RIFLE RANGE
ADDING ARCHERY
The Bear Creek Rifle Range plans to offer archers a place to
hone their skills.
Range organizers are currently working on converting several
acres on the southern portion of the range into an archery range,
according to Joe Hitz, the club president of the Canyon Creek
Bowhunters.
The range plans to offer a 10- to 20-yard short range geared
more toward youth, as well as a 20- to 80-yard permanent range.
When completed, the range will have over a dozen targets. It is
expected to open next spring.
THE BEAR CREEK RIFLE RANGE
PLANS TO OFFER ARCHERS A
PLACE TO HONE THEIR SKILLS
BY RYLAN BOGGS
“We’ve got a lot of the material. We just need the manpower to
put it all together,” Hitz said.
Some dirt work has been done using heavy machinery, and a
40-foot semi trailer is being converted into a storage facility for
3-D targets. They plan to cover the trailer in donated wood siding
to match the office building near the rifle range.
The Bear Creek Shooting Sports Club originally approached
the Canyon Creek Bowhunters to see if they would be interested
in helping develop the range, according to Michael Springer,
secretary of the Canyon Creek Bowhunters. The idea behind
adding an archery range was to make the shooting club more
inclusive for all disciplines and to better serve Grant County’s
shooters.
“We want to make it so that you can walk onto the site, pull
your bow out and start shooting,” Springer said. “That’s our plan,
to make it an easy-access, easy-to-use type of facility.”
The roughly 90-acre Bear Creek Rifle Range is located a mile
north of Highway 26 between John Day and Prairie City. It is a
members-only range. For information about membership, contact
Bob Bagget of Benchmark Land Surveying at 541-575-1251.
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MyEagleNews.com
GRANT COUNTY HUNTING JOURNAL 2016 • 29