Marking/making shooting lanes thru wooded tract?

[Snakum]

Weird question ...

I'm making an offer on a large tract of land that is rolling hills and heavily wooded. I don't want to just knock down trees to cut my way thru, but rather selectively cut branches to make lanes. From an elevated platform about 10' tall I think I can get out to about 700 yards before I run against a very tall bank on the other side of the property that is about 30' up from a valley floor. So I need to find a way to see which branches/trees would need to be cut for a particular routing.

I thought about buying a large spool of twine and tie it to a tree near where the platform might go, then walk to the other end of the property to the likely impact area and tie it off. I'd note along the way what needed to be cut or trimmed to make a straight shot to 700 yards and where to set up the stands at various points for the plates (will be using 8" - 12" plates on 2x4 posts into metal stands so they can be moved around, and can be high enough to be seen from the platform). If I see, at some point, there is no way to make a straight run due to a large tree, I just wind the twine back up and start a few feet over to one side. Of course, while pulling the twine across the lowest areas I'll probably have to drive poles in the ground to hold the twine relatively level. The goal is to eventually be standing at the bank on the other side holding twine and looking at a relatively straight line back to the platform, having noted what to cut and trim to make the shooting lane.

I'm not a surveyor nor can I afford one for this, and my range finder isn't going to help in this somewhat thick woods. Is this going to work? Is there a better way? I may be missing something obvious.

 

[Maggot]

Re: Marking/making shooting lanes thru wooded tract?

Build your stand, set up a laser aimed where you want point of impact and cut branches til the beam finds home.

 

[MikeeBooshay]

Re: Marking/making shooting lanes thru wooded tract?

Rent a survey transit - or buy a cheap one from Sears. In combination with that range finder, it won't take long. I did pretty much what you are doing, except I had a wheeled dozer/loader to use. Two hours, cleared out to 600 yards, with 10ft berms at 200, 300, 400, 500, and 600 yards.

Using radios, orange paint to mark yardages, we shoot from the side of a hill into a blind canyon, the radios were good for telling the operator which branches to smash next. Planning to add a shooting house on top of the hill sometime this year, already have water and power there. The house should have windows all around, satellite TV and a place to grill/cook gumbo. And we can see/safely shoot 1000-1400 yards in any direction from up there.

 

[Snakum]

Well, over a year later we have the property in Rockingham Co. We have three homes to remodel, one gutted to the studs and flooring, so I don't know how long it will be till I can start on the long range lanes. We have a natural CQB pit shooting down against the bank of a large stream bordering the rear of the property, but a longer range setup will have to be cut. Looking at the GIS maps and measuring with the site tools it looks like I could eek out 700 yards if I built a platform to shoot from on the far southern side.

Anyone own a Bobcat?

 

[oughtsix]

You should be able to rent a machine for a weekend for a fairly reasonable amount if there is someone within reasonable range of the land. I rented a small excavator for a weekend to dig stumps and put a sewer line in one weekend for like 300 bucks. Some places will rent for the weekend for the cost of a single day. You should be able to rent a cat d3g or similar for 300-400 a day.

 

[opelboy]

You just need the Gatling gun from predator... That cleared out a bunch of trees in a matter of seconds ;D

 

[SniperCJ]

You plan to put a balloon on that 700 yd long string to simulate max ord and clear those branches too? Gonna be a weird looking shooting lane...

 

[bullet65]

the problem with just trimming trees is you will have to stay on the ball as fast as it will grow back.I do this for bow hunting just to 50 yards and that takes a lot to upkeep.

 

[pawprint2]

I assume this is going to be used as your hunting stand, and not your regular shooting range. If your putting in a shooting lane for your stand, you should think about cutting trees and planting: peas, biologic, corn, etc., no doubt there is a tried and true recipe for food plots in your area. Your success rate will multiply. Your idea of just cutting branches is pretty sketchy(for a hunting lane), you'll be counting on some mighty small edge, if you'll get any at all, not to mention the branch cutting will be an on going chore. If all your after is a KD range, clearing out those area at the KDs and branches in the way will work just fine.

 

[Hammertime]

Rent a survey transit - or buy a cheap one from Sears. In combination with that range finder, it won't take long. I did pretty much what you are doing, except I had a wheeled dozer/loader to use. Two hours, cleared out to 600 yards, with 10ft berms at 200, 300, 400, 500, and 600 yards.

Using radios, orange paint to mark yardages, we shoot from the side of a hill into a blind canyon, the radios were good for telling the operator which branches to smash next. Planning to add a shooting house on top of the hill sometime this year, already have water and power there. The house should have windows all around, satellite TV and a place to grill/cook gumbo. And we can see/safely shoot 1000-1400 yards in any direction from up there.

Dude, that sounds like Heaven!! When you get the house built, you could rent it out to your fellow Hiders! " shoot 1000-1400 yards in any direction". You're killing me, damn, that's all I'm going to be able to think about! I gotta move.

 

[tmada45]

Me and a buddy built a platform on the side of a small bluff. It is about 15' above the shooting lane. We had to clear 300 yards of heavily wood land. We started with a narrow lane and figured out that unless we wanted to be constantly trimming we need to make it wider. We stretched twine to define the lane and started cutting. We spent 2 days of cutting and its pretty nice. It was a lot of work but it was worth it.

 

[Killer Spade 13]

Don't forget about overhangs that can/will deflect the flight of your bullet as you reach out to the longer ranges.

 

[MikeeBooshay]

Best part of clearing... is driving the big stuff, and HAVING FIRE!!!!!
This old POS has to go!


Getting warmer....


Success!


Yes, clear out a lane 20' minimum wide, 50' wide if you can spare the time and equipment. One thing that gets over looked is access to targets for repair in the case of steel, or reposting if paper. Quote " I can see it, how do I get there?" If you've ever hauled a steel target to the top of a hill/mountain, and then had someone shoot the chain holding the plate on the first day, you know what I mean.

 

[Snakum]

We're going to have to take down quite a few trees, as it turns out, to get gator access and to keep from having to trim constantly. This weekend we spent a day just planning deer stand lanes and roughing ideas for the longish range practice. There are three logging roads going into the property that we will clear with a bush hog and set up stands so we can start our coyote eradication program from the deer stands (lotsa yote tracks and poop out there with the deer tracks) which give us 100 to 200 yards from a tripod stand. Then cutting across the property the long way from an elevated platform we're going to have to start cutting trees for the long range lane. Gotta find the longest/best route thru, though. The idea is to cut wide enough to allow a gator to go in, but disturbing it as little as possible. It will cut across the logging trails/deer stand lanes perpendicularly. We're hoping for multiple plate stands left, right and center of the lane out to 700. 700 ain't much but it's all I got without knocking a hole thru the far bank. The 30' tall bank on the other side is a natural berm. Very safe.

Thanks for the PMs and ideas on how to get started.

 

[Snakum]

I've been mapping the lane using a simple Garmin GPS. I used the GIS map to plan out the longest shot I could get across the property into the large rise/berm and it came out to almost 800 yards - but I'll need a pretty tall tower for all the target locations to be clear. I started PrintScreening the map with the Lon/Lat coordinates every 30 - 40 yards along the planned lane. Then walked the property with a Garmin in coordinates mode, marking each of these points, and then running twine from point to point to map out where to cut. I also mapped out a 50 x 100 yard CQB range near the end of the long range lane and marked that up the same way. So far it looks like it will all work, albeit with a lot of trees and brush to be cut over the next couple of years. So far, the plan is to climb the tower and engage the plates every 100 yards or so that are behind behind barricades simulating shooting into a window, shooting into the front and back seats of an old/junk vehicle (plates hung from roof), etc. rather than just banging plates. Maybe five or six of the eight or so plates will be hung on moveable steel posts to change up the range estimations (at least that's the plan). Running/walking up to the 400 yard line, we want to begin using the same targets for carbine shots from a platform/prone/kneeling behind the vehicle, etc. Then as we move forward on a trail to the next firing positions one will encounter paper targets that are hidden behind foliage that must be engaged with carbine or pistol. The trail ending at the CQB range where carbine shots from cover are taken, then move to pistol range and walk left to right engaging steel, clay, and IPSC paper targets from cover/barricades/underneath vehicles with pistol and shotgun.

Very ambitious, I know. It's a long range goal.

At some points the long range steel will have to be hung on rather tall posts (up to 8' high in some places) due to terrain. I'm thinking a simple 1" galvanized pipe with a single bolt hole drilled thru it to hang the plates, that can be pulled from the base (formed concrete base?) to be replaced/repaired or moved to a new location to change up the ranges. Lots to figure out still.