Your Input Is Needed - Shooting Spots

So, I've been thinking about this for a while and decided to put together a website for camping/shooting spots. I've got my own ideas but wanted to see what you all would like to see on just such a site. The idea behind this is that I wanted a database of good places to shoot, places to camp that are off the grid and places where you can do both.

Each spot (camping/shooting/both) will have several pieces of information:

• Area Name
• Site Name
• GPS Coordinates
• How busy is the site
• USFS managed
• Site Resources (i.e., water, access to firewood, etc)

People can then log in, comment on the site if they have been there and give it a rating. The site and/or area will then get an overall rating - one for it's camping quality and one for being a good place to shoot.

The domain is registered, the site framework is in place and I'm ready to start development.

I'm curious what you all would like to see as far as attributes that would help you to decide if it is a place you want to go to. For example:

• Is there a good natural backstop
• Flat spot to set up camp
• Is there a good firepit
• Proximity to other camp/shooting sites
• Safety of site

The idea goes a bit beyond this. It's my intention to also use this as a means to identify trouble areas and keep them clean (cleaning up peoples targets, trash, casings, etc) and then find a target date and put together a team of people to go up there and camp out, do some shooting and then clean up the site. I hope that the cleanups will yield enough resell-able material to even perhaps run some campaigns to raise awareness of cleaning up after yourself and keeping a site open for sport shooting and camping for years to come.

Most importantly, though, I wanted a resource to find interesting new places to camp out and plink around. I'm starting this weekend by going up to Guenella Pass and mapping out the various spots there to seed the database.

Comments and suggestions welcome!

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Suggestions So Far
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Ease of access
Recommend vehicle for access
Appropriate calibers (distance)
Short range distance (good for pistols)
Long range distance (good for rifles)
RV/Camper accessibility
Photos of the sight from people who have been there
Cleanliness of the site
County of the site
Area fire bans (perhaps linking to USFS sites...)
Personal experience of other campers respectfulness

Another piece of information would be the difficulty to get in and out. I've been camping off of four wheeling trails lately so that info would prove useful.

Just my opinion, but some things shouldn't be made common knowledge to every Joe 6-pack and inbred out there. I mean, sharing info here is fine, but a website open to every schlub on the internet? Think about it, the more people there are that know about the "good spots", the sooner those good spots go away or become trash dumps. The old Rampart Range shooting range comes to mind. And Left Hand Canyon. Know'n I'm sayin'?

I mean, the info's out there already on gun forums, Jeep/4wd/camping forums, etc., do we really need another website to condense it even more? Not trying to throw water on your plan, I'm just thinking that some people don't need the info. But that's just my opinion, and we know what that's worth.....just what you paid for it.

What a GREAT idea for a site! I would use that all the time.

I second difficulty to get in. I'm a big fan of car camping so I can bring good food for a whole weekend. Others would want to know if it's trailer/RV accessible.

How about what park/county jurisdiction it falls under so people could look up fire bans and other info?

Not sure how complicated the site would be but the ability to submit a report or even pictures from someone who's been there recently.

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Originally Posted by rondog

Just my opinion, but some things shouldn't be made common knowledge to every Joe 6-pack and inbred out there. I mean, sharing info here is fine, but a website open to every schlub on the internet? Think about it, the more people there are that know about the "good spots", the sooner those good spots go away or become trash dumps. The old Rampart Range shooting range comes to mind. And Left Hand Canyon. Know'n I'm sayin'?

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I have considered that as well. Right now I intend for it to be a closed website by invitation only (except camping) but I also realize that it's not like just one person knows about the site anyway. I welcome suggestions, though, on how we could protect against this kind of situation. I want a public site but haven't figured out how to address, as you put it, the "Joe 6 Pack" asshats.

Guys who four-wheel have the same problem, people trash great spots and they get closed and it's impossible to "hide" good spots for very long. However, if the community as a whole commits to keeping sites clean then perhaps shooters won't be cast in such a bad light.

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Originally Posted by Fromk

What a GREAT idea for a site! I would use that all the time.

I second difficulty to get in. I'm a big fan of car camping so I can bring good food for a whole weekend. Others would want to know if it's trailer/RV accessible.

How about what park/county jurisdiction it falls under so people could look up fire bans and other info?

Not sure how complicated the site would be but the ability to submit a report or even pictures from someone who's been there recently.

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Great suggestions, some of which are already being developed. Obviously if there is a ban then there would be a NO SHOOTING post on the entry on the website. I hadn't thought about the RV accessible though, that's a great one.

I have also considered if there is a problem site putting a hunters cam on site to see who might be causing problems, but that in itself is a sticky situation as well so right now it's only a thought. Sure the cams could get stolen, but they would only be in place periodically as needed. Don't know about this one, but like I said, a thought. I need to research the legal implications of doing this.

Big thing I always want to know is how crowded the area typically is - how close together are the camping sites.

I hate camping next to some yahoos who blare their music and smoke weed all night.

Great Idea Ranger.

Being that I will be a newcomer to the state I would find something like this very usefull.
Also agree with not putting it out for all asshats to see-I want to leave all them schmucks behind in NY.

A membership only site by invitation only would weed out the joe 6pack.
You can even go with paid membership or donations to help keep it running

I thought about paid memberships but I'm not sure that is the direction I want to go yet. As for asshats destroying a site, we have to remember that there even here someone can get that information about someones "secret place" and destroy it by just simply registering for an account.

I think the camping portion will be open to all and the shooting portion will be locked down until they are vouched for by someone on one of several boards, this being one of them - this primarily to address concerns folks here may have about publicizing their super secret spot.

Maybe this isn't as good of an idea as I thought, I'm surprised there hasn't been more input on this.

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Originally Posted by Ranger

Maybe this isn't as good of an idea as I thought, I'm surprised there hasn't been more input on this.

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I think it's a great idea but it's pretty well spelled out in your opening post. It's an elegantly simple idea. There really isn't much more to say.

This is the sort of thing that's prefect for a person like me. I didn't grow up with shooters. I learned in L.A. where this kind of thing isn't allowed at all so my confidence is heading out somewhere and hoping it's ok is VERY low. I don't have any friends here that are interested in a trip like that but I could get them out if I could lead the way. People in the know keep it a secret. It's a really tough barrier to entry that a resource like this proposed site would solve.

Well, I'm putting the information together for my own edification, I will just have to see the interest level after that to gauge if it's worth the added expense and time to make it public. I've already budgeted $10K on it but may scale that back to <$500 if it doesn't seem there is a need here and other places I frequent.

No biggie really, I've always kept my own database, this was just a more formal version of it :)

I also say this a great idea!

I would really to some info on places to do mock bug out practice!

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Originally Posted by Tinelement

I also say this a great idea!

I would really to some info on places to do mock bug out practice!

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That is also part of this new concept. For years I have pinpointed places that I note as either good bug out spots or at least good spots to lay low while I get to my final bug out spot. For obvious reasons there won't be any indication of this, but users will be able to add sites to their favorites and make their own determination of the sites "bug-out-ability".

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Originally Posted by asmotao

Big thing I always want to know is how crowded the area typically is - how close together are the camping sites.

I hate camping next to some yahoos who blare their music and smoke weed all night.

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a big +1 on that, a couple years ago me and my boys had the worst camping trip ever thanks to the illegal (assuming since not one word of English did they speak) Mexicans nearby blasting that god awful ranchero music and partying all night. Got no sleep and moved in the morning only to be scolded by the rangers for their mess! frustrating to say the least.

Yup, proximity to other campers is on the list.

I think there is plenty of interest and lots would be willing to help out with info as well as advice on layout etc but it has to be up and running first. Like was stated its pretty well laid out in the first post and not much to add until its running. With te amount of people always looking for shooting/camping/place to do both spots, including myself, I don't think youd have a problem with interest.