Northwest Passage: Unforgettable golf in Washington, Oregon

The par-3 holes are all strong, but none more memorable than No. 8, where Fazio's crew discovered an ancient lava tube while blasting away rock between the tee and the green. Today, two dark caves ominously frame the entrance to the eighth green, and it's not uncommon for golfers to go exploring in these three-quarter-mile-long tubes between their tee shots and putting out.

As we packed the van and got back on the road, it was hard to believe the best was yet to come. We were finally on the road to the Oregon coast and Bandon Dunes Golf Resort. Our travel schedule had us pulling into Bandon late at night, and we could hardly wait for the sun to rise so we could see the fabled terrain.

The next morning, over breakfast, Al Greenfield -- the proprietor, chef and distinguished concierge at A Bandon Inn, a highly recommended golf-centric lodge a couple short miles from the Bandon Dunes courses -- prepped us, as he undoubtedly preps all first-time visitors to this fabled corner of the golfing world.

Guests at A Bandon Inn see Al twice a day: In the morning he is there to serve up his delicious (and much-needed, you realize after about nine holes) breakfast concoctions, and in the evening after golf, he'll join you around the fire pit for a cigar and glass of Scotch.

As we dug into our plates of Sheep Ranch French Toast -- cream cheese oozing out the sides and strawberries piled on top -- Al doled out some good advice about playing Bandon Dunes: "The sooner you forget about playing like you'd play any other course, the better off you'll be," he told us. "I suggest you leave your lob wedges in the room. These courses, like the great Scottish links, should be played on the ground and remember, always keep it below the hole."

View of No. 4 at Pacific Dunes

Our rota was Bandon Trails and Pacific Dunes the first day; and the original Bandon Dunes course the next. Being walking-only facilities, Dave and I -- the two old-timers in the group -- had been conserving energy by riding carts as much as we could the entire trip. Walking 36 rugged holes along the Oregon shoreline dunes was going to be testing, we knew that. But we looked at each other as if to say, "If ever there's a time for Zen golf -- reaching inside to find the tranquil beauty of the game, forgetting the aches and pains of this mortal coil -- it's now.

And we did find the magic of Bandon Dunes. We felt as if we were at play in the fields of the golfing gods. At Bandon, come rain or shine, the game is reduced to its innate simplicity: Man must be in harmony with nature. All the swing mechanics you've learned, all the mind games you play, all the most sophisticated technology in the world in your golf bag -- none of it matters. At Bandon, it's just you and the earth -- a stick and a ball and a hole a thousand miles away, across sand and gorse, through wind and rain. And yet you move forward, making pilgrim's progress toward your goal, and in so doing you become one with the elements.

That is the lesson of Bandon Dunes.

As luck would have it, we got amazing weather the whole time, from the first hole we played to the last we putted out on two days later, wholly satisfied, yet somewhat beyond exhausted.

The next day we headed to Portland to drop off Jeff and catch flights home. We were all pretty quiet in the van as we drove, reflecting back on one unbeatable week of golf, food and fun. Come late spring and early summer like salmon heading up the Copper River -- golfers should not miss a chance to make their way up the western rim of the United States for their own Northwest Passage.