When it came time to book an end-of-summer vacation for the family, my wife and I settled on Cape Cod. A Boston native, she was interested in beaches and pools and ice cream for our 2-year-old son, and a change of scenery for our youngest son, who is just 3 months old. I was interested in all of that too, but I also wanted an easily accessible golf course where I could get in early rounds and be back in time to spend the day with the family unit.

We researched several options and settled on Ocean Edge Resort in Brewster, Mass. It had everything we needed -- a room with a kitchen, indoor and outdoor pools, beach access and, oh yeah, a golf course.

If you want to ask Travelin' Joe a question, e-mail him at askjoe@golf.com.

Dear Joe,
We are a group of eight golfers traveling to Bend, Oregon in September. Do you have any recommended courses accommodating four rounds of golf?
Carl Miller
Kansas City, Mo.

Hopefully you saw our feature on Bend in the August 2009 issue, but either way, here's a quick recap. Mike Reid certainly can vouch for Crosswater at Sunriver Resort ($109-$175; 541-593-4402, sunriver-resort.com) having walked away with a Champions Tour major there this past week. You don't have to be quite as straight as the man they call "Radar" to enjoy Crosswater, but you do have to be a guest of the resort to play it. Book your stay -- because it's the best course in the area. Ranked No. 33 in our 2008-09 Top 100 Courses You Can Play, this Bob Cupp/John Fought design is edged with wispy fescues and sports countless holes that skirt ponds, wetlands, the Deschutes River and the Little Deschutes River.

Last week I asked a few Golf Magazine experts where to play on Cape Cod (I was there for a wedding and had a few open hours on Saturday morning). All three said the same thing -- check out Highland Links in North Truro. Joe Passov, the magazine's course ranking and architecture editor, described it as "an unbelievably cool nine-holer ... that plays in the shadow of one of the state's most famous lighthouses ... it's not too pricey, it's very linksy and it's unquestionably scenic." I copied his description here because it was so spot-on.

The course is rough around the edges, but it feels like a real links course with sandy soil and scrubby plants and a view of the ocean on several holes. With separate tee boxes for the "front" and "back" nines, you can get an 18-hole round with surprising variety out of the nine holes.

The Golf.com Course Finder profile for the course is here, and the official site is here. Any other public tracks in Cape Cod or Nantucket that we should know about?

(Photo: Highland Links official site)