In the club it's 'Terry' who has the most interest in 'field' shooting, and it was Terry that had the drive to provide a shoot for the county, and others, who wished to try this side of the sport.

It was first started about 1995 and the first year was spent making bosses which now looked pretty basic but did the job for a year or two and after that we had 'sort off' layered bosses made, but not by us, this time. In the early years the shoot took place at 'Otterburn' in rural Northumberland and became an annual shoot here for about seven or eight years. Most of the photos on this page were from there and show the toils of setting it all up, with a few shots of the shoot in progress. At Otterburn the shoot was spread across open moorland next to the army ranges, and within woodland close by. It had about everything in its time. Howling gales at one corner and dappled stillness in the woods. Floods which put the bridges UNDER the water rather than over it! Uphill shots and downhill shots. River beds and nettles!

For some years the setting up was difficult, as it was about forty miles travel just to get to the site. That's why the stands appear to have been constructed on site… as they were! However, we suddenly lost use of the land and I cannot remember if it was due to its sale or some other reason.
Preparation for the shoot. Some of the members doing the donkey work at Otterburn.

After that the shoot moved to 'Netherwhitton' which is much closer to Newcastle and not far north of Morpeth. The shoot has settled there for four or more years now and seems to be as popular as we would expect for the most northerly English field shoot. We've lost some of the more eccentric shots of Otterburn but gained by having a lot less travel to get to the competition.
Terry spends much of the spring looking for new shots and angles for the late summer competition and normally needs a few willing hands with the setting up when the plans are completed. Often between spring and summer the whole place changes personality and the areas which appear to be nice flat grass suddenly convert into bracken covered 'NO-GO' areas. The bridges are pre-fabricated now and have changed from the 'ladder-held-together-with-rope' affairs that graced the original shoot.
Unseen here, a river runs along the bottom of this slope!

However while you would normally expect the usual 'flat-field' target archery at the club, this event will provide something different! Add the smell of cooking bacon as you weave through the woods and this proves to be an exhilarating weekend shooting.