches. Holes 4 and 5 play with the property line along the left side, with a barbed wire fence to demarcate OB. 5 is a long haul to the top of the gradual incline.

The lines don't get any easier as you turn right to the 6th tee. The land levels off a bit but the trees are still constantly looming. Some areas are open, most of the time you will have to split a tight gap to reach them.

It will be a long day for most players here, especially the first time around. I would recommend making it the first course of the day if you're planning multiple rounds. Extremely challenging even on the shortest holes.

The course is falling into disrepair. Baskets are in good condition, but tees and signage are awfully tired. Signs are missing or sunbaked to the point of unreadable on many holes. The rubber pads are usually uneven and some are bumpy enough to make a run up difficult. One had washed away from the foundation and was down the hill.

Navigation was impossible to figure out once I got to hole 13, even with the map on my phone. We gave it up at that point, though I did see some of the tees and baskets as we moved back toward the car. The long holes are totally blind, and it is hard to determine where you are trying to end up. The earth is extremely rocky on the first several holes, and my feet were dead after playing Moon Mountain and Cloudcroft Community Mtn DGC earlier in the day.

It needs a bit of refurbishment at minimum. If it were my land I would move holes to the areas with more elevation change. I suppose they may use it to hunt. The fairways have lines that are next to impossible or don't make a lot of sense considering the way discs fly. Pin placements are in extremely hard to access places. Even if you kill the drive, you will be likely to bonk on the landing before air travel has concluded.

Looking at the photos, you can see how marvelous the landscape is here. They were taken some time ago. With some TLC and navigational aids I would bump the score to 4 at least. I don't mind a difficult course, but I was hoping for more. I love elevation change and the mountain aesthetic, but it is muted on this layout. The forrest is beautiful, but it is so hard to work through that frustration can kill the vibe.

I only got two thirds of the course complete, but saw much of the remainder on the walk out. It has some bright spots, but could be far better. It was kicking my butt, maybe I got a negative bias from being +17 after 12 holes. Worth a visit if you are near by, just to see the majesty of nature.

Very challenging with technical shots. Not the best course to start playing tournaments. This course puts a premium on accuracy and disc selection. The course is well marked and easy to navigate.

Offline shots will be punished severely. Uneven terrain and loose footing. Also the summer heat. Bring plenty of water and snacks.

This course is run by very nice people. The Baskets are great.

After playing Grindstone in Ruidoso several times and reading the reviews for this course I thought I'd make the drive down and give it a try.

My first "Pro" is that the owners of this private camp have installed an 18 hole disc golf course and allow us to play it for free. That's right, zero dollars and not even a donation box!

Innova Discatchers in like-new condition. Excellent tee signs and plenty of "next" arrows and outlined paths made navigation very easy. Rubber tee pads were in decent shape. Most were a bit lumpy and bumpy but they were all there. Two tees for eleven holes gives you an easier option on the tougher holes. So the course infrastructure is solid.

Distance varies from a very short 158' out to 625'. All holes play through trees so there are no "just crank it out there" shots. Everything has to be played with the trees in mind. Plenty of opportunity for BH/FH or RH/LH players. And if you've got a good overhand you can use it here in many places. Fairways are narrow on many holes and the rough is thick enough to punish errant shots.

I thought that I would enjoy this course more than I did, but overall I just found it average. It appears that many of the "tall pines" have died and been removed and what is left on many holes is a bunch of smaller 20' - 30' trees. With a good overhand or spike hyzer you can go over the top on some holes. Otherwise you'll be dealing with tight fairways and poke-and-pray holes.

Quite a few blind holes into thick trees, so a spotter is helpful.

Hole 17 is a good example. 430' down a narrow power line right-of-way and initially downhill then up. You can either try to pipe it down the narrow ROW or take it high and hope to land in a clearing. Odd are good that you'll be in the thick trees on one side or the other. Not so much a designed hole as one that used an existing (narrow) clearing.

After a while I found a lot of similarity. While the lengths varied and there was some uphill/downhill, many of the holes felt similar.

The ground is uneven with a lot of loose rock. Footing is an issue both throwing and moving between holes. Boots are a good idea here.

The course is well away from almost everywhere so be aware that you'll be off of the beaten path, no cell coverage, etc. The day I played I didn't see a single person (even staff) until I was driving out. I did meet the manager as I left and thaked her for allowing play on the course.

If you're in the Ruidoso/Cloudcroft area and have already played Grindstone, I'd give this one a visit. If you can play only one, I'd strongly suggest Grindstone in Ruidoso.

-A genuinely Challenging Championship course.
-Several holes require serious thought.
-Am pads that do even the playing field.
-Truly peaceful, outback location.
-Horses! Beautiful 'Paints' just being cool.
-Mix of Pins for both Risk and LONG Birdies.
-Cheap! Variety of Rustic Cabins and Camping.
-Some Big Air and Big Views
-Well marked trail signs at each basket.
-Huge Rustic Lodge w/ ping pong, deck, kitchen

-REALLY Tall trees favor thumbers/tomahawks.
-Some holes too dense: More luck than skill?
-Tough to play blind/solo/without spotting.
-Long way from anywhere.
-NO BEER within 1/2 hour's drive LOL.
-No short loops except maybe holes 12-16.
-Teepads can be slippery, a few need work.

Camp of the Tall Pines is located in the Southern San Francisco Mountains, about 90 minutes south of Ruidoso or east of Alamagordo. The nearest full services are in Cloudcroft, over a 1/2 hour away. While the course and location are not as rugged at Lindrith, it offers an inspiring outback experience. The Camp staff was friendly and welcoming, but this is no KOA: bring everything.

I played the course 5-6 times before and during the August 2014 'New Mexico Open', and some holes still owned me to the end. Many of the 83 players left as tired and humbled as I did, but I really think we enjoyed the challenge.

There is no doubt that accurate Big Arms with thumbers and tomahawks will find the course manageable. If you insist on hitting every tree and getting upset,...well....there you go.
From what I could tell, the Am Tees offered a significant break on all the long holes.

At par 62, there were plenty of birdies. Pros and short tee intermediates mostly shot under par. Long tee Advanced averaged under 70. But the tall trees can wear you down.

The middle of the course, from holes 5 thru 11, is a long way from the base. Plan on playing the whole course in about 2.5 to 4 hours. You can play a short loop from holes 12 to 16 by parking over in that area.

To me at least, Camp of the Tall Pines has the potential to be a 4+ star course. A crew with tools could shore up the tee-pads and take some of the luck out of the dense fairways. An alternative to big RHBH hyzers would make some holes more interesting.

Call first, bring everything, relax and enjoy the unique and rugged beauty of this course.

This course is set in the beautiful pine forests of southern NM. I did not see anyone else out there; the course was all ours. Great high quality DISCatcher baskets which came in handy on some long holes; the yellow band on top is easy to spot. Great mix of shots and pretty creative and challenging holes. Signage was pretty good when we found the 1st tee box. Rubber tee pads were in pretty good shape, only a couple had erosion problems. Free to play, very fun and challenging.

This course has too many trees and too long of holes. About 5 holes you can't see the basket and just need to follow the fairway (road) and stay out of the trees. Could use some clearing of trees to keep fun factor up and frustration down. Fairly good use of land, they could have fit twice as many holes in the given area and a few times you are walking downhill to a tee box rather than throwing to a basket near the tee box. With some TLC this course would be in my favorites.

It would really help to play this course with someone that has played here before and knows the course. It does get windy here so in the morning is the best time to play. Bring hiking boots and plenty of water. The 18 hole loop isn't broken down into two loops; it is just one big loop. Holes 2,3,4 there is some steep hiking until you make it up on the mesa. Watch out for the pond on #16. My favorite hole was 17; great course and very nice staff. I will play here again. ENJOY!

-Beautiful scenery away from the hustle of any city.
-Remote enough that we were the only people on the course
-Clean
-The signage is phenomenal. Easily some of the nicest hole info signs I have seen around NM courses. Also signs to the next hole help.
-Easy navigation once you find the first tee.
-Heavily wooded make you rely heavily on accuracy rather than distance. Adds new challenges to your game.
-Elevation changes create some exciting shot opportunities across ravines, etc.
-Course is well maintained.
Camping and cabins on the property.

-Fairways are tight and make you hit your lines. Not a beginner course at all.
-Some Am tees actually had more difficult lines than the pro tees.
-Marking for locating the first tee could be better.
-Can be windy

Rubber Tees, Well Marked, 2 sets of tees on most holes, a lot of elevation change, nice use of terrain

Alot of "strategically" placed trees

This was a beautiful course, be sure you are ready for a hike as the first 4 holes are a climb, a lot of birds (turkeys included), horned frogs and other wildlife made this a unique track to play through, definately worth the time to go out of your way.The only thing that keeps this course from being rated higher is as was mentioned in a previous review...there are many holes where you are simply chucking it into brush and hoping for the best, in particular holes 1, 2, and 14 come to mind.

Beautiful scenery and well marked; Well made "rubber-like" Pro and AM tees; I've played only twice before this course and I was still able to par 5 of 18 holes the last play through; Staff extremely friendly

Several holes give little option but to go over trees and without my daughter spotting for me I would have spent more hours than I did looking for some of my shots; Not sure if my arm was more sore from throwing discs or from throwing rocks to get my disc out of many trees; Hole 17 is down an extremely steep hill following a power line that was cleared and once it drifts left it can take a long time to find; I definitely recommend a spotter for hole 17.

Went to Camp of the Tall Pines to spend Memorial day weekend camping there. Being that it has been more than 5 years since I last played disc golf, I must say I was estatic once I found out they had disc gulf. Took the 3 and 4 year old boys through the course the first two times I played and I must admit the whole family had a great time playing/walking through the course. I'm now planning more camping trips near other courses close to El Paso. I was also told they have tournaments here every September.

This course is well marked, very tough and very scenic. The baskets are in good condition as well as the tee pads. This is a wooded course with a few cleared lanes for you to throw through.

There can be a fine line between throwing through a tight tunnel/window and simply throwing through a thicket of trees and getting lucky. On some holes it feels like the latter. The signs can be a bit miss leading at time about hole placement, causing you to throw to the wrong spot.

This is a great course and a breath of fresh air if you are tired of playing in wide open fields of grass. Nobody just "passes through" Weed NM on their way somewhere else so if you want to play this course you are going to have to go out of your way. It is on private property but when I called ahead to see if the course is open to the public they said it was and were very nice and accommodating to me.

This is my "One person ruins it for everyone" speech. Play your loud drunken games on some other course. This is a pristine walk through the woods where I saw deer, turkeys, rabbits, hawks and owls. What I didn't see was beer cans, candy wrappers and ipods hooked to speakers.

Also thumbers and spike hyzers may look tempting, but be warned that those pines trees will snag your disc. I spent 20 minutes throwing rocks up into a tree to get my Buzzz down. In my two times through the course I had to get about 4-5 disc's out of trees. You have been warned .

Sweet course very wooded alot of tight shot. course was still fairly new when play so ajustment still being made i belive good directions from hole to hole paths ect. overall i loved it

to many trees on some hole needs a lil clearing out have no choice but to go over tree
on jst a couple holes but not to bad.

looking forward to playing ther again soon!