Shed thread 2018

[Hugenuge]

Here is a little video I put together of my sons first shed hunt. Before this day i had him out checking trail cams and we happened to find a shed. He was so excited about that he bagged me to take him out again. Here is our days as it unfolded!!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JMVuDB4Y1AM

[icecap]

Awesome video nuge. Cant wait to get my son out, he's four months now, so maybe next year lol. I made it out today with hopes of finding the match to the triple brow tine antler I picked up earlier this season. Started out where I found the right side a few weeks ago. After an hour of grid searching in that area I headed for a tree line where I thought they would be staging. 15 minutes later I spotted tines at 20 yards and picked up the match. Decided to end the day on a high note and walked straight to the truck.

[icecap]

Here's the set together. Might have to hang this one on the wall.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[pikeman06]

There ya go. Beautiful set right there. Talk nice to the wife and make some room in the living room for those. Nice pickin.

[Hugenuge]

Originally Posted by icecap

Here's the set together. Might have to hang this one on the wall.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Thanks man! ya get them out as early as you can! I had my son in the goose blind last year and he did great! it makes being out there that more memorable! Nice find on that set!! I spotted a new area the deer are hanging out tonight so im pumping with anticipation to get out there and see what treasures await!

[Soab]

Wicked set ! Colour mass and triple brows. Good job

[husky7mm]

Nice find and thanks for the share, how far apart did they end up being?

[husky7mm]

Went out with a friend yesterday after installing tracks on the atv and putting one sled away, wanted to refresh some salts and cam batteries. Needed the racks to haul everything.... got stuck everywhere. The snow is still near a meter deep in the shade. There is a thin crust and the rest is sugar. Ugh! It could be over a month before that chit is all gone. @&$k

[CanadianEh]

Yeah I went for a hike and wasnt sure Id make it out.. It is deceicving out there right now.. some spots are bare, some are ankle deep.. then without much warning on a east or north facing slope BOOM 2-3 foot deep, and HARD treking. trying to make it through thigh or deeper snow with a 2" crust on it then powder underneath was exhausting. Not sure snow shows would even have helped in that situation as once u broke the crust it was like falling in a hole right to the ground.

Ended up turning around and headed back to the truck. Could be an interesting year of runoff..

[icecap]

Originally Posted by husky7mm

Nice find and thanks for the share, how far apart did they end up being?

They were about 800 yards apart. I got lucky.

[6mm rem]

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[dustyBbowhunting]

First time out this year. Still a lot of snow out there. Very first double for me!

[1bowhunter12]

Beauty set^^... searched some elk spots the other day .. anybody finding any elk sheds ??

[bonedogg]

5 so far for me with two matched sets and three browns.[IMG][/IMG]

[laker]

Icecap..put those beauties on a mountain mikes skull,they go on sale on Amazon from time to time. That's a great set. Would like to see them mounted to give an idea of the frame size.

[Soab]

Seen couple elk still carrying last weekend

[Bub]

Originally Posted by DRE75

Too much snow still here in the Peace River area, especially fields and farmed quarters. Wait until the snows gone and they will be easier to come across. Work smart, not hard.

If you would like a partner in shed hunting feel free to pm me fishnguy, I'll be out in 2 weeks or so to try again and hopefully the snow isn't so deep.

I doubt you will be able to get out before the third week of April if not beginning of May the way things are progressing. There is a lot of snow out there. Some hills are manageable and practically snow free (very muddy and slippery though), but it is deep out in the bush. I put about 8 km on my boots on Friday and 13 km today, 90% of it with snow shoes on. I have not found any sheds, obviously, though it was more of a just hike type of outings and not looking to find anything, really.

I did find this, which was a first one for me:



At first, I thought this cow fell off the cliff and was wondering how could that happen. Later I thought she may have actually jumped. Notice how she hardly has any hair on her and hardly any hair around. She was still fairly fresh and hardly eaten (just poked around the nose and the ear) when I found her with dozens of crows and a beauty of what looked like a young bald eagle with white and brown through out his body, but massive in size, very massive, feeding on her. Whatever happened, she definitely came from the above though. You can see where she landed and dragged herself out a meter or two. Pretty sad stuff, no matter how it went. Definitely not the best way to die.

I also saw a rarity for me, which is a pileated woodpecker. Big birds. The guy stood over a foot and half tall. The way they "scream" is pretty cool too. I am sure if one was to listen to the sounds of jungle birds with this one in the mix, one would not distinguish between the two. And their knocking is really loud too.

Found a mulie (most likely) doe eaten to the bone, quite literally. A fairly large deer, so I am not sure if she was old and tired or just tired and taken down:



Fresh kill (or death), no more than a couple of days old. Again, sad stuff, but life happens.

On a good note, I have seen lots of deer, whitetails and mules. Saw at least two mixed groups of deer, half a dozen of whitetails hanging out together and acting like they are part of one group with half a dozen of mule deer. Saw a couple of groups of deer following a couple of herds of elk, which I also do not see that often. And I saw lots of elk. I have not seen anything still wearing the headgear. One elk today, definitely a bull, may have appeared to have something on his head, but he was too far to say for sure.

Just a few blurry pics:



Close up of the above photo (a few elk on the left and one on the right circled in red):



A couple more elk poking around the hill:



So yes, sheds or no sheds, it is great to be out and see all these guys around. The highlight for me was probably the woodpecker followed by groups of mulies and whitetail all mixed up following the elk. Good times. My legs are hurting after today's outing though

P.S. Some really great finds, guys. I am zero for the year so far, waiting for the snow to melt. Pretty sure this is the most we've had in the past 5 or 6 years.

[The moose]

I was out Friday for a look on one of my more productive areas. Weather was ugly but still enjoyed being out. No sheds, no deer sign and on average of 2-3' of snow, some places over the fence posts. I dont expect to find any sheds in there this year. Either way, Shed season looks to be 6 weeks away around Calgary area..

[buckbrush]

I've only made it out a few times this year with no luck. Brought my 5 year old along with me last time and his legs tired out about a mile from the truck. Snow was pretty deep though. Long pack back to the truck. Had a great time though.

Keep the pictures coming. Great for motivation.

[pintailslammer]

Not exactly sheds but was a nice find! Just another reason all coyotes need to be shot!Lots of potential this guy had to becoming a very nice deer(not that he wasn't already but a few more years and he'd been a giant

Pin

[6mm rem]

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[threeforthree]

[Bub]

Good stuff in the couple of posts above! Kind of jealous at the amount of snow in those pics

Went for a walk again on Saturday. The amount of snow we have in Peace country does not seem to be decreasing Chances of finding something other than in the fields with deer present are slim to none.

Kind of relevant, I saw a monster of an elk carrying the full set on his head. If I found the set he had on, I would probably retire from shed hunting, lol. Also, not really sure how this relates to wildlife, but I drove by an elk farm today off Hines Creek towards the BC border (not really sure how far from Hines Creek the farm really is since I did not pay much attention) and there were a couple of young bulls with the headgear on as well. There were also a couple of animals with a very light colour, almost albino like. If anyone knows the farm I am talking about and has some insights, I would greatly appreciate hearing about those light coloured elk.

[pikeman06]

That's just their old winter hair. Those farm elk get no shade whatsoever so it really bleaches out their hides. They don't stand out in the open in the wild 24/7. There's a bunch by nisku that are looking pretty ratty and sun bleached right now too.

[josh_beeks]

53 so far this year. Two 15 shed days and a couple other decent hikes. Kid on the way any day now so wont be out too much before she greens up.

[The moose]

Originally Posted by josh_beeks

53 so far this year. Two 15 shed days and a couple other decent hikes. Kid on the way any day now so wont be out too much before she greens up.

53... and here the snow is up to the waist.

[Soab]

10bulls and about a dozen spikers still carrying by waterton yesterday

[Bub]

Originally Posted by pikeman06

That's just their old winter hair. Those farm elk get no shade whatsoever so it really bleaches out their hides. They don't stand out in the open in the wild 24/7. There's a bunch by nisku that are looking pretty ratty and sun bleached right now too.

Interesting. Thanks for the reply!

Originally Posted by The moose

53... and here the snow is up to the waist.

Lol. Same here. At least we know that squirrels and rabbits are not shewing on those sheds just yet


For someone I am communicating with via PM: your mailbox is full and I cannot send you a message

[LKILR]

3 foot of snow here.

[northbuck]

Spring has been SOOO slow coming to the North country!!! With all the snow out there, it has been an especially slow year for me when it comes to finding whitetail sheds...I've only managed to find 14 thus far...all around food sources. Hopefully, I'll get a chance to go walk more once the snow has left and the deer have dispersed from their wintering areas...but that could be well into May the way things are going. I'm enjoying the pics being posted on this thread. In a few of the pics posted, I'm actually finding it strange to see patches of bare ground!!! It actually gives me hope...that I will eventually be seeing terrain coloured other than white in the foreseeable future!!! lol
I especially enjoy the "as they lay pics"! Some of you are making some very nice finds....keep those pics coming!!!
On a positive note, the deer seem to be fairly healthy considering all the snow and the long winter we've had. I have 35 or so whitetail wintering in the woodlot behind my house and I get to observe them every day...and I haven't seen them showing any signs of duress yet. I found the bucks were even packing late this year. Most of the shedding occurred over the month of March...but as of Monday evening, 4 bucks (3 young ones and 1 mature buck) were still "with antlers". I actually thought I'd see the mature buck shed his rack on Monday...as he kept shaking his head vigorously and on a few occasions...actually reached up with a back hoof and "scratched" at his antlers. I kept expecting him to drop at least one side while I watched...but he was still carrying both antlers as it got dark. Here are a couple pics from Monday...
u5qzTm9l.jpg

klTaDUSl.jpg
To be continued...