Wow, an archery field in the middle of the Golden Gate Park. Who knew? Recently came here for a beginner archery session with a *socially distanced* group. One of the silver linings of the pandemic is that people are exploring all kinds of interests they've never considered before. I, for once, had never tried archery so I thought I'd give it a go. So glad I did! It was such a cool sport/activity. We rented bow and arrows and a target from a nearby shop and did practice sessions here for a couple of hours. The archery field is nicely maintained and is free to the public. It was quite busy when we came on a Saturday afternoon. All the lanes were full. However, people were courteous and all patiently waited for a lane to open. Although I was very bad at it, I felt super cool shooting arrows like I was in the Hunger Games movie or something. I'd totally come back and do it again. Highly recommend! read more

Golden Gate Park Archery Range - Archery Near Me - San Francisco, California

Still remarkably unsafe. Went back to the GGP archery field to instruct a beginner at his request this weekend. Sunday morning, with the lanes full, there's a complete lunatic cosplaying with a horse bow and headphones, rapid shooting from waist level, from distances farther and farther back from the bale on the lane next to us. Then we notice he's actually moved off the field, behind the pedestrian walkway, and has climbed the hill behind the range to continue shooting. He's just spraying arrows, not hitting the bale, from easily 130 yards, with plenty of humans standing in the cone of fire of a casual error. This is insanely unsafe behavior. When everyone's well behaved, I'm sure GGP is fine. I just haven't seen that in a long time. read more

Am I insane or is this range incredibly dangerous? People are shooting down range with people in front of them and just one lane over. I saw a dude with a high powered hunting bow shooting from the very back, his arrows were whizzing past a couple of beginners who were like 20ft from the target and about 20 ft to his right. I've shot guns my whole life and took archery lessons as a kid. You never shoot with people down range. No clue WTF is going on at this place. My buddy and I checked out the range and were planning on renting bows, we noped out of there. Has it always been like this? read more

This field is a perfect place to spend a few hours to practice archery. A few pointers 1. Parking is limited so you might have to park on the side of the road leading to this field 2. This field has ~6-7 target ranges but those can get pretty easily filled up on weekends. I'd recommend coming in a bit early to maximize your chances 3. There's a small unmaintained grass area behind the target and it's highly likely that you might end up losing some arrows in this area so be careful. 4. The field meticulously covers the shooting range from wind and is a great spot to practice archery without being disturbed on "heavy wind" days read more

It's free! It's in the city, so you can get there by bike. It's an actual archery field, where you can shoot arrows legally. There are groundhogs, and a few hawks. The targets are sometimes blown out, so i bring my own. i havent seen homeless or drunk people there in a while. I'll continue to go there once or twice a week, it's always fun. read more

I come here at least once a week. I love that it's free, that there's no reservation necessary, no range marshall enforcing all the rules, just a clear signpost stating the rules. Basically no crossbows and no broad-heads. Go to the shop on Balboa and rent a bow, get a quick lesson in the shop or maybe spring for a lesson at the range. The owner is really friendly and will come down to the range with you. Then get out and enjoy the outdoors. It's a great hobby that will get you off the internet and out onto the green grass. It's not pysically difficult, but it does improve your coordination and concentration. And wouldn't you love to waste a burglar with a bow and arrow? I know I would. And once you stop loosing arrows into the woods, it doesn't cost anything. FREE FUN! My beloved archery range gets my hundredth yelp. And I'll post pics. read more

Golden Gate Park Archery Range - Freeze SUCKA! - Archery Near Me - San Francisco, California

See all

My friend's been telling me about this place for a whole lot of moons, but I've never had the chance to come here until now. Truth be told, my archery experience is somewhat limited. (My brother got me into it.) We have an infamous picture that basically sums up our siblinghood where I'm pretending to shoot him and he's welcoming the shot. He found a pretty good deal for a bow + arrows and a quiver on ebay, and our quests to become awesome began shortly thereafter. Officially, I took one quarter of archery at Davis, but during my last couple quarters there, I'd run to the field after one class ended to catch the tail end of their class. (The teacher called me their "guest TA." lawl. She's awesome.) I'd run into one of my exercise biology classes two times a week, out of breath from kickboxing/biking furiously across the entire campus, with my giant backpack, a bag containing the day's worth of food, and of course, my bow and arrows. My professor probably thought I was crazy, but perhaps also unique? :D? (In my defense, he actually wrote me a really awesome LOR. But I digress.) I BARTed up to Daly City today to meet up with my friend; we spent a couple hours here and basically shot at targets until our arms got tired. :D The best part = it's FREE! This definitely beats the cardboard boxes filled with styrofoam/scrap paper that my brother and I concocted to serve as targets at a local park that shall remain unnamed. ._. The range is outdoors, and the targets are set up at different distances. I guess in the more recent year, they covered up the bales of hay so you can now aim at green or black dots, "Pacific Bow Butts" or "Super Butts" if you so choose. This is a huge plus because apparently, back in the day, when it rained, the hay bales would get soggy and pretty disgusting. You can also bring your own targets to pin up if you'd rather use those. There's no one enforcing rules or anything and you can just take up whatever unoccupied lane there is. I wouldn't recommend that you come here if you've never done archery before. For one thing, you need to bring your own equipment. There's also the slight chance that if you happen to be terrible enough at this, you could potentially shoot someone while they're going to collect their arrows, which would be a rather unpleasant experience for everyone involved. P.S. There are really cute gophers and cats here, and also several suicidal, low-flying birds that seem to really like fluttering by right as you shoot. :[ We accidentally mistook a pinecone for an extremely brave bird. Oops. But anyway, try not to kill the animals. :[ P.P.S. Might not be the best place for kids. There were a couple here today who shot their arrows into the sky, which is a genius idea that you should never try unless you wanna die (or just possibly get injured, but that doesn't rhyme). read more

Talk about an Outer Sunset (/Outer Richmond) gem, this place is quite gemy. It's totally free, open to the public, spacious, and in a great location. How can I not take advantage of something like this especially when it's just a quick mosey from my apartment? Upon my first visit, I met 2 regulars who saw my wide-eyed hesitation and quickly deduced that I was a newbie. Rather than shunning me and my obvious lack of experience, one of them offered me a lesson. I don't usually accept archery lessons from strange men in Golden Gate Park, but telling from his fur-lined quiver and impressive long-bow, I decided to accept. Goes to show the openness and friendly atmosphere of the range; there really is no reason to be intimidated. If you're going for the first time, be aware of your surroundings and use common sense. Don't walk in front of people obviously using a target unless you like the feel of cold metal all up in your bits. Also be aware that there are some shooting at 70 yards and others shooting at 20. If it makes you uncomfortable being next to those 70-yarders, do yourself a favor and find a different target. That's one thing about this range -- there isn't any regulation as far as who shoots from what distance. There are also people retrieving arrows at will and sifting around in the wooded area behind the targets for wayward arrows. Pay attention and the harmony of his range shall continue! If you need equipment, the SF Pro Shop is located just up the street a ways on Balboa. How much more convenience can you take? Also look for some red tailed hawks that hang around here. They sure are purdy. read more

See all

The one-star review on here as of this posting is idiotic. The bale are sufficiently far apart to where the usual archery range safety callouts like "clear" are essentially unnecessary. Yes, if someone is so bad that they are shooting at roughly 30 - 45 degrees off center (depending on range) they may wander an arrow to a neighboring bale and, if that happened, the people at the range would quickly police that person and probably offer helpful training on how to properly shoot and at what range for the given skill level. If you are shooting at a bale with a group or have set up field targets around a bale (which the classes taught here do), of course you are going to want to follow proper safety when taking a turn and retrieving arrows. That is common sense and has nothing to do with being a "self respecting archer." The only reason I give the field four stars instead of five is the state of the bales is often pretty bad but this has more to do with funding. Also, depending on the crowd, the wait can be long and sometimes folks aren't great about sharing a bale but usually they are. read more

Oof this place is a hot mess, and if nobody's been killed here yet that is a miracle. Nobody follows any standard safety protocols, homeless camps in the bushes just behind the target bales, folks practically shooting over people's heads. One big WTF. Another reviewer here called someone "idiotic" for expressing concern about the lack of basic safety and consideration prevalent at this site. That cavalier attitude is kind of emblematic of the problem. read more

This place is a gem in SF, especially as it's free. It's also well maintained by a local group, who put on tournaments and other events regularly. read more

Where else in The City can you shoot like Robin Hood? RIGHT HERE!!! It's a nice, wide field where experienced and amateurs alike can target practice. Not as cool as the walking target practice arrangement like in Pacifica but that's not the point here. There are two hay bales to the far right that have cemented pathways with distance markers which is nice. Most of the bales are in decent, usable condition. They don't seem to replace them too often. BTW, you should know basic archery field etiquette before coming...this will keep you out of trouble. Like getting shot!! If you are a beginnerr just wanting to try it out, this is not a bad place. However, you are going to have to find someone to teach you. This archery field is part of Goldge Gate Park so there is no store associated with it to offer lessons. You can find some experienced people online for this. The shortcomings of this place is its location. Situated only blocks from the beach, it can get pretty overcast quickly...not to mention just plain COLD if you are in the shadows. read more

Given how humongous Golden Gate Park is, you bet there's going to be some kind of archery range. Tucked on 47th street near Fulton on the north side of Golden Gate Park is a relatively peaceful and hidden archery field. There's about 10 targets for you to choose from, with enough grass for you to stand very far away or super close up. If you don't have your own equipment, you can definitely rent some at SF Pro Archery Shop. It's nearby and definitely walkable from the Golden Gate Park Archery Field. It's open 7 days a week and costs $30 to rent everything you need all day (until closing at 6). Like many Yelpers have said (and some have complained), there's no real regulation in this range. It's pretty much a free for all. You bring your bow and arrows, camp out on a target, and let your arrows rip. There's a pretty big gap between each target and so you don't have to worry about being near someone's hit range while picking up your arrows. One of the downsides of this range is that the targets have gotten pretty old, meaning that the cushioning can be pretty horrible. If you are bringing your own equipment, make sure to have some sort of cardboard that acts as padding to your target. This is taken care of if you are renting from SF Pro Archery Shop. Another possible con is that there's a whole bunch of bushes behind the target. If you are not paying attention to how you aim, you could easily shoot over your target and hit the bushes. Though this can easily be avoided if you are careful... tl;dr the Golden Gate Park Archery Field is definitely a great activity to do by yourself or with friends. Shooting arrows is a great sport that requires a lot of mental precision. It's an awesome exercise and this field is a nice spot to hone your skills. Have fun and prosper, read more

So nice to have an archery range near my house, for free! The Facility- Its no frills... There are lanes at different distances with a bale at the end. Bring your own target and pin it up. There is no firing line, I just marked paces to find where I wanted to shoot from. But to have bales out for a range you don't have to pay for is awesome! If you haven't shot before I would recommend you don't start here unless you're doing a lesson or going with someone who has. You will need your own equiptment and there is no marked firing line and no one making sure the range is clear for everyone to retrieve arrows.... This didn't really worry me since everyone out there was pretty good. But it would be worrisome for a beginner and also is not a great way to learn range rules. For these reasons I also wouldn't recommend it for childrens. People were nice too, I met the one man team that shoots for UCSF and enjoyed chatting with him. Apparently they do have organized shoots out there from time to time also. read more

There are few archery fields around the area for honing in on your bow & arrow Hunger Games skill. Golden Gate Archery, right off Funston and 47th is not regulated by a leader, but instead by regulars who dictated which bales were free or not. I'm glad to have gotten a bale on the pavement and not on the grass field because cross-firing is very likely. Imagine an arrow from 100ft whizzing passed you while you stand at 20ft in the adjacent lane. Definitely need to be highly skilled, confident, or trustworthy of your fellow archerymen. Typically a group of four or more may share a lane, but the pros like to have their own thing going claiming their own lane. It is FREE to shoot afterall. A little nerve-wrecking at times without regulation. However, the day rental from the Archery Pro Shop is great! The two establishments are separate but coincide graciously. Our helper, Scott, was very helpful and skilled. He definitely demonstrated that by fixing the fiber optics we brought in on a whim with ease. They abide by a philosophy that is welcoming, all-inclusive, and it really feels like a community. He let us wander about with the recurves and trusted that we'd bring them back. Also his red beard is such a cool character! I am impressed by the usage of crowded space. It looks like a mom-&-pop one-stop shop! read more

I've now been shooting here for over a year several times a week. Except when I shoot point blank in my backyard, you can find me here. Though it gets crowded from 10am - 4pm on the weekends, most of the time it's not hard to get a lane here. And you can arrive as early as dawn, and stay until sundown. The concept that this range is free for anyone is a really great amenity. And I continue to be stunned by the weather in this part of the park. It's often gorgeous when other parts of the Richmond or Sunset are not, and the surrounding trees can cut down on the wind. read more

Who knew this place existed?! An archery park open to the public! You can also take lessons which my friends and I did for fun. And yes, it was fun! And no, we didn't wear tights. They teach you the basic principles and provide the bow and arrows. And, it was only like $20. Now I know how to shoot a bow and arrow! hehehe.... read more

Dude, it's FREE FREE FREE and OUTDOORS! So, as long as weather is good to you and you bring your own targets, you're money! They have several hay-stand things (sorry for my lack of terminology) that you can pin targets to. And they have them available for shooters of all levels! You can shoot from close or far. Man, I went and this guy was shooting from hella far! It was ridiculous! I had to move to see him then see the target! WTF?! It's right next to the gold course, just don't wear baggy jeans because you will be standing in the grass/mud (it is SF weather, people) read more

I had no idea this place existed.... until I signed up for some archery lessons through parks and rec!! There are some really awesome archers here that it's enjoyable just to sit back and watch them shoot for awhile. Last weekend I saw an older man with a legit longbow and some intense looking arrows, it reminded me of Lord of the Rings or something. Mad props to the archery enthusiasts! I'm learning a lot and it's so much fun. Even if you don't shoot just come check out the field while you are wandering around Golden Gate Park! I promise you will be impressed =) read more

"Very Katniss." Quote of the day came from my sister. Shot of the day came from the people shooting arrows at targets in the middle of a public park. Somehow legal. Somewhat dangerous. Something amazing. Five stars all around. read more

I never get tired of this place. I've met many really cool people here and made many connections. The GGP Archery Alliance was started here and continues to operate with the park people here. There are however the occassional drunk/homeless guy out here that disrupts our shooting. Nice place to come out to on a nice warm weekend and shoot til the sun goes down! Olympic athletes even train here! =] read more

I love this place! I can spend a whole afternoon here just shooting at those hay bales that will destroy your vanes if they happen to go through. Other than that.... cool place to go. read more

Golden Gate Park Archery Range - Archery Near Me - San Francisco, California

I haven't actually shot here, but I've observed which is good enough. The field is free and outdoors. Anyone can come and shoot, which is always nice. The targets are stacked so if someone next to you shoots badly, theoretically you could get hit. However, I don't think anyone is THAT bad and the targets aren't THAT close together. I wished that they had rentals. It would be great to able to participate without actually having to spend $400+ on a bow and a few arrows. Apparently, there are free lessons on some Sundays. read more

Nice places for archery , no need reservation, first come first serve ! The bad thing is , all of target boards there are broken ! You have to bring a big card board to cover the target board b4 playing ! read more

Free fun. Almost hit a cat. I looked like a duct-taped dork. :) read more

This is not a real archery range. No one knows to wait, say "clear", go get arrows. People are shooting right paste each other! It's super dangerous and in no way a legitimate archery range. You're MUCH better off going to a real range like SF Archers in Pacifica. It's a shame because I live right by here. Every once in awhile I drive by thinking 'maybe it's changed, maybe they've gotten it together and made it into a respectable range', but no, they have not! As a self respecting archer I can't bear to shoot there. And, IT'S DANGEROUS! People are shooting at the target next to you WHILE YOU'RE GETTING YOUR ARROWS. It's a real shame! It would be so easy to make it into a real range and teach people proper range etiquette and safety. read more

This is a great area for practicing your archery skills. There is a limited amount of targets so you may have to wait but everyone is usually nice and use the targets for a limited amount of time. Be careful where you are walking though, it is a target area!! read more

Free is always a great price! And conveniently located. The downside I feel about this range is the lack of cohesion. I really do not like shooting next to someone shooting at 70 yards when I'm up at 20-30 yards. Other target ranges have rules and holler "clear" when collecting arrows all together. Seems a tad unsafe to me. read more

gotta love the place and the regulars here...as well as the random people who show up *COUGH*Renaissance Fair*COUGH*. I like Socks the cat too. i love watching the japanese archery group, they're so focused on form that they usually don't care whether their arrow even hits the target. One time I saw one of their arrow actually hit dead center, and I told myself, "hey, he cheated; he must've aimed!" read more

SO COOL...... I mean just amazing. I know I will shoot here someday... I love it!

I love this place !! my fav. Archery spot ! read more

Golden Gate Park Archery Range - Chillin with robin hood in Golden Gate Park Archery Field - Archery Near Me - San Francisco, California

See all

I'm a non-competitive shooter and I've shot here for 30 years, love the place. Really, how can anyone complain? Free lanes, minimal waits during non-peak, beautiful surrounds and right in the city. A gem. read more

A nifty spot to shoot bow and arrows. Has a colloquial feel and is a bit rag-tag and loosy-goosy with respect to being orderly, well maintained etc. Look at for gophers in the area! Can rent certain times a day, or bring your own. You'll quiver with delight if you go early morning since not many people there; can fill up later. read more

I really like coming out to this place on Saturday... its very fun and relaxing to do and they have great instructors who teach you how to do archery the right way! I would definitely recommend this to anyone with kids because it will introduce them to an ancient sport! read more

One of my favorite places in the whole city! It fills up quickly on the weekends so either get there early or wait until later in the afternoon. read more

Great place to shoot some arrows, nice mellow atmosphere with beginners to pro's. Beware the crack heads in the park you hear screaming at each other from time to time and make sure not to shoot the cats that live there. A great resource for the city, and CCSF offers a great intro class. read more

I recommend going to this place if you're into archery. I even drop by sometimes to watch some pro quality archery. You don't have to worry about booking a space here, it's first come first serve. Best of all it is absolutely free! read more

awesome place to practice archery, i try to come out here afterwork everyday and in the mornings on weekends. whats there not to like about this place? its free!!! if you own a bow and live in the city theres no excuse not to visit this place regularly. only caveat is the "seedy" individuals who live in the bushes in the near area... remember to lock your car doors folks. read more

Bring your own target padding or cardboard- Other wise almost nothing left to pin the paper target to.

Good Archery Field but somewhat outdated! Some modernization could be done.