Never find sheds!!

Discussion about shed antlers, etc
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RidgeReaper
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Never find sheds!!

Unread postby RidgeReaper » Mon Jan 04, 2016 12:09 pm

How do you guys find so many? Where are the best areas to search? I've walked miles and miles year after year and I've never found one yet. I scouted beds today and found some very good buck beds. Looked for sheds a bit and didn't find any. I know it's early yet but it doesn't matter when i go I just can't find any haha.

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Haus86
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Re: Never find sheds!!

Unread postby Haus86 » Tue Jan 05, 2016 12:57 am

What state are you in?
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RidgeReaper
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Re: Never find sheds!!

Unread postby RidgeReaper » Tue Jan 05, 2016 1:05 am

PA

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Haus86
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Re: Never find sheds!!

Unread postby Haus86 » Tue Jan 05, 2016 6:59 am

Location has a lot to do with it. Your state automatically makes it harder to find sheds, so don't be hard on yourself. Focus on the South or East facing bedding areas, and of course feeding areas. If the fields have terraces check all of them. The deer will bed on them at night and they also gravitate towards them. If the fields have any buffer strips or grassy patches check those as well. The deer love to hang out there at night. I'd focus on these areas, and don't worry about trails until later. Rarely do I find sheds on a trail in the timber. Trails are where they spend the least amount of time.

Your timing has to be right as well. Deer might be pounding a field now, but they may be in a different field come February when the majority are shedding. Scout fields throughout Winter so you know where the most deer are at when the timing is right. If you do that, you won't waste time looking in the wrong areas. Hopefully I mentioned something that might help. Good Luck, and post your finds.
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Haus86
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Re: Never find sheds!!

Unread postby Haus86 » Tue Jan 05, 2016 7:05 am

If you see guys finding a ton of sheds online, it's not because they are shed savants, it's because they live in an area with a lot of sheds.
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Hawthorne
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Re: Never find sheds!!

Unread postby Hawthorne » Tue Jan 05, 2016 7:13 am

Haus86 wrote:If you see guys finding a ton of sheds online, it's not because they are shed savants, it's because they live in an area with a lot of sheds.


This is so true. I went with a buddy to some land in southern Indiana. I found 11 sheds in one day. In Michigan I average about one shed a day and that walking for hours.

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Outdoor814
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Re: Never find sheds!!

Unread postby Outdoor814 » Tue Jan 05, 2016 7:28 am

I also live in PA and have only found a few sheds myself. No matches yet. Look for creek crossings fence lines along field edges. I have had luck on brushy right of ways and hemlock groves. Just got to keep your eyes on tje ground.
What part of PA are you from?

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Re: Never find sheds!!

Unread postby RidgeReaper » Tue Jan 05, 2016 7:29 am

From Perry Co. Harrisburg area.

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Re: Never find sheds!!

Unread postby Stanley » Tue Jan 05, 2016 7:54 am

You have to look where there are big concentrations of deer in the winter/spring. If you are looking and not seeing a lot of deer sign, you will struggle finding sheds.
You can fool some of the bucks, all of the time, and fool all of the bucks, some of the time, however you certainly can't fool all of the bucks, all of the time.
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Re: Never find sheds!!

Unread postby PK_ » Tue Jan 05, 2016 9:06 am

Cornfields
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Re: Never find sheds!!

Unread postby Crazinamatese » Tue Jan 05, 2016 11:37 am

I've only found two antlers in my life and both were found when I wasn't even trying to look for them. I envy the guys that find piles of them every year. I once had a neighbor that would pick them up out in his yard because he fed the deer in the winter. :roll:
The cave you fear hides the treasure you seek!!!
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James
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Re: Never find sheds!!

Unread postby James » Tue Jan 05, 2016 12:00 pm

I think it is a combination of timing and access to the right locations. I rarely find any sheds on my farms in Wisconsin. Yet one year in 2007 I found 13 or 14 in just a few short hours. Same food as normal. My hunch was that on that year I arrived the day after the big melt.

I do firmly believe that a ton of trespassing occurs in the spring in efforts to locate sheds. Guys probably reason it's ok out of season and with no snow and general lack of cameras out I can see where it's easy to expand "beyond your boundaries" to cover more ground. My properties certainly hold the deer in winter but my 2007 experience leads me to believe I am missing it to the neighbors. Curse of being a non-resident.

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gjs4
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Re: Never find sheds!!

Unread postby gjs4 » Tue Jan 05, 2016 12:04 pm

In areas with heavy snow fall it is about thermal cover near available food.

Just north of you- 23 in 2012, 7 in 2013&14 combined. Same ground- different snow depths and food availability/needs

This is also relative to guys who say they bed where they shed- maybe some places but not by me...and doubtful by you.

Shed are like grouse- you don't hunt them to fill a bag...it's the sport and enjoyment that takes us out

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isitseasonyet?
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Re: Never find sheds!!

Unread postby isitseasonyet? » Tue Jan 05, 2016 2:35 pm

I maybe find 5-10 a year always in pine trees and cornfields...

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bonecollector
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Re: Never find sheds!!

Unread postby bonecollector » Mon Jan 18, 2016 10:46 am

I live in maine far fewer deer here cause winter is brutal but i find about a hundred sheds a year ..its tough but you have to be patient persistant ! They are out there .and timing is everything ...look in food sources ...also bucks tend to stay off the beaten paths ive hiked hundreds of miles on these trails never find any on them .they tend to walk alone and make there own path .my experience! Good luck

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