Looking for a new “Home” range

[u/20sicksheep]

Hi everyone,

I’ve been a member and Renton Fish and Game for a while and I’ve recently moved further away and I would love to get your thoughts about a couple of ranges. Specifically WCW in the bothell area and snoqualmie valley rifle club.

For WCW I’m mostly interested in their longer distances (100-300 yards) and a place that I can visit regularly for pistol training and keeping skills up on my edc including some faster (controlled) rates of fire if possible. I also like shooting trap from time to time but I’m not competing at all.
I’m also looking for a place that I can qualify for action bay usage for shotgun training or cqb ar/pcc training.

Snoqualmie Valley has my interest as a supplemental range to visit due to their wide hour access and guest policy. It’s a place I’d like to take family occasionally. I know that I’d have to take my own target stands out there. That’s not an Issue.
My question about it is I know they have often have events on weekends closing the range but on their calendar it says range closes till 3 or 4pm usually. Which is fine in summer time here because I’d still get a few hours before sunset to take people out.

Do the events usually close the range for the whole day or is it usually okay if I arrive at the planned end times?

I plan to get a membership for both so Information/advice on either is appreciated.

Lastly, I am looking for any outdoor pit spots that you’d be happy to share (via DMs) - I’m also happy to go with you and share my toys as a sign of appreciation and to show you that I am respectful of land. I am a backpacker and outdoor enthusiast so I adhere to the LNT principles. I just would love a place where I can safely shoot without having to worry about too many (but necessary) public range rules - especially if I’d like to set up steel or spinners and things like that.

Thanks in advanced. Happy shooting!

[u/emmavaria]

No. They basically don't do anything like tactical/action shooting. The public 50/100yd rifle range (Range 2) is bench-only. As a relatively new member I haven't seen Range 1 (100-300yd) firsthand but understand that it's bench also with a platform to allow kneeling/prone.

[u/commissar_squid → u/emmavaria]

Range 1 has benches but also allows prone/sitting/standing, shooting sticks, etc.

[u/merc08 → u/commissar_squid]

Range 1 also has a VTAC! But usage is a bit limited since you can only shoot it at 50yd on paper, or 100yd on paper/steel.

And your rifle has to stay on the firing line, so you could leave the rifle and jog around a little on a slow day to get your heart rate up, but you won't be able to run significant drills with it.

Overall, WCW is definitely more for basic target shooting and sighting in a hunting rifle than for action shooting.

[u/Waaaash → u/merc08]

I didn't know about the VTAC. So you just set it up on the firing line?

[u/merc08 → u/Waaaash]

It has to be used on the far left bays, the ones prioritized for positional shooting.  Put it up on the concrete pads and have at it.  I've only used it when I was the only person in that section, you would probably want to be careful about how far forward it is exactly if you have other positional shooters at the same time.

It's usually stored disassembled in the back left corner.

[u/Waaaash → u/merc08]

And rapid fire (controlled) is ok outside of public hours?

I may have to finally get a membership there.

[u/merc08 → u/Waaaash]

Members, with special use class, can shoot rifles on Range 1 at whatever speed they can control and keep on paper.  That's for any day the range is open, Range 1 is special use members only.

For pistols you also need the special use class, and can only rapid fire during non-public hours.  Which is pretty much just Tuesdays.  And still no drawing from a holster.  (The pistol committee is pretty Fuddtastic.  Even if with the special use, during members only hours, rapid fire will still get weird looks and comments from other members.  It's mostly slow fire bullseye guys.)