North Fork Wolf Creek Recreational Shooting Lanes

Since my favorite spot in Welches recently cut access for recreational target shooting... the next bit of research uncovered this little gem of a spot to the west. The Tillamook Forest Service set up this fantastic area for shooters to come and practice while enjoying the beautiful outdoors. Easy to miss if you don't have directions, and once found, definitely a place you'd wanna keep on the down-low so as to not gain excessive traffic in the future.

took my sons and grandson a few weeks back
was great and all were friedly. we ended up going a group already in lane 3.

all people we encountered were real nice.

was up at Wolf creek yesterday 4-24 we got in to lane 4, first time in that lane... had great day with family beautiful weather to be there.
1) We shared with 2 other great groups already there. the first group left early(2 younger kids probably 18-25) but they spent at least 30 mins picking up the left side of shooting line and pretty much the left half of the lane w 2 large bags of garbage. 1 with almost only 12 gauge shells. ***that they were not shooting BTW. i told them Thank you! and said we running a cleanup on 21st of may..
2)we also picked up the right half behind the Jersey Blocks and in front as well another 2 small kitchen bags of casings and garbage..

3) sad to see the sign missing everything and shot up a bit. What the hell possess people to shoot the damn wood sign? im guessing once new backboards up will take the urge to shoot a nice sign vs one thats beat up...only 1 can hope..

4) over all lane 4 looked good
5) did notice 1 and 2 were just filthy as we drove by. 3 looked ok but was still about 4 guys there when we left @ 5:30. hopefully they picked up some cuz 3 looked really cluttered w lots of shotty shells and target trash.

ALL IN ALL WAS A GREAT DAY TO INTRODUCE MY GRANDDAUGHTER AND YOUNGEST TO SHOOTING AND RESPECT FOR THE LAND WE HAVE TO USE IF WE TAKE CARE OF IT
I AM IN WHEELCHAIR TYE DYE
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This public range is clean, spread out, well taken care of, and has a few decent options for both pistol and rifle practice. Two of the lanes at max can get you about 75-80m of distance for shooting rifle.

This is a great place for driving up, unloading, training efficiently, and hopping right back on the highway.

Other than the absurd amount of people that show up after you thinking it's alright to set up 10 feet from you and share a lane, it's about as good as you could ask for in a free outdoor range.

Great shooting spot in general just finding the right time to go there.

I've been to the lanes before and was unable to shoot as they were all full and I didn't feel like waiting. This time, I got up there early (7:00 AM) to beat the crowd. I took my son out for his first time shooting. Lane 3 was open and we parked by the day-use area. We enjoyed breakfast up there and then got some shooting in. There was another group that shot alongside us that was being safe and being respectful. I think the clean lanes, signage and well-maintained roads only encourage people to continue taking care of them.
This was a great first-time experience for my son and I couldn't have asked for it to go better! Thank you!

as a first time gun owner I wanted to find a place that I could practice and be able to feel comfortable and this was the place, I was also looking for a place close to the city and thanks to this site we found north creek.
I went up there twice last weekend once by myself and the second time with friends, but I made sure to clean after we were done.

Hands down this is the best place I've been to in Oregon. The hard work put in by Cogs and the others involved in setting this place up really shows. Rules are clearly posted, actual lanes and barricades are set up to give shooters an easy way to organize safe firing lines. While I've only been up here once so far the only thing I could imagine would be on the downside is when someone is set up at lane 1 or 2 the small size of the lanes and the way they are isolated from each other makes striking up a conversation with fellow shooters less likely. Finding this place is going to end up costing me a lot in ammo because its the first place I've found in Oregon that both myself and my partner enjoyed shooting at.

Hands down, this is my favorite public outdoor shooting area (when I can get a lane!). The fact that it's so busy is a testament to just how fantastic this place is. You'll definitely want to get there early to claim your spot.

I have been going to this area for years, and since the involvement of NWFA and ODF, the area has only gotten better. I love the Tillamook State Forest, and being a steward of the land has become a passion. Thanks to all who help keep the area clean!

Being new to the area I was not thrilled with the shooting ranges in the city of Portland and surrounding areas. As a note Salt Lake City has better indoor ranges. But finding this has been a blessing it's clean and safe. So far people have been courteous and I have shared lanes on several occasions. I have watch for years areas get shut down due to abuse in Utah and I would hate to see that happen here. Oregon is a beautiful state and it needs to be treated with respect. This place is awesome and we are very lucky to have it, so don't take it for granted.
In the future I would love to see a few more lanes and a few longer ones.
Thank you to all the individuals that made this possible! What we do today effects generation well into the future.

Having had a play in the design and progress through my time volunteered with the Forrest Grove ODF department, I'll try not to show my bias.

This set of four improved fire resistant shooting lanes are pretty cool.

Though these lanes are in essence an experiment to show good or bad results to bigger parties at the state level ODF, they are well thought out and constructed.

With the goal of safety and fire prevention the lanes were cleared of all woody debris and some even have gravel lanes to prevent mud. All lanes have a large backstop area for catching the majority of bullets traveling in the shooting direction of the lane. In theory if the lane is used correctly, the backstop should be catching the bullet. Safety design elements were included as well. Such as the jersey barriers in full width of the lane to create a shooting line or shooting barrier, as well as a nice place to store your weapons facing down range. Thus preventing unessesary muzzle sweeping that can occur when shooting in groups from the back of a truck/s.

I enjoy shooting here, as long as I am lucky enough to get a spot! For the most part, I have found members of this site kind enough to let others join as the top two sites are more than large enough for larger groups as demonstrated at our grand opening. Though the longest range is site 4 at 80 yards, I still find it long enough to thoroughly site in a rifle.

One other nice thing about these sites, is the fact that they are so heavily watched by members of this site. So for the most part, I have yet to see one thoroughly trashed. If anything I've collected a half of a garbage bag of sofa cans and some paper targets from the two available not in use at the moment sites.

Kudos to the ODF for implementing a really nice and unique recreational location for those of this area. I hope to continue volunteering with the ODF and look forward to seeing more of these sites pop up in time to come!