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BuckTracker: Bittersweet Finds
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March 20, 2009
BuckTracker: Bittersweet Finds
Shed hunting is enjoying a huge jolt of popularity lately for two primary reasons. First, finding antlers is just plain fun, with the added lure that shed hunting is primo when a lot of other pursuits are, well, not so primo. And second, finding a shed verifies that a certain buck has made it through the toughest part of the year and will—barring accident—be around to hunt next fall.
Of course, sometimes the horns we find have not been shed at all, and are attached to the skull of a very dead whitetail. Usually, it’s impossible to determine the cause of a “found” buck’s death…and whether it was a wounding loss from hunting season or just met some other natural fate, I guess it doesn’t much matter.
I always feel a little torn when I find a dead one. Sure, it’s a bummer that he’s out of the picture, and it’s a shame a lucky hunter didn’t get to enjoy him. Still, finding him is always better than the alternative, and a bittersweet trophy is far superior to no trophy at all. Above is a “found buck” photo from the Midwest taken in the last month. To see some more photos, check out the "Racks From The Dead" gallery.
Got any good stories to share of your own?
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Comments (15)
Good thing that picture doesn’t have smell-o-vision, I bet it stinks! Skull good, decomposing head bad.
IT would be very disapointing to me because then i know that i would never get at chance at the animal when it's living.
Nate
You can be sure he left his genetics behind!
I was stalking through the woods, and saw a ten pointer between two trees, that was staring in my direction.
I bent over, and walked a wide circle around the deer to get a close shot with my bow.
As I slowly walked in behind the ten pointer, I realized it had wedged its rack inbetween the two trees and had died, probably the night before.
The coyotes hadn't been there yet. The tree was scarred, where the two trees had held the creature in a vise-like grip, and the ground was visibly rutted, from the frantic animals hooves, trying to escape this full-nelson, Mother Nature had applied.
That is a heck of a buck to find. It would have been a great buck to take in season, but will still make a great mount for the lucky carcass finder. Better to be enjoyed on the wall that chewed up by rodents.
While it's a shame to have found it dead, aleast his off-spring will be around for years to come.
If I found that deer on my place I'd be on the ground curled up in the fetal position balling my eyes out.
I had a guy who hunts across the road from me email me a trail camera photo of a buck he had been hunting for a few years. His email said he couldn't keep the deer a secret anymore and wanted to know if I has seen this buck. I emailed him back a photo of me holding the deer in my hands with a big grin on my face. I also told him to check out the Oct. 2007 issue of Buckmasters Magazine for additional photos. Now that story had a happy ending. At least for me. I guess this guy was devastated.
We trade sheds in my little area. I found a nice 9pt (on one side) that measure 65 inches of mass and tine length. The shed was from the prior year. I showed it to my neighbor who harvested the deer and traded it for one he found that looked like my son shot. We ended up going through each others shed pile and traded quite a few.
My buddy and I where riding quads out at my farm one year and spotted some antlers in one of the hay fields when we went to investigar we found about half of a nice ten point, coyotes tore it up pretty good. I didn't feel right mounting the skull of a deer I had not taken so I made a nice hat rack out of the antlers.
I have been shed hunting for a few years now, and love finding a skull. Lot of times I would rather find a whole skull than an antler since it is often difficult to find a set. During the 2007 shed season my nose actually led me to a very nice 11 point, which I proudly have displayed in my dorm room window for all passerbys to see! Great way to get out in the woods when there is not much else in the sense of hunting!
About two years ago, I found a dead spike with an arrow through one ham. There is no telling how far that deer had come to wind up on our land. I understand that things like that happen though, but that was an exceptionally bad shot. It's just a shame that so many deer go to waste by things like that.
I have never really experienced anything like this but man, what a buck to find. I would be heartbroken. That is one massive deer. I wonder if he was nocturnal and no one got to shoot him or something because that is one buck that I dont think many would pass up.
so if you find that animal dead in the woods, i assume it is legal to take it home. what if it is during hunting season? would that still count against your tag?
That is quite the find and bittersweet but what a buck! It's nice to know what happens to a big buck when he disappears. Did he get shot? Was he wounded and died slowly, never to be found? Finding him is a type of 'closure' that at least puts the mind at ease. There have been a few bucks I've hunted that disappeared and I'd love to know what happened to them. Finding their horns/bodies would be better than nothing I think.
Its sad to think that these nice bucks may have been shot and never found or maybe a poacher...maybe it was mother nature herself, but at least they were found and people get the chance to see some of the wonders of these animals racks.
its ashame that someone didnt get that buck in the season, but its better to find him than to let him rot away and rodents eat his rack away.
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If I found that deer on my place I'd be on the ground curled up in the fetal position balling my eyes out.
I had a guy who hunts across the road from me email me a trail camera photo of a buck he had been hunting for a few years. His email said he couldn't keep the deer a secret anymore and wanted to know if I has seen this buck. I emailed him back a photo of me holding the deer in my hands with a big grin on my face. I also told him to check out the Oct. 2007 issue of Buckmasters Magazine for additional photos. Now that story had a happy ending. At least for me. I guess this guy was devastated.
We trade sheds in my little area. I found a nice 9pt (on one side) that measure 65 inches of mass and tine length. The shed was from the prior year. I showed it to my neighbor who harvested the deer and traded it for one he found that looked like my son shot. We ended up going through each others shed pile and traded quite a few.
Its sad to think that these nice bucks may have been shot and never found or maybe a poacher...maybe it was mother nature herself, but at least they were found and people get the chance to see some of the wonders of these animals racks.
My buddy and I where riding quads out at my farm one year and spotted some antlers in one of the hay fields when we went to investigar we found about half of a nice ten point, coyotes tore it up pretty good. I didn't feel right mounting the skull of a deer I had not taken so I made a nice hat rack out of the antlers.
I have been shed hunting for a few years now, and love finding a skull. Lot of times I would rather find a whole skull than an antler since it is often difficult to find a set. During the 2007 shed season my nose actually led me to a very nice 11 point, which I proudly have displayed in my dorm room window for all passerbys to see! Great way to get out in the woods when there is not much else in the sense of hunting!
About two years ago, I found a dead spike with an arrow through one ham. There is no telling how far that deer had come to wind up on our land. I understand that things like that happen though, but that was an exceptionally bad shot. It's just a shame that so many deer go to waste by things like that.
I have never really experienced anything like this but man, what a buck to find. I would be heartbroken. That is one massive deer. I wonder if he was nocturnal and no one got to shoot him or something because that is one buck that I dont think many would pass up.
so if you find that animal dead in the woods, i assume it is legal to take it home. what if it is during hunting season? would that still count against your tag?
That is quite the find and bittersweet but what a buck! It's nice to know what happens to a big buck when he disappears. Did he get shot? Was he wounded and died slowly, never to be found? Finding him is a type of 'closure' that at least puts the mind at ease. There have been a few bucks I've hunted that disappeared and I'd love to know what happened to them. Finding their horns/bodies would be better than nothing I think.
its ashame that someone didnt get that buck in the season, but its better to find him than to let him rot away and rodents eat his rack away.
Good thing that picture doesn’t have smell-o-vision, I bet it stinks! Skull good, decomposing head bad.
IT would be very disapointing to me because then i know that i would never get at chance at the animal when it's living.
Nate
You can be sure he left his genetics behind!
I was stalking through the woods, and saw a ten pointer between two trees, that was staring in my direction.
I bent over, and walked a wide circle around the deer to get a close shot with my bow.
As I slowly walked in behind the ten pointer, I realized it had wedged its rack inbetween the two trees and had died, probably the night before.
The coyotes hadn't been there yet. The tree was scarred, where the two trees had held the creature in a vise-like grip, and the ground was visibly rutted, from the frantic animals hooves, trying to escape this full-nelson, Mother Nature had applied.
That is a heck of a buck to find. It would have been a great buck to take in season, but will still make a great mount for the lucky carcass finder. Better to be enjoyed on the wall that chewed up by rodents.
While it's a shame to have found it dead, aleast his off-spring will be around for years to come.
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