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2021 shed hunting

Went out and shed hunted a few hours yesterday and pulled some cameras at the same time, got home to find that all of the bucks on camera had their antlers through that morning before I arrived..... seems like I may have wasted a little time huh lol
Ha Not surprising. I always want to get started early, but my experience is that most of the deer around here seem to hold em until late February or even early March. Be patient, young grasshopper!
 
Last night was Ohio's last day of bow season had 3 small bucks come by still holding both sides.
 
Ha Not surprising. I always want to get started early, but my experience is that most of the deer around here seem to hold em until late February or even early March. Be patient, young grasshopper!

Yes, I do this every single year.... it’s February.... surely they’ve dropped by now right?? Plus in my head I’m imagining an army of nutters reducing the antlers to dust in moments
 
I actually enjoy getting cameras out at the end of the season before they drop so I can look for good deer that made it to pursue this upcoming season. If I get pics I go in and thoroughly scout the area and see if I can find a shed or two. Still got a few weeks down here before they drop but I got a few I’ll be looking for. Gives me plenty of time to learn new pieces of public and areas I didn’t get to hunt last season.
 
I actually enjoy getting cameras out at the end of the season before they drop so I can look for good deer that made it to pursue this upcoming season. If I get pics I go in and thoroughly scout the area and see if I can find a shed or two. Still got a few weeks down here before they drop but I got a few I’ll be looking for. Gives me plenty of time to learn new pieces of public and areas I didn’t get to hunt last season.
Yes!!!
 
Im planning on scouting a good trail on my way in to my late season spot. Still have 5 tags left


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Walked another 2.4 miles yesterday. No sheds found but I did find the best deer trail I've ever found in this area. I will most likely sit that next year when it's time to get a doe...
 
Took my 2.5 year old out today so I was pretty distracted watching him but we managed about two miles and found nothing again!


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I go shed hunting every year without finding much, if anything. I typically end up turning it into a scouting trip. Boy was today different.

I started off in a bottom and walked up to a creek. I was deciding on whether to cross the creek, or go parallel to it. I saw some tracks in the melting snow and headed parallel to it. I had only walked 100 yards or so and found this bad boy

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I spent the next couple hours following trails and tracks away from the shed. Came across a little forky and what looked to be one from last year.

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I was beyond excited to find these, but also getting discouraged I wouldn't find the match to the big one. I was a couple hundred yards from it at this point. I kept looking around the rest of the property, but after a couple more hours, I decided to head back. The only place I hadn't looked over, was the 1st 100 yards in the bottom where I entered. 60 yards from the 1st one was this guy

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After looking at my previous tracks in the snow, I literally walked by this one at 12 feet to my right where I stopped at the creek. When I decided to go parallel to the creek, my tracks were 5...FIVE feet from the shed! I basically walked a V around the dang thing. I guess angle of view makes a difference!

Biggest score I've ever had! Screenshot_20210223-210355_Gallery.jpg
 
I walked another couple of miles yesterday through a thick bedding area without finding anything but its thick so you have to get close to see them. Need a solid 8 hours to slow walk that area in more of a grid search.
 
After looking at my previous tracks in the snow, I literally walked by this one at 12 feet to my right where I stopped at the creek. When I decided to go parallel to the creek, my tracks were 5...FIVE feet from the shed! I basically walked a V around the dang thing. I guess angle of view makes a difference! Biggest score I've ever had!

Those are the best days!! Guarantee we all walk right by them all the time. Can't tell you how many times I've stopped walking and looked backwards and see one laying there I just walked by.
 
2.5 miles today. Not what I want to find, young 10pt with lots of potential.

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I found this one yesterday. Snow still had them covered up in SE Wisconsin. I actually stepped on this one before I saw it and dug it out of the snow. Dumb luck.

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I was more excited about this find. I am 5’8” tall and this rub went to the top of my head. I need to head back in next weekend after more snow melts off to see if I can find the sheds from the giant that is making 6’ tall rubs.


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I spent several hours on snowshoes yesterday walking around between oaks the deer have been digging under for acorns and following their trails in and out to bedding. No luck for me yet. I'm afraid their still buried as the snow is still averaging knee deep. There's been a ton of acorn digging going on though.

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We had some melt-off over the last couple of days so the dog and I were back out searching for sheds and checking our trail cams. Didn't find any sheds again today :disappointed: but I did find some great sign and a big picture view of how the deer are using this particular property. Here are some pics of some rubs and rub clusters on a morning trail heading back to bed down into a gorge area. Rubs022821.JPG
 

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Just a friendly tip for guys looking for sheds. If they burn your property, that's super easy pickings for sheds. I find most of mine on fresh burns. White bone against black soot stands out well, and usually they burn because the underbrush is really thick, which means its bedding.
 
Just a friendly tip for guys looking for sheds. If they burn your property, that's super easy pickings for sheds. I find most of mine on fresh burns. White bone against black soot stands out well, and usually they burn because the underbrush is really thick, which means its bedding.
No burning up in these parts!!!
 
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