I arrived at 8 AM and there were people shooting at each lane. I stopped to see conditions and visit with the shooters at all 4 lanes. All the people I met were very nice, but more impressive was the fact they were all using legal targets, target stands and good choices of target placement! Wow! I'm not used to seeing that!
The only lane that had much trash was lane 3. It was such a minor amount and cleaned up quickly.
This is good news and I hope it keeps up! The improvements done out here are the kind of things shooters would like to see in forests throughout the Northwest. It fosters a spirit of ownership, stewardship, respect and responsibility in recreational sport shooting. It also makes it easy to comply with the common rules for safe responsible shooting on public lands.
We don't see as much special care at a typical dispersed shooting sites in the woods. Trash left behind at those places seems to be a common thing. That's not right. It should not be any different if you shoot at an improved or unimproved place. Cleanup is a requirement every time we go shooting, no matter where you shoot!
Recently, there have been reports of graffiti on the jersey barrier firing lines at most all lanes. It didn't last long when the responsible shooters heard of it and was quickly covered up!
A shooter arrived looking for an open lane to shoot. As he approached lane 3, he told me he always carries extra trash bags and fire prevention equipment since he heard about it on Trash No Land.
These reports of stewardship and responsibility make me feel good and hopeful that perhaps our message is getting through!
After visiting the lanes, installing a sign, cleaning an area near lane 3 and doing a quick cleanup of lane 3, four of us went back down to Wolf Creek Road to replace a couple other missing signs. We cleaned up those places where people should not be shooting because of public safety and fire hazard concerns.
In just a few short morning hours, we had installed 3 signs and bagged up 10 trash bags. I took them to a landfill near my home and the cost was only $14.
This surprise of the well cared for Wolf Creek Shooting Lanes, gave me a good feeling that people actually do value a quality place to shoot and are happy to share in the stewardship efforts it takes to keep them available to the public.
Thank you to all who use and care for this special place!
And thank you to Gregory Propf, Erica and Geoff Goode for helping with the signs and cleanup! You are appreciated!
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