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Post by Buckslayer on Dec 2, 2007 23:59:30 GMT -4
wheres a good place to look for sheds?in 25 yrs ive only found maybe 4-5 sheds.. just by stubbling onto them..
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Post by tracer on Dec 3, 2007 6:58:23 GMT -4
Top 10 Shed Hunting Tips 1. Scout early and locate where bucks and does are wintering. Well traveled trails in the snow where a buck trail intersects are hot spots. 2. Locate and check winter feeding areas( ex. corn, winter wheat and bean fields). 3. Locate and check winter bedding areas. 4. Concentrate on southern exposures of bluffs and hillsides. 5. Check ridge tops and edges for trails and bedding areas. Follow field edges and check swamp areas when they are frozen over. 6. Check all trails, even the lesser used ones. 7. Secluded hemlock, pine, and cedar stands are often hot spots. 8. Check fence lines, creek beds , saddles and valleys. 9. Locate and chart trails (by map or GPS, ) in the snow early for later shed hunting. 10. Same old story as with deer hunting and scouting, you have to put in the time in the woods, cover your area thoroughly and patience will payoff. That said, if you have limited time follow the field edges and where the deer jump fences or ditches are good places to look. Get your family and friends together and go shed hunting this spring . It's a lot fun and the information you collect along the way, could be the key to locating that trophy buck.
Shed hunting can provide great on the ground experience of a giving area. Tip number four is one that many successful shed hunters adhere to: Concentrate on southern exposures of bluffs and hillsides. Look for flat spots where deer can bed down all day. Cloudy days are the best for shed hunting and if it is sunny, keep it at your back. Carry a good set of binoculars with you as it will save a lot of walking and cover more area in less time.
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Post by loggy on Dec 3, 2007 19:41:38 GMT -4
Some good tips there!!
I never shed hunted but sounds like someting id like to get into!!
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thunderbolt125
advid lodge member
Take a kid hunting and you won't have to hunt for him or her!!!
Posts: 362
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Post by thunderbolt125 on Mar 1, 2008 15:23:46 GMT -4
Tracer said it all.....i'll ussally find them along the trails in and out of the feeding areas....Thunderbolt125
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pike
lodge member
Posts: 203
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Post by pike on Mar 9, 2010 3:30:27 GMT -4
buckslayer, If your like me and dont have time to search every inch of a parcel etc. skip the trails and south facing slopes( unless thats were the majority of deer in your area are bedding) I wasted numerous hours, days, shed seasons etc over the years searching trails, creek crossings, fence lines and south facing slopes. It wasnt until I started to concentrate the majority of my time searching in very thick bedding area's and fields that I started finding sheds almost every trip out. The reason I spend 90% + of my time searching these 2 area's ( of course you have to identfy where they are bedding and feeding the majority of the time and in many cases its not on south facing slopes/ hillsides etc.) is because bucks are spending 90 + % of their time in these 2 area's. And since bucks are spending 90 + % of their time in these 2 area's , there is a 90 + % chance the bucks will drop their antlers in these 2 area's. In short spend your time searching where the bucks spend the majority of their time in, searching trails etc. is like looking for a needle in a haystack because most bucks will use different trails every day to get from their bedding area's to their feeding area's and vise versa. The only time I walk trails etc. is if im trying to learn the area or pattern a particular buck that I was hunting, got pics of or found sheds too. Pike
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Post by tracer on Mar 11, 2010 23:02:19 GMT -4
Thanks for sharing your experience pike. Good stuff.
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pike
lodge member
Posts: 203
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Post by pike on Mar 15, 2010 14:07:37 GMT -4
No problem tracer! I have wasted alot of hours and shoe leather walking trails,creek, crossings, funnels, fence crossings etc. over the years with out much to show for it, (a buck travels up to a half mile a day (each way) to get too and from his feeding and bedding area's, so I just comepletely cut out looking for sheds along their travel routes etc. and have dramaticly increased the amount of sheds I find (even in PA.) The only time I do cover those area's is if I want to try to pattern a particular buck, learn a new area, or find the matched antler to a very good buck that I already found the other side too. Pike
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pike
lodge member
Posts: 203
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Post by pike on Mar 15, 2010 14:10:25 GMT -4
Also I would like to give a tip on making it easier to find sheds, On bright sunny days try wearing the polarized sunglasses that you use every time you go fishing. They really do make a difference.
Anybody else have any tips?? Pike
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