- Nestled in a dense, secluded woods next to an abandoned rail line, it's hard to believe this course is only 10 minutes from downtown Wilmington and five minutes from the I-95 freeway.

-The course design is outstanding. The front 9 plays through dense woods, with the back nine offering more opportunities for open drives. Par fours are mixed in. It makes excellent use of the elevation change and the two streams that cut through the course, requiring a variety of angles and unique shots. Fairways are clean enough that birdie is attainable on every hole (though not easy). Holes 5, 13, and 17 were particularly attractive downhill shots.

-Tee boxes are resourcefully cut out of an old turf football field. They are large and well-installed, some of the best turf tees I've seen. Each hole has a primary Dynamic Discs basket; several also have an older blue DGA basket in a shorter position.

-If a course is going to do a lot of variations, it needs to do them well. Here, some holes have multiple tees, some holes have multiple baskets, some holes have both, some holes have neither, and the quality of signage varies widely throughout. I think simpler would work better here.

-From reading older reviews, it is wonderful that the disc golf course has helped clean up the park. However, there is still a rough element to the area, evidenced by scattered trash, defaced tee signs, and old cars parked in secluded turnouts.

-Rough terrain. On several occasions you'll have to jump small streams, pick your way across larger ones, and navigate steep slopes. Not recommended for carts, young children or bad knees/ankles.

-I played during dry weather, but I imagine the chance of losing a disc would rise drastically after a heavy rain when the streams and low areas fill up. Several holes also have thick rough areas with potential for lost discs.

-The first tee is difficult to find, located in a wooded tunnel to the right of the short basket on #17. I believe the long tee for #1 is from the road, although it is unmarked.

-Canby Park is a terrific course and a great asset to the Wilmington area. Its convenient location is perfect for locals as well as anyone traveling through on I-95.

-This is a solid public course with 18 good holes of golf.
-There's a stream that runs through the park and adds challenge and beauty, but there's little risk of losing discs in the water.
-Some holes have multiple tees and baskets.
-Few thorns or nasty brush. My guess is there's little poison ivy, but I can't be sure since it was early March. Overall, it'd be hard to lose a disc here.
-Nice mix of open and wooded. Wooded holes have good fairways so you're not playing plinko.
-Navigation is decent.
-Free.
-Plenty of parking.
-Easy to find.
-18 hole loop brings you back to the parking lot.
-Nice mix of left-to-right and right-to-left holes. No holes are too short or too long. Good design!
-Turf tee pads are sweet. Nice and big with cool colors.
-Some nice uphill and downhill play. One hole in particular (13?) is a fun downhill mid-range bomb.

-It was muddy when I was there. Not too bad, but not great either.
-Navigation could be improved.
-Some of the signs are old and worn and it's not always clear which holes have multiple baskets and/or tees.

I played here once on a muddy afternoon in March. I had a really good time, in part because I ran into a nice local on the course and we played our round together. But also because it's a really solid course with interesting features, woods and open, and a stream that poses challenge without creating too much risk of lost discs. I could have rated it a 3 due to a few navigational challenges and confusion caused by multiple tees and baskets. But the turf tee pads are really nice and the multiple tees and baskets add more playability for returners than confusion for newcomers. I would love to call this my home course, but I live in Massachusetts. Definitely worth a round from anyone passing through the area.

Mostly wooded, with 4 open finishing holes




+ The course combines elements including woods, elevation and water into a set of holes that are puzzles to be worked out. You have to figure out the most important factor when standing on the tee (for example, there are holes where it makes sense to give up some distance in favor of placement; there are other holes - like #6 - which had a narrowing pinch in the fairway halfway up a long incline)

:
+ Multiple tees, multiple baskets, good signage

+ Turf teepads (in this case by "turf" I mean artificial turf that's been repurposed from athletic fields, so most tees include hash marks, portions of team logos, endzones, etc.)

+ Water comes into play during the closing holes. The water on #15, #17 and #18 is sneaky. It's a small stream just inside the woodline on #15. There's a fighting chance you'll have no idea it's there, but you're throwing from an open tee into the woods - and kicks off the trees can have surprisingly bad effects. The water on #17 is visible, circling the front of the green to make a partial island (with trees adding a low ceiling to the approach). The stream cutting across the 18th fairway is lined by trees that will catch your disc and drop it right into the water

- Next Tee signage is decent, but lacking in some spots. There are a few transitions where you have to hunt around for the next hole a bit

- Some missing short baskets (at least we didn't see them, so we played to the longs)

- This course is not very cart-friendly because of rugged terrain between some of the holes, and a small gorge you have to navigate through on Hole #6

~ My first impression was that Canby felt a little raggedy, a little rough around the edges (the turfed tees, some course overgrowth, etc.). But then I realized that Canby is surrounded by courses in State parks, which benefit from all the infrastructure and maintenance that comes with it

~ Canby is a very well-designed, volunteer-supported course located in a city park. A lot of attention has gone into developing multiple layouts, and the course is well worth multiple plays because of the clever use of woods, elevation, distance and hazards

~ Shout out to "friendly locals" - other players on the course called out to us when we were clearly having trouble finding the next hole. And we caught up with a pair on the final two holes who helpfully spotted our throws, and then helped me find a disc in the muddy stream on #18. I so often play disc golf alone that I forget how great this community is

multiple tee and basket options on most holes on a course designed upon land with wooded area and wide open fields..one of the best courses on in the philly region by far..kinda of a mix of sedgley brandywine and iron hill

the small creek needs a bridge on 18

I played this course in a different layout when it was first installed and the upgrades are tremendous..need to get back soon

+ Most of this course takes place in a peaceful woodsy part of a larger community park. Intent and accuracy will be in high demand here.
+ Most holes feature reliable 'next hole' arrows suspended from the baskets.
+ The hole info signs have it all: distances, pars, elevation to the pin and even the elevation of the tee pad itself (I'm assuming relative to sea level?)
+ There are creeks and streams all throughout this course. They add nice layers of character and risk to Canby- especially to the putting.
+ There are a fair few hills to work through here as well.
+ All holes have tee pads. Most are long and wide enough for a full wind-up. However...

- ...All tee pads are reclaimed turf from what looks like a retired football field, and a few are smaller than the others.
- Navigation is a little tricky here for first time visitors. For one example, there is an easily missed small path between holes 2 and 3.
- I didn't see a lost disc box or an information board anywhere.
- There is trash visible on almost every hole. Please don't litter, folks.
- Only the long tees have the hole info sign, and only the long baskets have the 'next hole' arrow- some of which were split in half.
- Holes 14, 15 and 16 are neighbors. This risks a small chance of putting other golfers in danger.
- The white baskets are numbered, but the blue baskets are not for some reason. As a result, I ended up treating 17blue as a second practice pin without realizing it...!
- Watch your step here. Exposed roots, slippery rocks and other hazards can lead to trips, slips and falls.

My favorite hole to play here was 13 because it was the lengthiest drop in elevation with a serpentine stream all over the bottom waiting to bathe your disc. My favorite hole to look at was 5 because it appeared like a haunted path to an old witch's house. And that clearing near the end with the stream by the basket was a pleasant sight. My least favorite hole might be 9 because of how plain and direct it is.

As for the course as a whole, I liked what I experienced here. It's a little rough around the edges with the navigation issues I mentioned earlier. The plainly visible garbage didn't help things, and the underwhelming basics subtract from the fluidity of the course. In spite of those things, the course still gets a better-than-average rating from me because of the solid golf and smart usage of this park's natural features.

in a certain way, Canby West reminds me of an accessible combination of certain nearby courses. It's got a more manageable version of the woods, roots and rocks that a more treacherous course to the west would have and a toned-down version of the kinds of wide-open hilly fields that you'd encounter at a pasture course just to the north.

Yet Canby still has unique features of its own to set it apart from other courses. An easy example is hole six with its fallen tree. It looks as though the massive trunk was purposely tipped over to create the perfect platform to bridge the gap from one side of a steep stream to the other. There are other examples, but just know that Canby does have a flavor to call its own.

Bottom line: Canby West lacks refinement, but the 18 holes on offer here are good enough to make that seem like just a detail. Bring your best tree-dodging skills and give Canby West a try.

Good mix of wooded and open holes. Multiple lines to throw, multiple basket locations and tee pads. Tee pads are artificial turf from a football stadium, that drain properly. Even in wet conditions, the pads are not slick. Very fun to play.

Location.

Great wooded course hidden off MD Ave!
Awesome turf pads and baskets.
Never too busy
Nice variety of tight shots from each pad.
Awesome for putter/mid rounds

(Don't let the other reviews keep you away, ppl from outside the area don't know what they are talking about. This course is SAFE)

Non golfers often leave trash or broken glass on the walking paths

Whoever put this course together needs huge praise.

Most tee pads are nice new boxes made using turf from sections of Princeton's old football field. Adequate signage makes the course easy to navigate. Well-maintained fairways due to course layout, foot traffic, and proper landscaping. The course requires a good variety of skills due to the variety of each hole (uphill, downhill, tunnel, heavily wooded, S-curve, wide open, bank right w/ mando, water hazards, etc). Several scenic-yet-enjoyable holes (5, 6 from the top tee, 13, to name a few)

Tends to get swampy after periods of heavy rain (as many courses do)

Clearly a lot of recent work has been done on this course. The multiple layouts offer great variety and the clever use of natural features and obstacles allows young players to hone their skills and learn new shots while simultaneously offering enough challenge to seasoned players to keep them coming back.

Well designed uses the terrain really well. Great mix of wooded and more open shots. Very wild terrain considering it right next to Wilmington.

Natural tees. use the map for finding some tees.

Great course! it will be a 4.5 star course once the tees are installed. The other reviews here are outdated. I didn't see any evidence of a bad neighborhood. Course was pretty free of litter etc.

Multiple tee and pin positions.
Tee signs for every hole.
Great risk/reward shots.
Fair for both left handers and right handers.
Wide variety of technical shots, tunnel shots, bomber holes, and elevation changes.
The short layout is great for new players.
The long layout is challenging for pros, but not Iron Hill difficult.
There is a lot of OB, but you never feel cheated by it. It enhances the course instead of taking away from it. It's not like courses that put artificial OB everywhere to artificially make the course more difficult.

2 of the holes are a little bit "poke and hope"y.
Occasionally there will be trash and some other shady business going on. The disc golf course has really turned the park around though and it should continue to get even better.

Needs tee pads, but they are coming soon.

Don't go by the old reviews. People always want to give a course bad reviews before it's even finished. The course has come a long way and brought the rest of the park with it. Most people consider Canby the second best course in DE, only behind Iron Hill.

18 technical and fun holes with color coded dual tees and/or dual baskets playing through an urban hilly forest park and across a couple streams. Nice tee signs, and next tee arrows on baskets making navigation easy. Mostly disc golf only area of park.

Excellent course design utilizing the available elevation and terrain features providing great variety of challenges and some fun downhill holes faced with risk and reward choices. Underbrush appears to be well maintained and low chance of disc loss.

Some of the natural tees are a bit rough. Only one loop of 18 holes back to parking lot. Hole 1 long tee plays from the park road, holes 11, 12 long, and 17 long plays across the park road and throw from 17 may potentially interfere with hole 1 tee areas.

Plays next to train tracks and located in da hood. Lots of evidence of smashed glass car windows in the parking lot and some shady characters, keep valuables out of sight and beware your surroundings.

Canby West was better than I expected, the front 9 reminded me of a longer Sedgely and shorter Tyler, and the back 9 reminded me of a mini Brakewell Steele back 9, I believe the total course layout I played was right about 7000' long.

Hole 1 is a cool tunnel shot starting off. I really liked the uphill hole 4 even though I made the cardinal sin and kicked left down the cliff. Memorable hole 6 tees off by the train tracks and interesting building structure covered in graffiti playing across the high voltage easment to an elevated and protected green. Holes 11, 12 and 13 provide consecutive fun and challenging downhill shots. Hole 17 was probably my favorite playing a long downhill turnover to essentially the long basket on an island. Hole 18 was a good finishing hole as well.

I think many of the con issues of previous reviews have been rectified by the local club like signage and trash on the course. The biggest issues here currently are the lack of tee pads and the menaces of society in the neighborhood. Overall I'd say that Canby as a course is technically one of the best in Delaware for intermediate to advanced level players. With some sweet concrete tees and crime prevention Canby can be grrreat!

Mix of tight technical wooded holes and long open straight holes.
Free.
Pretty good mix of flight paths - forehand or backhand players can both enjoy.
Not busy, at least when I went. Actually we saw almost NO ONE the whole time.

The park itself is just sort of dirty. There seems to be twenty years worth of collected litter strewn all over the place.
The signage really is very poor.
The course seems to meander a bit (and yet still be rather tightly packed in, somehow) which makes navigating very tricky.

Canby Park is 10 minutes from where I've lived for years, but I didn't even know they had a course until I found this site. I decided to give it a shot because it's a local course I'd not played.
Overall I thought this was a reasonably acceptable course - by the time I got done. First impressions were not great; on the drive in you see a rock spray painted 'disc golf' and an arrow pointing to the left, and that's ALL the direction you get. After parking and looking around a bit we found the first tee (natural and unmarked), but then had to wander some more to find the first basket. From the first basket throughout the course there is very little signage, except for some spray painted markers and little plastic flags here and there. Occasionally a Good Samaritan has made notes in permanent marker on some of the baskets to give clues as to the location of the next tee,but there are also occasionally multiple tees so it can be challenging to navigate. Up through the fourth hole I was pretty disappointed with the course, they were all pretty short and so heavily wooded that it was really hard to get through at all. The sixth hole finally opened up a bit, though, and I really liked that hole (but I warn you now NOT to go exploring the concrete bunker you'll see on the right - it's a drainage culvert and not pretty); the tee faces a small gorge with a creek and you get a nice long uphill throw to an open(ish) fairway, and you get to balance across the creek on a fallen log (you could easily cross on the ground, too). But when you finish the hole you have to search for a while to find the next tee - and there are three baskets (6, 7, and 11) in a very small area to choose from! Then you proceed through some more relatively open wooded holes (you can actually throw long but unless you're amazing you're going to hit a tree) before popping out to an open field after hole 11, where you promptly lose the course because there's no marked tee for 12 in site. Two marked PATHS out of the woods, one for 12 short and one for 12 long, but then - just field, with one basket in view a very very long way away. After all these tight wooded holes we were pretty excited to just unwind and throw some bombs, but alas, when we got to the basket it said 14. So no 12 or 13. 15 is a nice long throw back into the woods, 16 is a nice long throw back into the field, and 17 is a nice long throw towards the woods, over the creek again and back to the car. BUT WAIT, you say? That's right, no 18 to be found either, or at least not easily. There are TWO baskets marked 17 about 50-60' apart, though, across the road from each other. Final impression: it's an ok course (albeit confusing and mildly frustrating) and it's worth a play if you're close, but don't make a day trip for it. We've got much better courses 15-20 minutes away.

Not being a local, I'm unaware of the neighborhood problems. But I am already seeing some signs of building a course in this city type environment . The # 1 basket is already dented up. Before putting any signage in, think long and hard about making them vandal proof. Go for simple heavy duty engraved metal signs rather than pretty carved wooden ones or the traditional fiberglass signs. Those signs would get trashed here.

# 4 was an uphill toss with the big log in the way, The basket was sponsored by Disc Nation. Thank you Disc nation. I liked the basket area around # 5. It was pretty.

I thought # 13 was the signature hole on the course. A simple little 200 downhill ACE run.

Course need a lot of work still. Will get better as paths and routes are worn and easy to follow.

Signage or lack there of.

Tough neighborhood. Vandalism will be a constant problem. Plan for it and take steps to overcome it.

Natural tee pads aren't the best.

You're off to a nice start with Canby West DGC. Dealing with the teen vandals will be frustrating for both the players and the course designers. Go for industrial strength signage over pretty. You'll be glad.

Good luck with your battle.

First off, i have to commend the people who established this coure the area where this course is not the best area and neither was the park, however the troublemakers that used to hang out here are gone. I think that this is because of disc golf. Great job locals!

Variety- hole distance varied from about 200-450 ft. You have to be able to shape your lines and execute some different shots in order to score well here. There are some open holes, however none really entirely open holes, depending on what you consider 17 and 18. I think this aspect of the coursw is solid. All holes have multiple teepads and some have multiple pin placements.

If i was giving a rating for soley how they used the land they were given it would totally be a five. They turned a somewhat marshy, small plot of land where gangs used to hang out and made it into a solid course. You have to take the course for what it is and appreciate the fact that there is alot of work put into the course.

Navigation- it is somewhat difficult to find the course and signage on the coirse is relatively non existant

Stone dust/ gravel teepads - these do not provide great footing but are better than. The natural teepads that most holes have

No signage- some holes you could not see the basket nor would you know the distance making disc selection more complicated than it should be.

Tee markes are painted rock and sometimes hard to spot, especiall on the field holes

Overall canby west is a solid expanding course that i hope to return to

-Several very decent holes sprinkled thoughout the course that i enjoy. 17 is a unique hole with a challenging green that uses the creek well and 18 is a sold par 4 finishing hole.

-Natural tees are tough and leed to a lot of frustrating slips on runnups.
-Navigation is tough without signage and i found that when i came back to play here even after playing it twice i was still wandering around.
-the pins are difficult to see in the woods and the majority of the woods holes are blind shots which i don't enjoy very much. i would much rather a designer present the challenge to a player than create a layout that leaves new players to the course guessing at lines and distances.
-O.B. is very arbitrary in several places with OB creeks that in many other places would be considered casual.

To be honest i haven't enjoyed my rounds at canby very much. However, this review is not an indication that i have written it off by any means. I think that the course has the potential to be a solid 3 and maybe a 3.5 as it continues to improve and develop and i will update my rating as the course improves. Tees and signage with accurate distances would improve this course a great deal and the removal of some trees to give holes like 3 a reasonable fairway would help as well. I will continue to check in here and play a round every once in a while and hope to see it on par with the area's other courses.

Challenging, 18 hole layout in what is primarily a technical course located in a decent-sized city park in Wilmington. All holes have working baskets and have multiple tee pads and/or possible pin placements. Good use of elevation and water presents a challenge. Navigation is becoming easier as the course gets worn in. Some holes have log benches for rest. Holes 6, 13 and 17 were standouts.

Course still very much a work in progress. Natural tee pads at most holes. No signage to speak of as of 7/13/13. More and nicer "next tee" signs needed. Course is a marshy mess in some areas and travel can be impacted. Some safety issues- the high wire log on 6 is great until someone falls and kills themselves- a viable, alternate path is needed. More trees need to be cut down on 3, currently a pinball hole. Clean-up still needed- I found used condoms, a dime bag and bottles during my rounds. No amenities like bathrooms or water fountains.

It is tough to rate this course. The layout itself rates at least a 3.5, yet many other elements of Canby warrant a much lower score. Canby West is an honorable attempt to bring the sport into a non-traditional environment and at the same time minimize park riff raff. However, to enjoy it here, one must embrace the city element of the area and surroundings. It is not the easiest place in the world to find (there is no sign at the entrance to the park, for instance) and though the park feels safe, this isn't an area in which many would feel comfortable stopping for directions. The peaceful, quiet elements of the sport will not be found here as blaring salsa/rap music and general foot/auto traffic are ever-present.

While I think the course is fair and balanced, I do not care for the multiple areas of the course where two inch deep water from a tributary constitutes out of bounds. This comes into play on numerous holes and in my opinion should be treated as casual.

Canby is a legitimate venue to test your skills and presents a unique playing experience. The Delaware guys are dedicated and no doubt will continue to improve the course.

Now a full 18 holes......Fun wooded course that does not get repetitive like many other courses. Tight fairways and can easily find trouble but tests a variety of shots. Length is reasonable for beginners but long enough on most holes to throw a full drive. Pin position variations create interest.

Lack of signage installed yet can make navigation difficult. Tight wooded course can be difficult and frustrating for beginners who go off course.

Good compliment to the nearby hills, wind and open fields of Brandywine. I've played courses all over the country and I find these two as good a pair as any.

Makes excellent use of the available land, offering a good variety of shot-shapes from the long tees.

Tee pads are a mixture of natural, gravel-filled/wood-framed (~5'x10'), or whatever surface happens to be available.

Flush-to-ground tee markers difficult to spot, lack of next-tee signs make the map a necessity for the first-time/infrequent visitor.

The course plays into, out-of, and within a small portion of woods (mostly mid-sized hardwoods), and its bordering open space, in a decent-sized city park. Two small streams wend their way through the woods, adding to the scenery - and challenge, as several baskets are located somewhat near them. Elevation change is subtle/minimal, except for #6, with its elevated tee, narrow, tree-lined fairway, and basket sitting 260' away, downslope and across one of the streams.

Two tee locations on six (1,3,4,5,9,10) of the current ten holes. From the short tee locations, the ability to throw ~250' straight will suffice on most holes, with a few requiring right-turns. The long tees add, on average, about 160' per hole, and introduce a couple of left-turns into the mix. About half the holes are fairly open, but not in their entirety, and the wooded holes offer quite reasonable throwing lanes.

Favourite hole: #10. Open and down a slight slope for most of its length, near the end one of several gaps in a row of hardwoods must be breached to reach the basket, sitting in the middle of a peninsula formed by the two small streams.

As of today, the course is certainly worth consideration if in the area. If the plans to expand to 18 holes (of similar quality) and improve the tees/signage come to fruition, this course will definitely be worth a stop when nearby.

Update 8/31/13:
Now 18-holes, adding even more wooded challenges. With the updated map, "next tee" signs, and limb-lined walking paths between most holes, the designers are making a strong effort to make this course as easy to navigate as possible. Still a bit rough and containing a lot of trash, sign and tee improvement would help raise this course.

Good mix of holes, a majority are in wooded areas but several utilize the minimal open space available. Even though a city course a few holes are decent length, with a few having nice elevation changes. Par three course that is challenging for a new player such as myself. Compared to Bellvue, another local par three course, I found Canby more difficult. Being a Wilmington resident it's great to have a course in the city. Even though its takes me the same amount of time to get to Brandywine Creek it's fantastic to have another option so close to home. Despite only being ten holes this is definitely a legitimate option when deciding which course to play. I've only played Canby twice but I will certainly return in the near future. It's a quick ten holes, but the differing layouts of each hole keeps things fun and interesting. Considering the area they had to work with, the designers of the course did a really good job. The course is free and parking wasn't a problem, those are two big pros in my book.

Chief complaint, as with many courses, is the lack of signage. Almost none of the tees are clearly marked, making it a rough go for first time Canby players. Even though the area is relatively small it was difficult to find my way around the first time I played. Make sure to at least draw yourself a map before trying Canby for the first time. I'm sure this will improve when they add the 8 new holes, making this a complete 18 hole course.

It's great to see a course in a city park and exposing the sport to many people that might not otherwise have the opportunity to play. I give a lot of credit to those who successfully pursued the building of this course. You have done a great job. I was surprised to hear that Canby even had a course, and was pleasantly surprised when I actually played. Thank you.

-Manageable holes
-Variety - straight shots, downhill, over streams, bending through trees

-Not Complete
-Tee pads at half the holes, no markers for the next hole or where the course starts( first left you can make after the park entrance, park on side of the road, hole 1 is next to a stream near a bridge)
-Not your typical Disc Golf environment, inner city hoodlums playing basketball and looking shady in most of the park

Luckily, I ran into 2 people who knew the course. Without them, it would have been difficult to navigate. Big thanks to Jen and Mike! They told me if you are from out of the area like I was, Delaware Disc Golfers has a facebook page and if you post on there, someone will meet you and help you navigate this course and also recommend other local courses. This place is a work in progress and will be much nicer next season, I'd recommend it, but only if you have someone with you who knows the course.