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Located on the Old Belfair Highway, just a stones throw from any Kitsap
location, is one of the premier archery ranges in Washington and home to
the organization that calls itself KBH Archers.
This isn't just the standard archery range where a target or two might
be stacked against some moldy hay bails. Nope, KBH Archers — also known
as Kitsap Bow Hunters — is one of the best courses to test your aim and
endurance with a bow.
Years ago, while fishing Mission and Tiger lakes, we would drive past
KBH Archers and I always wondered what the heck went on at that place. I
would ask my dad what exactly it consisted of, and he would say it was
an archery range.
I thought to myself, 'OK, that makes sense,' and didn't think much more
about it. We weren't into archery or bow hunting at the time and didn't
have much reason to explore the club.
Years later, I have found myself dedicated to making the drive to KBH as
frequently as possible. It's a drive I look forward to taking all of the
time.
Are you new to archery shooting or want to get into bow hunting?
Once you borrow or purchase a new bow, this is the place to start
shooting.
They have a standard range set up outside beginning at 20 yards and
ending at 80 yards. Each target has hay bails stacked on top of each
other sheltered by a small roof to prevent the bails from rotting.
The archery shooter has to be way off to lose arrows on these
targets. It's a great spot to warm up, or as a beginner, build
confidence.
Inside the club house, there's a 25-yard range and a perfect spot for
those nasty winter days. Club meetings and banquets are held inside the
club house, and if you become a member you receive a personal key pad
code to enter at any time of the day.
The best part of this course is the outdoor walk-through
stations. Located throughout the 30 acres that KBH owns are 28
walk-through stations that simulate what hunters might come across while
bow hunting.
At some stations you are shooting up hill and others downhill, but each
represents its own uniqueness.
It tests your ability to judge distances, including inclines and
declines where you might have to aim high or low. Some targets include
actual pictures of elk, deer or turkeys.
KBH Archers is located at 3680 Old Belfair Hwy. Merlin Dahlke is the man
to contact for information. His number is (360) 769-2601 and his email
is mdahlke@wavecable.com.
A membership for a year is $80, which isn't much once you see the beauty
of this course. Drive out and give it a try.
Chad Gillespie's column on hunting and fishing appears every Tuesday in
the Kitsap Sun's Outdoors page. You can contact Gillespie at
gillespc21@netzero.com.
The previous story was written by Chad Gillespie and appeared in the Kitsap Sun