Archery in Windsor: Find a Place to Shoot

Archery in Windsor and southwestern Ontario

We list 3 places to shoot in Windsor, and one of them is free. If you look a bit wider, into Essex County and Chatham-Kent, you also find clubs that shoot at wooden birds on a mast.

Where Can I Shoot In Windsor?

Windsor Archery Range is a free outdoor range run by the city, and only bows and arrows are allowed on it. One shooting line faces target butts at 15, 20 and 30 yards. There is a 3D course too, though its targets come down for the winter. Nobody signs up. Nobody watches you, either, so you follow the posted safety rules and shoot. It is the wrong place to start if you are brand new, because nobody is there to tell you that your form is off or your bow is too heavy to draw. Learn with people first, and then use this range to get in lots of shots.

Rose City Archers meets at Peace Lutheran Church on Rossini Boulevard, and it is the place for beginners in the city. It is open to ages 7 and up. Youth ages 7 to 14 shoot on Sundays from 5:45 to 7 PM, and adults 15 and over shoot on Sundays and Wednesdays from 7 to 8:30 PM. Beginners can use the club's gear at no extra cost, and spots go first come, first served on shooting nights. You do not need to own a bow, and you do not have to sign up for a season before you try it. The club belongs to the Ontario Association of Archers and to Archery Canada.

Windsor Sportsmen's Club on Dougall Avenue is a social club. Members shoot archery and trap, play darts and pool and golf, and eat at its full restaurant, and it runs a Junior Sportsmen's program too. Thursday archery nights cost $5.00 if you are not a member and $3.00 if you are, which makes them the cheapest supervised shooting in the city.

What Is Near Windsor In Amherstburg?

AMA Sportsmen Club on Lowes Side Road started in 1930. It has an indoor range for practice all year, a large outdoor range, and a 3D course laid out to feel like a hunt. You can shoot recurve, compound or crossbow there. It lists both lessons and rental gear, which few clubs here do, and it runs 3D events, including a shoot it calls Big Buck Sunday.

Amherstburg Target Sports on 9th Concession Road South is a gun club owned by its members. It has a 50-yard archery field next to its clay target areas, which is longer than most of the region offers. It is open all year on Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays, and to join you must finish an orientation and a range safety course. This club suits someone who already shoots and wants distance. It is not a place to learn.

What Is Popinjay?

Popinjay is a Belgian sport in which you shoot at wooden birds set high on a mast instead of at a target on the ground. Belgian and Dutch families brought it to Canada.

Wallaceburg C.B.D. Archery Club, also called the Pop N Jay Archery Club, started in 1950. It meets at the Canadian Belgian Dutch Club on Dufferin Avenue. It shoots popinjay and traditional archery on Saturday nights. You must be 12 or older and shoot traditional gear, which the club gives you for free. A shoot night costs $2.50. The club has also hosted national shoots.

Bothwell Archery Club goes back to 1967 and shoots indoors at the Bothwell Legion on George Street East. Its focus is Pop-N-Jay, a sport in which it has hosted national championship events. The club meets on Friday nights. It lists no need to join, and it is built for families, so a kid can try the sport before anyone buys gear.

What Else Is Near Chatham?

Kent Cloverleaf Conservation Club is on English Line near Chatham. It runs adult archery every Wednesday night on an indoor range with seven bays. It lists lessons. All bow types are fine.

Lambton-Kent Archers on Kent Line near Dresden is an outdoor club with its own field archery course, and any bow type is welcome. You must join. It lists no drop-in and no lessons. Field courses are hard to find in this part of Ontario, so this is the club to pick if field archery is what you want.

What Does The Whole Region Have?

Windsor, Essex County and Chatham-Kent give you nine listings within an easy drive. Two of them list a 3D course, one lists a field course, two list lessons, three list rental gear, and one lists a pro shop. We fill in these details when someone checks them. A blank usually means nobody has checked yet, and it does not mean the club lacks the thing.

One gap is real. Windsor has no indoor archery range run as a business, so there is no lane where you can walk in, rent a bow and pay by the hour. The closest you can get is Rose City Archers on a shooting night. If you want an indoor range and lessons in one building, try AMA Sportsmen Club in Amherstburg.

Where Should I Start?

If you have never shot, go to Rose City Archers, because the club lends you gear and you can show up on a shooting night. To spend as little as you can, try a $2.50 shoot night at Wallaceburg with free gear, or a $3.00 to $5.00 Thursday at Windsor Sportsmen's Club. If you own a bow and want lots of shots, use the free public range in Windsor.

For 3D, go to AMA Sportsmen Club in Amherstburg. For field archery, go to Lambton-Kent Archers near Dresden. If you want to try something rare, shoot popinjay at Wallaceburg or Bothwell.