Elk Ridge Golf Course in Carson, Washington showcases the spectacular Columbia River Gorge
CARSON, Wash. -- An hour east of Portland in Skamania County is a golf facility that has quietly reopened to become one of the top area plays.
Elk Ridge Golf Course, formerly Carson Hot Springs Golf Course, is open after a multi-year closure that began in 2006 following foreclosure. Open since the end of 2011, it's one of the area's most picturesque golf courses, set on high ground along the Columbia River Gorge.
Design highlights include a large double green shared by the eighth and 10th holes. While most holes play parallel to the slope, making for slight uphill and downhill holes, nos. 9 and 18 both play sharply downhill toward the clubhouse. There are five sets of tees, stretching from 6,461 yards from the tips to 4,442 yards from the front.
The course, which opened in the 1980s, was renovated in 2006 but shuttered due to bankruptcy soon after. It sat vacant as a cow pasture until 2011. The course's setting on a sloping mountainside made up of steep rock makes it one of the Valley's driest, and conditions are lauded as some of the best in the area as a result.
This area is known for its natural beauty, as well as its mineral hot springs water. Carson Valley Hot Springs Resort and Bonneville Hot Springs Resort & Spa are two area hotels that make for pleasant stay-and-play options near the golf course.