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TWO MAGICAL PLACES TO PLAY GOLF IN BEND, OR
In the second installment of our Oregon Trail series, we discover a desert "shoe tree" and hit the links at Lost Tracks Golf Club and the Old Back Nine.
KENDRA LITTLE
Visual storyteller at Lie + Loft.
PHOTOS BY KENDRA LITTLE AND LUKE DAVIS
I am a little ashamed to admit it, but I car camped on this journey. Luke, the brave soul, slept in his tent with frigid overnight temps dipping down into the 20s. We both had looked at the forecast before heading out on this trip and were definitely caught off guard by the overnight lows, to say the least. Night 1 paled in comparison to what Night 2 brought, but more on that later.
Luke found us the perfect (free) camping spot just outside of Painted Hills. Although it took us a little bit of time to figure out exactly where it was, it sure was a welcome sight as we pulled in off the highway after a long, LONG day of adventure. We settled into camp, made a fire, cooked some delicious food and stared in awe at the star show above us; we were nowhere near light pollution and boy did it show.
The next morning, bright and early, we packed up camp and hit the road towards Bend, Oregon.
About 20 minutes from Bend, I spotted something very abstract off to the side of the road.
Luke was answering emails on his phone as I hit him on the shoulder and said something to the effect of “Uh…WHAT is THAT?”
It was, put very literally: a tree with hundreds of shoes strewn across it.. and bras, and shirts, and hats.
“Oh we’re stopping.” Luke said.
After leaving an L+L five panel hat (a version of which you can check out here) on the “shoe tree,” we continued our trek to Bend.
Our plan was to play Lost Tracks Golf Club. We arrived to the sight of a men’s league dominating the grounds. We received a tip from the pro inside the shop that there was a 9 hole course just down the road, and that we’d probably have time to jet over there for a quick loop before the tee cleared.
So we did just that, and headed to “The Old Back Nine”; it was just what we needed for breakfast balls.
If you’re ever in Bend, “The Old Back Nine” is an absolute must on your way through. Especially if you’re on limited time. The narrow fairways and small greens will test your game just as much as longer courses.
Next up, a mile back down the same road: Lost Tracks.
It had been nearly two decades since I played Lost Tracks as a kid, and I couldn’t tell you much about the course layout except for the infamous 16th “train car hole.” As it turns out, it was for valid reasoning I couldn’t recall the course. Roughly 3/4 of the non-Par 3 holes are dog legs, and had you asked Luke or I to describe any one of them with any amount of heightened detail, we would have struggled.
But… the 16th hole is one you’ll never forget.
We took a good 10 minutes to explore inside of the train car, taking in all of the names on the bag tags from people who’ve travelled near and far to make the walk through it. It certainly will leave a lasting impact on you and sure struck a chord with our imagination.
I would be remiss to mention that just minutes before, with the ace cam rollin’, Luke nearly drained it from the tee box with his favorite niblick. As soon as it left his club stick we both audibly exclaimed “That looks good,” a miss that left him rolling on the ground in laughter + dispair.
This was a really fun walk with Luke, our second of the day– and ever. We had a fun little match going and I couldn’t believe how well he played with his hickory sticks (REALLY good). As the we rounded out the last couple of holes at Lost Tracks, I dreamt of the iced coffee I had been thinking about all day, and pondered where exactly we would be staying that night. Luke found the spot of all spots.
More on THAT in the next iteration of The Oregon Trail with Luke + Kendra. Also, you can purchase a map of Lost Tracks Golf Course here. // #golfishome
