The entryway to Creekside Golf Club in southeast Salem.

With Gene Autry ringing in our ears (OK, maybe not literally), Don and Pete were “Back In The Saddle Again” recently at Creekside Golf Club in Salem. This was our first outing in almost 18 months, a “sabbatical” due to some life changes. Good changes, worry not, but things that took some time to iron out.

But the “Quest” lives on! With a coupon from the 2017 Portland Golf Show in hand that made us “Members For A Day” at Creekside, a private course, we headed south not knowing exactly what the reception would be. But we can say we have never met a friendlier staff, nor have we ever been made to feel more welcome at a private club than we were at Creekside. Everyone there seemed legitimately happy to host us, from the pro shop to the restaurant.

Creekside is a scenic, beautiful layout, and indeed there is a creek running through it in play on several holes. Given the record-setting wet Oregon 2016-17 winter/spring, that little creek was running like never before! Alas, all of the water we’ve received in the for of raindrops and snowflakes the past few months created a very soggy course. We are spoiled by our home course, Chehalem Glenn, with its sand-capped fairways; it is perhaps the most playable winter course in the Willamette Valley. No sand-capping at Creekside, this was definitely station-to-station golf. Balls plugged in the fairways, let alone the roughs, so every hole played longer than listed. We still scored well.

Dried out to the point where you get some roll, Creekside appears to be a place you could ring in a nice round. We are anxious to go back and give it a try. And sogginess aside, we still had a great day — and again, kudos to everyone at Creekside for making us feel comfortable and welcome.