Where to shoot Vancouver/portland

skytex · Dec 13, 2016

Just got back from Safefire today. Yes - their range is 25 yards. You can shoot anything up to .50 caliber in there. What's nice is, it's indoors. English Pit is outdoors. Safefire has a gunsmith on-site. Yes - you DO have to purchase their targets for $2 a target. They have a retail store on the ground level. Ammo prices are not as overpriced as one would expect. I believe PSTC in Clackamas is less expensive. They buy ammo by the pallet-load so prices are a bit less. Problem is - you can't fire anything but handgun ammo if you are shooting a rifle at PSTC. No shotguns. Safefire allows shotguns, but slugs only (apparently there's an issue with fragments ricocheting back at the shooter for some reason). Safefire has only one rifle class. PSTC has none, but the handgun classes at PSTC are time proven (I've taken nine classes there). I'm not attempting to show one site is better than another. Just some metrics that I use to decide where to shoot.

Joe13 · Dec 13, 2016

rcw said:
And I hear they charge $20/hour and require people to purchase their targets.

I'm super happy to have gotten into Clark rifles before the cut off but it was still a 5 year wait.

Targets at cost.
Bring your own Ammo.
Annual fee is tiny.
$5 each to bring two guests.

One of the best ranges in the metro area - ddcr is pretty nice but a very long drive from my house.

I've tried a place to shoot and an hour cost me $50 between ammo, entrance and target fees (brought my own gun).

English pit is an ok compromise if you don't have a range membership or a 4x4 and know the forests well.

I haven't been to the other ranges in the area.

Alex V · Dec 13, 2016

English Pit is the best controlled (sort of) range available to the public in the Portland/Vancouver area if you're shooting a rifle, but if you absolutely need to get a little practice in and the elements and/or reservations aren't cooperating, then I find Safefire a reasonable alternative. They do let you fire your own ammunition free of charge if I'm not mistaken.

FordPrefect · Dec 13, 2016

I have to agree with the English Pit. Got my first experience with a 500 Magnum there. I think for the day I spent about $60 including 1/2 of the gun rental fee for the 500 Mag.

scott_see · Dec 13, 2016

If you don't mind the drive, there's Mt Adams Fish and Game in White Salmon.
http://www.mtadamsfishgame.com/
$75/year. No ther fees. 100yd outdoor. 50' indoor. Trap. And you come and go as you please. BYO everything. I love this place.

Ruben4864 · Dec 13, 2016

Im fairly new to shooting but have been hitting it pretty hard for the past 10months. You found the English Pit which is cool. I wanted to get out of the range so I finally went to Larch Mountain. It is a blast! You can Google map it and it will get you right where you need to go. You will need to buy a discovery pass, just buy the full year, it will pay for itself. A 4x4 would be best this time of year. It's the BLM previously mentioned. You can drive around and scout some areas, that's what I did. Rules are listed at the entrance. Really, just be safe, use a back stop and don't shoot live trees.

Sgt Nambu · Dec 13, 2016

Welcome to the site, Aaronj! I hope you enjoy it!

What AR did you get? How'd it do?

Joe13 · Dec 14, 2016

Ruben4864 said:
Im fairly new to shooting but have been hitting it pretty hard for the past 10months. You found the English Pit which is cool. I wanted to get out of the range so I finally went to Larch Mountain. It is a blast! You can Google map it and it will get you right where you need to go. You will need to buy a discovery pass, just buy the full year, it will pay for itself. A 4x4 would be best this time of year. It's the BLM previously mentioned. You can drive around and scout some areas, that's what I did. Rules are listed at the entrance. Really, just be safe, use a back stop and don't shoot live trees.

View attachment 328732

The pic may be a bad representation of a backstop, it's hard to tell. Some of the rangers will either ticket you or warn you to go somewhere else if it's iffy.

Read the rules for target shooting, they are very specific. Just because it looks like a popular "range" doesn't always mean it meets the requirements

- use your best judgement and take black bags to haul your garbage out and a little extra if you can.

billstaf · Dec 14, 2016

English Pit is OK. Gets crowded sometimes and the longest range is 100 yds. You might consider Douglas Ridge Rifle Club. Visit: www.douglasridge.org.

BigStick · Dec 14, 2016

If you don't mind driving a little ways and paying for a short range, Threat Dynamics in Sherwood is a nice range. Expensive, but with some bells and whistles.

Ruben4864 · Dec 14, 2016

Joe13 said:
The pic may be a bad representation of a backstop, it's hard to tell. Some of the rangers will either ticket you or warn you to go somewhere else if it's iffy.

Read the rules for target shooting, they are very specific. Just because it looks like a popular "range" doesn't always mean it meets the requirements - use your best judgement and take black bags to haul your garbage out and a little extra if you can.

Yup! We always take out more than what we brought... Thanks for the heads up!

ECM · Dec 14, 2016

You could also head North a bit to Cowlitz Public Shooting Range. I am in Vancouver and it is about a 35-40 min drive and just off I-5. Kind of strange fee set up as it is like $8 entry plus $3 county fee plus $1per gun for all day. Pistol, rifle and trap and the rifle range goes out to 300 yards. Bring your own ammo and targets.

Give it a try sometime.

biggie24420 · Dec 16, 2016

I like the English pit in WA, in OR, the A PLACE TO SHOOT is an option I guess, but it's been years since I've been there. I personally don't care about A PLACE TO SHOOT.... I know people are in the business to make money and give us a place to enjoy our guns, but you can be fair and not a D-bag about it and that's why I avoid APTS.

Some may want to set up their red dots at these ranges but may be concerned about not having enough range/distance, well I ran into that problem a month ago or so. I decided to do the 50 zero at 10 yards (there are videos on YouTube about it). It worked for me and I did a quarter size grouping.

English pit is nice because you can take your own ammo and they also give you a punch card.... after X amount of visits, you get a free one. Only issue I had at the pit was some moron who muzzled me after he was done shooting..... and I'll leave it at that. I went there once and this older fella working there was very nice to me and my hot friend lol.... he came over with a .22 revolver and helped her shoot and we both took a step back, sat down and watched her shoot and enjoyed the view... and...... i'll hush now lol but I digress.