What is your favorite shooting range?

[Alan]

What's your favorite shooting range? I’m curious to hear what draws you to it — is it the atmosphere, the staff, or maybe the variety of distances?

 

[Pistolero]

NRA Whittington Center is the best I have visit. It checks all the boxes for an ideal shooting range.

 

[Billinthedesert]

The Whittington is the Mecca. I haven't been there in years.
We have a small county range down here near Fort Bayard, but the nicest in this end of the state is the Sidney Paul Gordon Range run by Otero County in La Luz, just north of Alamogordo.

 

[Tijeras_Slim]

I was very partial to Founder’s Ranch as I shot and worked there for 10 and 6 years respectively. Killed by Dear Governor’s COVID crap it is open once again as Legacy Ranch under a new crew of good folks.

 

[Silvertip1]

Del Norte Gun Club (DNGC) is in the middle of nowhere northwest of Rio Rancho nestled in an area where the high desert ends and the transition to the Jemez Mountains start (somewhat rocky terrain, scrub juniper & cedar), and borders the Zia Reservation. It has a panoramic view of Mount Taylor, Jemez, Sange De Cristo, Ortiz, Sandia, and Manzano Mountains. This is not a public range. All shotgun ranges (skeet, trap, and 2 sporting clay courses) are automated. The 1000 yard rage may be used by those who undergo long range rifle training and is used by the Marine Corp Reserve to qualify semi-annually; it also has 4 other rifle ranges - .22 caliber rimfire, 200-300 centerfire, 100 yard centerfire, and sight-in range. There are 5 (maybe 6) handgun ranges used for police qualification, various types of informal target shooting, and several kinds of action events. There are 3 club houses and a training center with electricity, running water, and heat (no air conditioning because it is anywhere between 6,200-6,500 feet above sea level). There are no range masters, however, to become a member one must attend a full day of orientation which includes club & safety rules, and a live shooting test. This club is extremely well maintained, and state & regional shooting events are held here. I do not live in the Albuquerque area, but I do make several trips a year to the DNGC just to enjoy my shooting to the fullest extent. The club is on 640 acres which land was originally donated to the club by one of the King brothers. I belong to other gun clubs in the Roswell area, and have been several times to Whittington, but IMO none of them comes close to the DNGC.

 

[Pistolero]

Del Norte Gun Club (DNGC) is in the middle of nowhere northwest of Rio Rancho nestled in an area where the high desert ends and the transition to the Jemez Mountains start (somewhat rocky terrain, scrub juniper & cedar), and borders the Zia Reservation. It has a panoramic view of Mount Taylor, Jemez, Sange De Cristo, Ortiz, Sandia, and Manzano Mountains. This is not a public range. All shotgun ranges (skeet, trap, and 2 sporting clay courses) are automated. The 1000 yard rage may be used by those who undergo long range rifle training and is used by the Marine Corp Reserve to qualify semi-annually; it also has 4 other rifle ranges - .22 caliber rimfire, 200-300 centerfire, 100 yard centerfire, and sight-in range. There are 5 (maybe 6) handgun ranges used for police qualification, various types of informal target shooting, and several kinds of action events. There are 3 club houses and a training center with electricity, running water, and heat (no air conditioning because it is anywhere between 6,200-6,500 feet above sea level). There are no range masters, however, to become a member one must attend a full day of orientation which includes club & safety rules, and a live shooting test. This club is extremely well maintained, and state & regional shooting events are held here. I do not live in the Albuquerque area, but I do make several trips a year to the DNGC just to enjoy my shooting to the fullest extent. The club is on 640 acres which land was originally donated to the club by one of the King brothers. I belong to other gun clubs in the Roswell area, and have been several times to Whittington, but IMO none of them comes close to the DNGC.

Sounds like a nice place to shoot.

 

[Silvertip1]

Yes sir it is.

 

[Howard]

Del Norte Gun Club (DNGC) is in the middle of nowhere northwest of Rio Rancho nestled in an area where the high desert ends and the transition to the Jemez Mountains start (somewhat rocky terrain, scrub juniper & cedar), and borders the Zia Reservation. It has a panoramic view of Mount Taylor, Jemez, Sange De Cristo, Ortiz, Sandia, and Manzano Mountains. This is not a public range. All shotgun ranges (skeet, trap, and 2 sporting clay courses) are automated. The 1000 yard rage may be used by those who undergo long range rifle training and is used by the Marine Corp Reserve to qualify semi-annually; it also has 4 other rifle ranges - .22 caliber rimfire, 200-300 centerfire, 100 yard centerfire, and sight-in range. There are 5 (maybe 6) handgun ranges used for police qualification, various types of informal target shooting, and several kinds of action events. There are 3 club houses and a training center with electricity, running water, and heat (no air conditioning because it is anywhere between 6,200-6,500 feet above sea level). There are no range masters, however, to become a member one must attend a full day of orientation which includes club & safety rules, and a live shooting test. This club is extremely well maintained, and state & regional shooting events are held here. I do not live in the Albuquerque area, but I do make several trips a year to the DNGC just to enjoy my shooting to the fullest extent. The club is on 640 acres which land was originally donated to the club by one of the King brothers. I belong to other gun clubs in the Roswell area, and have been several times to Whittington, but IMO none of them comes close to the DNGC.

Sounds nice, I may check it out, but why better than Whittington. Less traffic/people?

 

[Silvertip1]

Sounds nice, I may check it out, but why better than Whittington. Less traffic/people?

Absolutely. I am retired and if one goes there on Monday, Tuesday, or Thursday (with the exception of some handgun ranges) you literally have the ranges all to yourself, and that not an exaggeration + you do not have a range master regulating you telling you when to start/stop shooting like many ranges do.

 

[Silvertip1]

P.S. To get there you must traverse 10 miles of dirt roads...sometimes impassable for a day or so when it rains/snows...never hurts to pack a shovel.