The West Country is one of the great clay pigeon shooting regions of England, and it can lay claim to a pedigree few others can match. This is Olympic country: Dorset's Peter Wilson took double trap gold at London 2012, and Somerset's Ed Ling won trap bronze at Rio 2016, both proof that the South West produces shooters of the very highest calibre. That heritage runs through a landscape made for the sport, from the big estates of Wiltshire and Dorset to the rolling farmland of Devon and Somerset and the wild fringes of Cornwall. ClayPass maps and tracks clay grounds across the whole region, so whether you are a visitor chasing your first broken clay or a competitive Gun after a serious course, you can find the right ground.
English Sporting is the West Country's signature discipline, its varied targets, high driven presentations, long crossers and skittering rabbits perfectly suited to the region's combes and hillsides. The trap disciplines have an especially strong following here given the region's Olympic trap heritage, and grounds offering DTL, ABT and Olympic Trap are well established. English Skeet, Olympic Skeet, Compak Sporting and the international FITASC discipline all have their devotees too, so shooters can progress from a first taster right through to registered CPSA competition without leaving the region. Instruction is easy to come by, and a lesson with a qualified coach is the best possible start.
Few regions reward a shooting trip with such glorious surroundings. A morning on the clays sits beautifully alongside the surf beaches and fishing harbours of the Cornish and Devon coast, the granite tors of Dartmoor and the red-deer moorland of Exmoor. The Jurassic Coast unfurls its fossil-rich cliffs along the Dorset shore, while honey-stoned Bath offers Georgian elegance and Roman baths just to the north. And no West Country day is complete without a cream tea, or a glass of the region's famous cider, to round off an afternoon's sport.
The South West's estates carry a long tradition of driven-game and simulated-game shooting, and that field-sports culture gives the region's clay grounds real depth and authenticity. Trying the disciplines here is a genuine highlight for anyone visiting, and locals are spoilt for choice. Weekend slots and instructor bookings go quickly in peak season, so it is well worth planning and booking ahead. Use ClayPass to find a ground to match your ambitions, arrange tuition, and build a West Country trip around the coast, the moors and the clays.