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Shed Hunting Tips

BizCT

By BizCT,
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BizCT Grand Master

BizCT

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Hope the experts will chime in, but what are some tips? I never shed hunted on purpose before, but Sunday with the warm weather I may go walk the land that my Parents are in contact to buy.

Or do I just walk as much as possible with my head down?

I've found 1 shed in PA, it was fresh laying in a state land food plot. I also found 8-10 nice sheds in 5 days in Wyoming once. But again, I was specifically looking for them. Muley sheds are much bigger and really stand out.

Thanks in advance!

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turkeyfeathers Veteran

turkeyfeathers

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Had one of these but our November storm wiped it out :rolleyes: 

But on a serious note I think Wooly will offer some great info. I only stumble on maybe one a year by dumb luck. Here's one I found a couple of years ago. I looked intensely for the other half but no luck

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post-4567-0-28179700-1455924034_thumb.jp

Edited by turkeyfeathers
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wooly Newbie

wooly

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My favorite spots are bedding and browsing thickets but antlers can turn up anywhere.

There's no right or wrong way to look for antlers as long as you're out there looking. You know the deer habits in your area probably better than anyone can tell you on a forum like this.

Follow the heaviest sign to and from bed to feed and every trail in between.

 

I like to think I have a "fast eye", meaning that I can identify an antler with just a quick glimpse against all the clutter on the forest floor. I zip along at a pretty good pace now. Starting out you may need to take your time and really pick apart every nook and cranny for that one piece of that jumps right out at you.

Good luck!

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Nomad Grand Master

Nomad

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Well you'll improve your odds greatly by coming to,an area like 8H........

I'm no expert but find a few each year on my limited shed hunts . I walk the trails the deer walk, mostly in thick brush. You can drive yourself crazy by staring at the ground I just scan ahead and side to side as I move, most I find walking trails are right on them.

When the snow is all gone I will glass green fields that I know they feed in during the winter. Although there will be times you'll run a couple hundred yards into the field to find its piece of a corn stalk ..... Some say check where they " jump" either over a fence or creek at known crossing points. It appears I have no,jumping deer .....

Bedding areas are good . You're looking for where they spend the most time, bedding eating , walking . My problem is our bedding areas are to thick to walk , I'd have to,crawl over one .

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BizCT Grand Master

BizCT

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My Dad called me last night to tell me about a shed he found in his back yard. It was lodged in one of his more complex bird-feeders, the mechanical ones that give squirrels a carnival ride. ;-]

Makes sense because in states you can bait, you can make a little fence around the bait so it knocks antlers off when they come to feed.

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The_Real_TCIII Grand Master

The_Real_TCIII

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It's tough to find sheds when the deer are still wearing them, as in the case around this area. The only thing I might add is somehow, I get the feeling a shed is close by. Sometimes, I actually think I can smell them. What the hell is wrong with me?

i wait until a nice thaw in March/April to look for that reason. I've only found three ever but all three are honkers
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wooly Newbie

wooly

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Makes sense because in states you can bait, you can make a little fence around the bait so it knocks antlers off when they come to feed.

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I talk to a lot of west coast guys on another site who are allowed to put out bait stations with antler traps and it's not always as easy as you'd think.

These guys are top notch shed hunters hauling in 40, 50, 60, even 100+ antlers a season. You just can't beat putting in the time and mileage to find antlers consistently.

Very few antlers actually ever turn up in their traps.

I would imagine even fewer would turn up in low density woods most of us have access to in NY. 

 

 

landtracdeerhunter, on 20 Feb 2016 - 08:16 AM, said:

It's tough to find sheds when the deer are still wearing them, as in the case around this area. The only thing I might add is somehow,  I get the feeling a shed is close by. Sometimes, I actually think I can smell them. What the hell is wrong with me?

 

 

I've just been doing some short hikes around home this winter with nothing to show for it yet except for one oldie back in November. We're snowed in for a while yet.

 I did bump into a real bruiser last week still packing both sides as well, so I'm not too worried.

It sure is a sweet feeling when you expect to find an antler in a certain spot and all of a sudden BAM... there it is!

Sometimes it's almost freaky the accuracy you can predict them to pop up almost to the exact tree they'll be under. Really makes you feel like you almost know what the hell you're doing out there,lol

 

 

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BizCT Grand Master

BizCT

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Yeah in addition to the bunch that I found and brought home from Wyoming I also glassed up several each day. But because I was hunting I wasn't going to start walking around and grabbing every single shed that I saw through my binocs

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