Bowhunters Unlimited Archery Range | Stevens Creek — Attraction in Saratoga

The place is so well set up for beginners (adults and kids), everyone serious in archery is basically super cool to share and talk. I have learned a lot. There are trails so you can hike and shoot too. There are regulars who come and you can have a very helpful conversation with them or they point stuff out about your equipment. On the downside: it’s very close to the Cupertino schools which means you occasionally get some ridiculously horrible parent show up with their kids and start acting like not only do they own the place - that they should be able to bully you and your kid. Which is what they do at the school so …. One really bad time: time a lady and her kid were just insane. There were plenty of open stalls for which to shoot, we had gotten there early and waited for a better stall that was center and had a cover for shade. There were many other open stalls. This lady decides to pick up our equipment move it off, put her own equipment and kid in our slot. Which she did this while we were walking the shooting field picking up our arrows. When I got back and saw what she did, I was pissed and let her have it. She was still insisting on being a jerk.. so I moved her crap. She was still dug in like a tick, so her High school aged kid was super embarrassed at this point - I told them to manage her. They moved to another stall … shot for ONLY 3 rounds … and left. So warning if the Cupertino parents show up, there might be an entitled asshole situation. But these people aren’t real Archery fans, they’re not real archers, and they don’t really care about the site, or the organizers who take care of it. They are certainly not paying members either. Luckily you can use the site for free however, if you decide to act like a jerk, someone will...

I visited this range for the first time and was pleasantly surprised by how scenic the whole area was. There is a central area with several range areas of different distances. There is a short range area which is good as it caters better to children and provides separation from the adults. A trail range provides target shoots with more variety.

The main range has a little slope and has layers of targets at roughly 10 yard intervals. The target backing is small so consequently the range targets are sized to match. The target backs are old haybales so archers should be pretty dialed in before attempting further targets lest your arrow misses (haybales are not that big) and skips the ground to the back of the range. Archers using mylar fletching should also take the backing into consideration. The nice thing about the arrangement of the bales is that you can have several targets within your lane at different distances to shoot at. The wind can be unpredictable at longer distances. Range safety was practiced by all without supervision.

There is a roof over part of the shooting line that provides nice shade on sunny days, and folks were all cordial. There is some parking available, rustic facilities, but not much more. No, you can’t rent equipment here so you’ve to bring your own. Casual users can drop a donation for day use. All in all, well worth a visit if archery...

A beautifully scenic outdoor range with friendly archers willing to show you around. The range is free, but if you become a member of the club ($40/year) it helps pay for the hale bales and maintenance so all can enjoy it. You will want to bring your own gear, or write ahead in order to schedule a lesson so that you can rent a bow.

I showed up for a primitive skills workshop hosted here that was cancelled (unfortunately they didn’t let us know so everyone who registered still showed up). Luckily Mike and Steven were willing to show us all some skills and even got a beginners bow out of storage and gave us a lesson! I stayed for three hours and by the end was shooting the 10 yard bale with good grouping. This range also features a two mile hiking/shooting trail. Make sure you know the safety measures (like calling out before you shoot) before you set down the trail, though.

The friendliness of the people, the beauty of the range, and the peacefulness of archery has me hooked. I’ll...