Columbia Shore DGC, aka Ft. Steven's as it's more commonly called, is a 23 hole course that plays along the shore of the Columbia river and amongst some old military buildings and things. Really cool concept and one of the more unique places I've played disc golf at.

The course is mostly open but brings trees into play whenever possible and does a good job at that. There's some elevation in play out there. I would say moderately hilly describes it well. Rolling hills throughout the park, moreso on the latter half though. There's some fun up and downhill holes out there with awesome views of the river from the tops of the hills.

The baskets are Mach X's. All are in great shape and catch nicely. There's a single basket but two pin placements per hole.

The tee pads are mixed. There's some concrete, rubber and even some asphalt tees in a couple spots. The majority are the rubber mats though. These were all pretty flat and had some decent grip to them, even in the very wet conditions we played in. There's two tee pads per hole too. That in combination with the multiple pin positions makes for a ton of different course combinations that you'd be able to play. Great variety in that regard.

The design is pretty well done. The course is mostly open off the tee but they did a good job of mixing in different hole shapes where you'll need to execute some different angles from different spots on the fairway. They also tucked a lot of the pins into the treeline or groves of trees or bushes to add challenge on the green. There's a couple of elevated pins too which is definitely a challenge with the wind that's commonly whipping off the river.

The tee signs are well done here. These are on 4x4's and feature a decent hole map that shows both pin placements and the short tee if you're looking at the long tee sign as well as a next tee arrow. They also have the hole #, par, and distances to each pin. The best part is that they have the signs at both sets of tees.

The course is mostly open and kind of starts to blend together towards the end. At least there's some wooded holes toward the end which spice it up a little. Just a lot of holes and a lot of them feel similar.

There's a couple longer walks between holes where it's not always obvious where to go next. You can get by without a map but I'd advise having one available just in case. It'll speed things up if anything.

The course doesn't loop back toward the parking lot at any point so be sure to bring whatever you're going to need for a full round.

There's a few walking paths that wind through the course and there's going to be regular park visitors just exploring the property too that have no clue that there's a course there too.

This was a very cool concept and the golf was pretty fun too. The 23 holes may be a little bit overkill but it was still a fun round. There's an 18 hole and 9 hole map on Udisc so you could play an abbreviated version if you wanted. I'd personally play the full 23 if you've never been here though. Lots more to this course than just the golf itself. Well worth a visit to this one.

- clean course overall
- plays around old bunkers with occasional water views
- a few elevation changes
- decent signage
- variety custom stamped discs to buy at shop

- missing some variety in shots
- it is very open most of the course
- a few times it's somewhat easy to get confused where pin and next a hole is

I would check it out for the Fort setting. Overall gameplay is not the most memorable. It's a good place to practice your big drives or stop by when visiting Astoria

They seem to be very inviting folks here at the state park. Upon paying your $5 entry fee, you're given a nice professionally colored course map for the front 9. The back 9 is currently a work in progress but very playable at this time (fall of 2020). The course starts right by the museum with parking on both sides. The baskets are DGC Mach X models which are mounted on these 500 lb. concrete pyramids. I don't foresee anyone stealing one of these babies. Most tee pads are rubber mats and the signs are laminated paper on wooden boards. Seven of the nine holes on the front 9 have both Long and Short tees. # 6 Long at 565' is the only par 4 on the front 9. There are lots of garbage cans, benches, a few next tee signs and some of the tee poles have clips to hang your bag on during the often-inclement weather here. The wind was blowing at a fairly steady rate.
The front 9 is mostly flat using trees, concrete bunkers and old buildings as obstacles. There is a sign at # 8 informing you that the back 9 is under construction at this time. The basket 9 is a little more interesting with a trio of nice downhills, some clever basket placements and # 16 being a legitimate par 5 at 1040'. 13 is a nice downhill at 340' and then, # 14 is the fort's "Top of the World" shot at 430'. 15 plays 205' into a copse of trees. # 17 presents a nice little challenge with one big branch hanging over affecting your tee off.

I'm not sure if I went to the correct station to pay my $5 but they then directed me to this other area where the course is. This was probably a mistake on my part and there is probably a better entry.

I think the wind might be a constant here.

Back 9 is not quite finished but it is being worked on.

With lots of interesting bunkers and buildings and great views of the mighty Columbia River, this course is more stimulating than most. The park's department seems intent on providing a pleasant disc golf experience. You run into park visitors all over but the course never seems to conflict with them. It was more like they were watching us with keen interest. I sometimes felt like the elk that another reviewer mentioned like, "Hey Mom! We were at the Fort Stevens today and I saw these strange people throwing these Frisbees at these funny steel cages."

Fun course with something for everyone. Not too hard, open, maintained with minimal rough. Interesting history adds "theme" to course. Expansion plans have been discussed and are awaiting funding.

Possibly the weather. I went on a overcast day in the upper 70's with 5 mph wind. I would get frustrated with gusts of wind, so it is kind of a conditional course unless you are a sadist.

I like the whole Ft. Stevens State Park. Camping, Lake / Swim, Jetty, Sand, Beaches, Cargo Ships navigating the channel. It's an area worth planning on spending a day or so.

+mach x baskets
+tee signs & benches
+shot variety: length, left/right, up/down, open/wooded, par4s & a 5
+good maintenance
+practice basket
+views of the river/ocean & ft. steven's history
+restroom
+long/short tees

-weather (it is the oregon coast)
-uneven rubber tees
-other people (state park)
-rough (stay on the fairway, right
-1st time navigation (fine w/map)
-5$ (not really a con, worth it)

there are lots of cool historic structures to look at such as the tank-like turrets around 14s tee (see 14 basket to tee pic).
more open than most (western) nw courses.
prevalent onshore wind (bring those headwind drivers).
multiple pads/baskets, which is both a pro & con, cuz with more variety comes more confusion of where your playing (pay attention to the tee sign).
dry grass when i played (late summer).
when i see a 1000ft hole i get excited. hole 16 starts with an elevated tee above some shorter trees & curves left the whole way to the pin. i wanna play again cuz the wind put my drive right into the trees below the tee (btw tailwind forces a disc down). so a scramble roller out of the trees puts me on the other side of the fairway, where i find the thick rough (blackberries & fence). from there, i try a high sidearm that hits trees right in front of me, but at least now i'm in the middle of the fairway & can see a basket. a good drive puts me in putting distance, and i put it in for a 5. i start questioning the 1000ft as i'm walking to the next tee (longish walk) and as i round the corner there lies another basket. turns out i would have likely took a 7+ on the correct basket (2 baskets not shown on the laminated paper sign; back 9 still in development). i know i could get there in 5 if i just hit the 50ft wide fairway every time (update: i did this, until my 3rd shot where i could see the basket & tried to make a hero shot to get a 4, but ended up going into the rough; i was able to chip out to get the par).
my 4.5 rating might be a little high for 3 reasons: i played on a nice sunny day (the oregon coast doesn't get a lot of them); rated with the assumption that the back 9 will get developed to mirror the front (multiple tees/baskets, rubber tees); the first reviews were for the first 9, before the full 18.
this course has short tees to appeal to the novice & long tees that will challenge the most experienced players. that said, it isn't the most challenging (w/o wind), but has a lot of fun shots. if the back 9 is developed to be like the front, it will beg to be played a second time (i already wanna play again to try some of the alts i didn't get to the 1 time i played, & also to execute the shots i failed).
2023 update: now 23 holes! a couple of the new holes added in the middle are pretty wide open, but do have some elevation to deal with. all have nice signs & rubber pads. my 4.5 rating is not inflated; it is a fun course with lots of different shots! there is also a little 9 hole putter course near the left of the parking lot.
if you have time (camp in the campground), explore the rest of the park & learn all about ft steven's history. there are also lots of paved bike trails in the area & the ocean is just a few miles west.

Where are you going to throw discs in the middle of a WWII base that was in a battle with a Japanese submarine?

gravel tees on the back 9, and not very easy to follow

Back 9 is still coming together, should be one of the best when its finalized.

Love the course. You play through old bunkers on the old military base. It's a nice course in a cool setting.

-the surroundings
-nice course map at hole 1
-posts at each tee pad showing hole number, distance, par
-good baskets with hole number on band. The poles are cemented in what appears to be military quality bases that would be able to withstand a war.
-long and short tees available at just about every hole
-nice variety of forehand and backhand lines
-good course for beginners and intermediate players and I think pros would even enjoy it
-benches and trash cans at several tee pads
-well maintained

-not much for elevation change
-rubber tee pads are a little slick when wet
-probably gets quite windy

Very fortunate to have played here at Fort Stevens!
The course itself is slightly above average, but the fact that we saw dear, elk, forts, cannons, a military museum and the Columbia River made it quite memorable.
It is a fairly open course, but one is still forced to hit their lines to score well. I liked that the basket on hole 9 was on a mound- this made for a fun ace run to finish out.
The park employee in the museum told us plans are already in development to expand the course and a bunch more baskets have already been acquired!
One final note is they have a brand new rack with a great selection of Fort Stevens stamped Innova discs.. and it sounds like Discraft discs are coming as well.
Looking forward to seeing what the future brings for this course!

Really well-implemented new course. Tee pads are great and are made up of some existing concrete/asphalt, with rubber pads on the rest. All pads have nice color metal signs and most even have brooms for a nice touch. Great signage for navigation. Fairways are well mowed and brush trimmed back. Great use of obstacles on the property, mainly old concrete military bunkers, shelters, and remnants of old buildings. Property has sweeping views of the Columbia river and Fort Stevens. The gate attendant handed out course maps and a pencil. The military museum has a lost and found and some logo discs for sale. Great course for families and beginners! This course and the nearby Lower Columbia DGC in Astoria are two of the best 9-hole courses I've played.

None.

An elk walked out near us on the 4th hole fairway - very cool!