Belfast Shooting Range closed until further notice

The Belfast Shooting Range in Laurens County is closed until further notice, the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources announced.

The closure takes effect Aug. 17 and stems from timber harvesting operations underway directly behind the berm serving the pistol and rifle ranges. The agency said the shutdown is necessary to protect the safety of range users and personnel while the harvesting work is in progress.

SCDNR asked the public not to enter or use the shooting range for any purpose while the closure is in place. No reopening date has been announced.

The Belfast Shooting Range sits at 6655 Highway 560 in Kinards and is owned and managed by SCDNR. It is an unsupervised range with a maximum distance of 100 yards and is set up for both pistol and rifle shooting. Under normal operations, the range is open Wednesday through Saturday during daylight hours and on Sundays from 2 p.m. until dark. Visitors are required to bring their own paper targets along with eye and ear protection.

The range is part of the Belfast Wildlife Management Area, a tract of roughly 4,600 acres straddling the Laurens and Newberry county line and bordered by two sections of Sumter National Forest. The property includes hardwood forest, pine stands and wetlands supporting white-tailed deer, wild turkeys, quail and a range of other species, along with a historic house dating to 1786 that stands among the oldest structures in Laurens County.

The rifle range opened in 2011 through a partnership between SCDNR and the National Rifle Association, funded in part by a grant from the NRA and by federal excise taxes on firearms and ammunition distributed to states under the Pittman-Robertson Act.

The closure notice referenced the pistol and rifle ranges. The Belfast archery range is a separate facility located off Highway 56 near the Belfast House.

Shooters looking for updates can contact SCDNR at 803-602-7903 or the area office at 803-360-1097.