Putts & Pints

Enjoy the Maine Outdoors with a Round of Disc Golf, Craft Beer, and Killer Food

It’s late in the afternoon and the shade from the trees is keeping me and my friends cool as the music from my Bluetooth speaker plays some rock-reggae music. Travis takes a sip of his beer before he steps onto the concrete slab, the rounded plastic disc in hand, and prepares to shoot.

Angie and I watch in anticipation as Travis, using the backhand technique, launches his disc. As if powered by some kind of Harry Potter-like wizardry, the disc narrowly zooms past the army of trees and gets closer and closer to the basket with the accuracy of a laser. We hold our breath, watching, as the disc strikes the chains dangling from the top of the basket. Suddenly, the clanging of metal reverberates through the woods.

Angie Dubois shoots her disc toward the basket at Bittersweet Ridge Disc Golf course

But instead of landing in the basket, the disc lands on the ground just beyond it.

“Damn!” Travis grunts as Angie and I applaud his effort; after all, he got far closer than either of us could manage from that distance. He takes another sip of beer and tells me it’s my turn.

This is all part of the fun of one of Maine’s most popular activities, which can be enjoyed outdoors year-round, with friends, or by yourself.

Disc golf — or “discing,” as it’s commonly called — is a flying disc sport in which players throw a Frisbee at a target using rules similar to golf.

While still challenging, it’s less technical than golf and has a lower barrier to entry than its traditional counterpart. It’s also far less expensive than golf (less than 10 dollars to play) and can be enjoyed by any skill level.

In the last few years, disc golf courses have sprouted up all around the state like dandelions in the spring.

“The sport is exploding,” said Bill MacKinnon, owner of Bittersweet Ridge Disc Golf in North Yarmouth.

Just a few years ago, there were approximately 30 courses in Maine. Today, there are more than 70 from Saco to Fort Kent. In fact, in 2018, UDisc, the app for disc golfers, ranked Lewiston-Auburn number one in the country for disc golf course quality and number six for quantity. Sabbatus Disc Golf Course even hosted the 2016 U.S. Women’s Disc Golf tournament, attracting the top skill in the sport.

One of the reasons for its popularity is attributed to its accessibility.

“It is an activity that anyone can be good at,” said MacKinnon. “The typical person becomes hooked almost immediately.”

There’s an inexplicable ecstasy as you launch your disc, watching it get closer and closer to the basket and wondering if it’ll make it in. You’ll experience the elation of reward when you putt from 10 yards away, believing your chances of actually making it into the basket are as good as finding cheap lumber in 2021, only to instead hear that familiar clanging of the basket’s chains and see the disc come to rest in the metal caging.

A pint of Trestle IPA and a flight of four different beers are served on Brickyard Hollow’s enclosed outdoor space.

Yet it’s the lush greenery of the Maine outdoors and the camaraderie of friends that add to this sport’s allure. Hanging out in good company on a beautiful, sunny day as you meander through the woods, drink a couple of beers along the way, and listen to your favorite music make disc golf one of the state’s best activities.

Bittersweet Ridge Disc Golf offers two 18-hole courses off Route 115 in North Yarmouth. A very wooded course with no shortage of trees or brush, its terrain varies with many elevation changes, making this course dynamic and interesting with a welcome challenge.

After a fun day outdoors, consider a little aprés disc afterward. Drive 10 minutes to Brickyard Hollow Brewing on Main Street in Yarmouth, where craft beers, outdoor seating, and an extensive food menu, including gourmet pizzas, await. On a hot summer day after a round of discing, their hazy and hop-forward Trestle will quench your thirst. A New England-style IPA, Trestle, has big citrus and pine notes, a medium body, and a pleasant silkiness that lends a refreshing quality to this beer.

With consumer prices going up on everything from gas to everyday goods, getting out for a day of disc golf on the cheap with your buddies is Maine’s best-kept secret this summer. Get out there and enjoy a round to discover a whole new sport.

GARRICK HOFFMAN is a freelance photographer, writer, and graphic designer based in Auburn. Visit his website at GarrickHoffman.com. Follow him on Instagram at @garrickhoffmanphotography and @garrickhoffmanportraits, and on Facebook at @Garrick Hoffman Photography.

Enjoy the Maine Outdoors with a Round of Disc Golf, Craft Beer, and Killer Food

Bittersweet Disc Golf

Brickyard Hollow

Find a Local Disc Golf Course:

Maine Brew & Bev