Any idea of how long this was exposed?

[Motivated]

I am very interested to hear opinions about when this buck died. I found him November 30th, while trying to bump him out of his bed. My previous encounter was in December 2012, within 50 yards of where I found him last week.

His antlers have been chewed on a bit, but he does not appear bleached very much. He may have had a second double brow tine, which is where most of the damage is located.

Do you think this buck died within the last couple of months or in 2013? Thanks!



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[Spysar]

Probably died last hunting season or winter. Not in the last month or two.

[BassBoysLLP]

Probably died last hunting season or winter. Not in the last month or two.

Agreed. Light bleaching. Minimal chewing. Clean skull. All these things add up to Spysar's answer.

[hunter_mike]

Im guessing same as spysar

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[Motivated]

Thanks guys, I appreciate it. I never would have found this skull without the Beast.

I came across this deer while he was alive in 2012 on my third day of hunting as a adult. I had no idea what I was doing but was tired of sitting so close to everyone else and not seeing anything. My first season was six all day sits in the rain and saw two deer.

I decided to walk to the farthest point from any road and look for thick nasty growth and sit there. I just thought if I was a deer, then that's what I would do. I was sitting there and heard a bunch of thrashing and some deep, deep grunting noise. Then silence. I went back a couple more times that season but nothing else happened.

Last season I hunted funnels and harvested my first deer. Read a few books. In September this year I discovered the Beast, watched the videos and I'm figuring things out. I'm really grateful for all of the guys who post on here.

This year I've seen 16 deer on five sits in public, but have still made mistakes and missed a big buck last weekend. His track was huge! My brain turned to jelly and I rushed myself and shot was a clean miss.

Live and learn I guess. I'm having fun and getting better.

Thanks again Beasts!

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[nater]

There is also a lot of pearling remaining on the base. If it's jagged and sharp to the touch he probably died really early in the season if not before. If it's smoothed over from rubs/sparring/etc., then he probably died later in the hunting season or afterward.

And I'm speaking of last year, not this year. It would definitely not be that clean if he had died in the last 3-4 months.

[Motivated]

Thanks, that's really smart. I checked out the pearling and a good amount of it is rounded over a bit and polished white.

When I found this skull there was sign that another buck was using his nearby beds. One bed was a great spot where a treetop broke and created a very thick canopy--almost like a teepee. There were three escape routes created there. It was perfect! I wouldn't mind sheltering there--it was amazing.

I didn't get the time to hunt it with the SSW wind on my hunting days in the last couple of weeks, but I'll be back looking for sheds, huntable trees, and access routes in month or two. I'll keep you posted. Thanks again!

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[Milk Weed Seed]

Thats a great looking deadhead. Love the split brow. How much bigger is he from when you saw him on the hoof in 2012? I am confident that he died in 2013. Thinking like a deer, and distancing yourself from the crowd is a good move. Even better that you know the bed is still active. Keep it up, your doing awesome buddy!

[Motivated]

Thanks!

Funny--I never saw him alive on the hoof. I heard his grunt, but didn't recognize it because I was a new hunter. After I bought a grunt tube and tried it on the buck setting I figured it out. I'm sure it's the same dear though because there's not many mature bucks on the public land that I hunt, and his skull was no more than a hundred feet of where I heard him.

I'm grateful to have found this. This buck taught me some things and verified some knowledge here on the Beast.

Have a good one and merry Christmas everyone!

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