Axes are to weaponry what motorcycles are to road trips: you could opt for something more practical, but you’ll have way less fun if you do.
And we don’t just mean wood-chopping and fire-building. Ever chucked an axe down-range at a wood target? It’s an excellent way to blow off some steam.
As luck would have it, there are two fine establishments just a hatchet’s throw away from NYC that cater to said radical activity.
We recently paid them a visit.
STUMPY’S HATCHET HOUSE
Just across the river in Eatontown, New Jersey, Stumpy’s is a grown man’s wonderland. It’s like darts, but with hatchets. One two-hour hurling session runs $40 per person and includes a safety lesson and a training session. It’s also BYOB. Seriously: they let you drink beer and throw axes. You can also bring your own target, should you have an extra 8×10 of your ex or Ryan Lochte lying around. The place is great for group affairs — bachelor parties, teambuilding, first dates — or simply polishing up on your zombie-thrashing skills. Plus, they have joyful happenings like a $20 per person Hatchet Hour for brushing up on your technique before you show up to a League Event or Single’s Night. Which, by the way, would be a “how we met” story we would actually love to hear.
PROJECT WOODCHIPS
So you want to get serious about hatchet-hurling? This is the place. Taught by former Timbersports Pro and head of the Adirondack Woodsman School Brett McLeod, Project Woodchips’ Axes After Dark (beginning October 7th at Gotham Archery in Brooklyn) schools participants on how to chop, split and throw axes. Sounds pretty serious, but it’s tailored to beginners and experienced hatchet wielders alike. The course will be a monthly happening from 8PM-12AM and set you back 150 bucks. Classes are capped at 20, so you’re sure to get plenty of guidance, and private group lessons are also available. Should you wind up as hooked as we did, you’ll have their Woodsman Camp next summer to look forward to. It’s a weeklong immersive that includes competitive fire building, speed climbing, all things hatchets and saws, and a gaggle of other useful camping know-how. It’s like a survivalist boot camp without the secret militia handshakes and pro-Trump banter.
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