ANTLER SHED HUNTING

Benefits of antler shed hunting;

1. Great exercise & fresh air
2. Wildlife and bird watching
3. Learn the land, scout
4. Anyone at any age can do it
5. See evidence of what caliber bucks are around
6. Property owners are more likely to let you walk their land, than hunt it
7. Walk the dog
8. Teach kids or friends how to navigate or GPS
9. Photography opportunities
10.It can be profitable

That's right...antlers sell!  Today they are used in chandeliers, lamps, basket handles, knife handles, jewelry, hat racks, coat racks, and more.  Small ones are popular in Colorado for cabinet handles.  Ebay has oodles of antlers for sale.  I once bought a moose shed on vacation for $40 and turned around and sold it for $80 on ebay.  Some folks are attached to their finds like it's a golden treasure.   We've never found so many that we felt like storage was a problem and we needed to sell.  And when you spend dozens of hours looking, it makes it harder to sell them! 

We've learned a few things about shed hunting.  Here are the tips and advice we have;

1. If you find one(or more), check that same property again the following year!
2. South slopes and under thick pines and near uncut corn are prime
3. Go early in the season, before it gets too muddy and wood tick populations explode
    For MN, it starts around February but they are often chewed up pretty bad by mid May
4. Tell someone where you are going and when you'll be back
5. Go north!  There is a lot more public land up there!
6. Bring t.p. and water! 
7. Look for a tine, not the whole antler
8. If possible, use a four wheeler to crisscross large openings like pasture
9. Strips of woods or brush between pastures or fields are highly traveled by leery bucks
10. Many, MANY hours are required

I've heard it takes around 40 hours to find one shed here, but that's just an estimate.  Don't let the numbers discourage you from going, you might get lucky in less than an hour!  The more you do it, the better you get.

NEVER second guess yourself!  If you think you saw something, go make sure.  That's how I found an skull of an 11 pointer!  I thought it could be a blade of dry grass, but it wasn't!!!

Sometimes you'll just be out and about and stumble upon a shed.  This tiny antler was found during a 3D shoot last spring nestled amongst the oak leaves.

For more pictures of our antler shed finds, visit our website!
http://www.ottertrailarchery.com/Antler_Sheds.html

Here are some great articles, if you're wanting to know more!

http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/volunteer/mayjun07/wooodland_crowns.html

http://www.biggamehunt.net/articles/finders-keepers

http://www.northamericanwhitetail.com/huntingtactics/ht_0903sheds/

http://shedantlers.com/