Awesome Golfing at Marias Valley

Let’s set the stage here – we’ve already golfed 9 holes today in Choteau. Then we headed northeast, had lunch in Conrad at the Home Cafe and our next stop was the Marias Valley Golf Course about 5 miles south of Shelby.

We took the well-marked exit for the golf course off I-15 and drove west. I’ve been to the course before but I think the guys were a bit skeptical. All of a sudden we dropped down into the Marias River valley and the scene changed. Yes, there really is a golf course here!

It’s about 1:30pm, it’s hot and there is a warm breeze. I’m thinking it would be a good day to read a book in the shade but my golf buddies are raring to go.

They hit the driving range which has metal animals (deer, elk, etc) for distance markers. This river valley could have live deer grazing around and I like the fact that they’ve kept  a theme with the animals.

There are a lot of trees here, big old cottonwoods that probably love to catch golf balls.

One thing that has amazed me so far on my golf journey is the amount of time spent looking for golf balls. I try to watch after the ball is hit but hey, this is Big Sky Country and there’s a lot of area to watch!

The bluffs along the river are beautiful. You can see the river from the golf course and at one point we heard squeals and splashes from a group floating.

The Marias River flows southeast from here and joins the Missouri near the little town of Loma, MT. It caused Lewis & Clark to stop their trek up the Missouri and send a group to explore the Marias to see if it was the correct river to take. Lucky for them they chose the correct waterway (the Missouri River) and named this one Maria’s River. Today it is called the Marias River (pronounced ma-rye-us). I’ve never floated it but it’s on my list.

We are doing 18 holes at Marias Valley Golf Course and my golf buddies are really liking the course. The light was pretty flat mid-day so it wasn’t the best for photos but you can see the stately old trees in this photo.

As the golf game at Marias Valley Golf Course progresses, I’m getting mentally prepared to do my putting.

Quite frankly, this course wins the distinction of my “best putt”. A hole in one for putting from the green! Granted, it’s only a putt but I am excited when I make it and so are my fellow golfers.

You know, it IS fun when you get that little dimpled round ball in the hole!

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