Cornwall and the wider South West are where England goes to feel like it is on holiday. This is a peninsula of surf beaches and secret coves, of the artists’ town of St Ives, the futuristic biomes of the Eden Project and the granite drama of Land’s End, all threaded together by the South West Coast Path. Add golden pasties, clotted-cream teas and harbour towns like Padstow and Fowey, and you have one of Britain’s most beloved destinations. It is also, less obviously, a great place to try clay pigeon shooting.
The West Country has a genuine claim to clay-shooting pedigree. This corner of England has produced Olympic medallists: Peter Wilson, from Dorset, won double trap gold at the London 2012 Games, and Ed Ling, from neighbouring Somerset, took trap bronze at Rio 2016, proof that world-class shooting talent is nurtured here in the South West. That heritage filters down to the region’s welcoming grounds, where visitors can try clay pigeon shooting against a backdrop of rolling farmland and, in places, glittering coastal views. Newcomers usually begin with English Sporting (ESP), Britain’s most popular discipline, while trap-minded shooters can sample Down-the-Line (DTL) or the Olympic Trap and ABT formats in which the region’s champions made their name. Coaching follows CPSA standards and all equipment is provided.
A clay morning fits easily around a Cornish or Devon holiday. A couple of hours with an instructor still leaves the day open for a surf lesson, a walk along the coast path or a lazy cream tea in a fishing village. On a grey day when the beaches lose their shine, it is a brilliant all-weather adventure, and for groups celebrating a stag do, hen party or family reunion it is hard to beat. The friendly competition of knocking down clays pairs naturally with the region’s relaxed, outdoorsy spirit.
ClayPass maps clay grounds across Cornwall, Devon and the whole South West, making it simple to find a session near Newquay, Truro or wherever your holiday base may be. Given the region’s popularity in summer and the demand for qualified coaching, it is well worth planning and booking ahead. Combine a morning on the clays with the coast, and you will discover a side of the South West that most visitors never see.