By David Beers

If you head past the Norfolk landfill toward Winsted on Route 44, you may have noticed a few red buildings, a gated gravel road and some archery targets in the woods across from the Rock Pile Driving Range. What you are seeing as you whiz by is just the tip of the iceberg of what is available at the Northwest Connecticut Sportsman’s Association (NWCSA) every day of the year from 9 a.m. to dusk.

This not-for-profit club spans the Norfolk-Colebrook town line, with over half of the acreage in Norfolk and most of the shooting facilities in Colebrook. The club was started in 1927 and has grown to about 1,000 members and 312 acres. The spacious main club house is used for classes and indoor events. The large property is managed to maximize beneficial wildlife habitat with bird/bat/duck boxes, grasslands and many patches of young forest.

To become a club member, an existing member must sponsor you, and the addition of new members is voted on annually. Junior members are under 18 years old and must be accompanied by a supervising adult at all times. Membership has an annual fee of $100, along with five to 10 hours of volunteer work required each year to maintain the club facilities. I found it amazing that the extensive club facilities are entirely maintained by volunteer members and no paid staff.

Instructor Jason Marshall gives the author some pointers on the pistol range.

There are four different gun shooting ranges, all of which are handicap accessible, with six club members shooting from wheelchairs. There are two pistol ranges with enclosed shooting positions. The first is a 50-yard target range and the second is a 30-yard metal plate range. When you hit the metal plate, it falls over. You reset your line of plates by pulling a wire. There is a 250-yard rifle range with enclosed shooting positions. Here you can set out targets to hit at a variety of distances. The trap shooting range is state-of-the-art with a voice-activated wireless clay pigeon (disk) thrower, multiple shooting positions, a pattern board to adjust shotgun pellet density/range and a really nice heated indoor area for refreshments and socializing.

The outdoor archery range has a shooting tower and a variety of targets at a variety of distances. Archery also boasts a 3-D archery course that combines hiking and archery in a woodland shooting course that is done in a similar manner to golf. The targets are a variety of foam animals, with points accumulated for the most centered shots. Completing the course takes two to three hours.

In addition to the variety of ranges described above, there is an action pistol area, stocked trout fishing pond, fall pheasant hunting and game hunting throughout the property. The IDPA (International Defensive Pistol Association) action pistol area is a safe area for a participant to move around and shoot at a variety of targets in a variety of shooting scenarios.

With all of the club activities available, safety is the number one priority. Everywhere you go, there are posted signs reminding participants of the many important safety rules throughout the property. Every range has the Ten Commandments of Gun Safety posted in large lettering. Each new member is given an extensive tour of the facilities, a thick safety handbook and a lesson about the safety rules at each activity. Anyone who wants to hunt must have a state hunting license and receive a hunting orientation class about the property. Membership is often revoked for safety violations and no alcohol is allowed on the property.

Every week at the club is filled with events. There are weekly membership league events for different kinds of shooting. There are also many special events that bring members of other clubs. Many events are open to the public. One of the most popular events that is open to the public is the annual fall turkey shoot. The origin of this competition was over 100 years ago when live turkeys were used as a target. This has evolved to a shooting accuracy competition of shooting shotguns at paper targets (not turkeys).

After a tour of all the club facilities with club president, Tom Andersen and club member Steve Owens, I was given an excellent shooting lesson by Jason Marshall, and provided the opportunity to do some trap shooting. Despite having never shot a gun before, I was soon blasting clay pigeons out of the sky and it was awesome! I plan to be back soon.

The club encourages folks that are interested to come to one of the many events that are open to the public and get to know some of their members. Please visit nwcsa.org for a listing of upcoming events and for more information about the club.

Photos by Savage Frieze.

This is the third in a series of articles about club activities in Norfolk.