Shhh...It's a secret!

[bonepicker]

Contrary to popular belief, there are still some deer in Oregon. No, not as many as 20 years ago, and not like in Utah but a few are still kickin'. I just thought I would post up the deer sheds from this year. 2 bucks from this year would go 180ish and 3 from last year would go 180 if they were not killed last fall. So this year those bucks will possibly be bigger. Many shed hunters that I know from various parts of the state have picked up some good bucks this year, but don't tell anybody! Hopefully we can continue to see some recovery... Here you go.


http://www.monstermuleys.info/photos/user_photos/7023antlers_001.jpg

 

[440sixpack]

I used to pick up that many in my hay feilds before I sprayed to prevent flat equipment tires. this year I didn't find a half dozen and they were dinks. 180 class? not quite, maybe that's why you think we have big bucks. don't worry about what " would have been " if they had they would be. if my aunt had nuts she'd be my uncle.


As long as people don't think we have a problem ODFW will be glad to not fix it. I know what used to be and I won't be happy until we're 50% of that.
















Stay thirsty my friends

 

[bonepicker]

440, I'm not sure what you're saying. Are you saying that none of the antlers I picked up are close to 180 or that none of your antlers were close to 180? Not sure about your measuring but I am pretty confident of my 175-180 scores on the antlers I'm talking about.
There is no "what would have been" attitude from me, the brown sheds are from bucks that are still alive, they shed this year and are roaming the hills as we write. (barring some sudden death) and are growing antlers for this year that will probably be bigger than last year. This is not wishful thinking, it's reality. The others are a year old and I think its a safe bet that at least one of the three bigger ones are still alive. This is speculation but is likely true.
I do understand that the deer are not nearly as plentiful and not all the bucks are as big as in the good ol' days but focusing on the past is based less in reality that what I am saying. We are not in the 70's, 80's, 90's now. I am simply saying there are good bucks out there still, and that is evidence-based fact. No speculation, wishful thinking or nostalgic devotion to the past.
I think we are hoping for the same thing, the recovery of our herds to where they used to be, but I am simply pointing out that I am seeing good signs. Alot of work left to do, but hopefully it is just the beginning of recovery.

 

[Wanted]

So what "area" did the sheds come from? Be nice to know what "area" is recovering and what is being done in said "area" to accomplish the recovery?

 

[440sixpack]

I can score ok, I'm a B&C official measurer. it's hard to say from pictures but I see nothing there that would be 180 class assuming the other side matched and the spread credit was average. like I said , it's hard to tell from pictures but I'd bet a beer on it 170 tops.

I'm not trying to be confrontational, but there is no way our herds will ever recover if crappy is good enough. If you're alright with Oregon's deer hunting you're either too young to know or a newbie. I can promise you we can do better but we must demand it, it won't come by complacency.



I haven't killed a deer in Oregon since 2000, I may never again the way it's looking and I'm 50. In won't shoot dinks, nobody should. our role as hunters is supposed to be to manage the game by removing the excess . can anyone tell me we have an excess of mule deer in Oregon? we wouldn't even have a deer season if we were responsible hunters, that would motivate ODFW I promise you.










Stay thirsty my friends

 

[kzkammo]

Nice finds, was that 1 trip or so far this year? I was home on leave a few weeks ago and did a little shed hunting but we only picked up a dozen sheds.

 

[excavator]

Those are some nice finds. 440 acts like what you found is nothing, but I disagree.

440, If the hunting was so good like you say it was, your surely have multiple 180 plus bucks to post up that you killed off your own place. Please post them up.

Excavator

 

[silverlake176]

Agree. We all like to see big muley pictures. Please post and share. We dont care where they were shot but we all like seeing the 180" buck. Please post.

 

[bonepicker]

Excavator, I'm not too worried about nostalgia. Deer populations were better in the past and 80% of my biggest sheds come from many years ago. That said, I'm a glass half full kind of guy. I've had several thin years of shed hunting, small bucks and not too many of them but this year I'm finally seeing some improvement, still a long way to go of course but it feels like we are moving in the right direction. It may be one isolated area, it may not even be a real recovery, but there seems to be a few good signs. I think some people are afraid that if people see some improvement they will just forget about the deer and be satisfied with mediocre but I disagree. I think a little good news can be helpful at times too.

 

[Wanted]

LAST EDITED ON May-03-13 AT 06:03PM (MST)[p]Another thing I have noticed from shed hunting heavily the last several years is deer don't always come back to the same areas to drop their antlers. Its all weather dependant.

I found a ridge loaded with fresh buck horns a couple years ago, and haven't found any there the last two years.

 

[manny53]

LAST EDITED ON May-03-13 AT 08:11PM (MST)[p]>Agree. We all like to
>see big muley pictures. Please
>post and share. We dont
>care where they were shot
>but we all like seeing
>the 180" buck. Please post.
>


U don't get 440 point it's nothing near to what it used to be, if u think what's out there is ok with you no one will pis n moan and DOW won't change their attitude nor current practices, hey if your happy mk, what, did 10 bucks drop those sheds n not to mention not from the same year, the post title is ridiculous n misleading. .. It is sad...

I've seen the stats from what was and now what is....
??

 

[excavator]

>Excavator, I'm not too worried about
>nostalgia. Deer populations were better
>in the past and 80%
>of my biggest sheds come
>from many years ago. That
>said, I'm a glass half
>full kind of guy. I've
>had several thin years of
>shed hunting, small bucks and
>not too many of them
>but this year I'm finally
>seeing some improvement, still a
>long way to go of
>course but it feels like
>we are moving in the
>right direction. It may be
>one isolated area, it may
>not even be a real
>recovery, but there seems to
>be a few good signs.
>I think some people are
>afraid that if people see
>some improvement they will just
>forget about the deer and
>be satisfied with mediocre but
>I disagree. I think a
>little good news can be
>helpful at times too.

I know there is some truth in what 440 says, and I understand the supposed objective, but he does not have to be an arse in how he gos about it. With that said, I would like to see pictures of all of the big bucks he eludes were omnipresent "back in the day."

 

[NickW]

Nice haul, Bonepicker!
.........and your secret is safe with me! LOL

 

[440sixpack]

LAST EDITED ON May-05-13 AT 07:24AM (MST)[p]



I wasn't alive in the 50's or old enough to hunt in the 60's which were the peak but I took quite a few 170 class bucks and a couple 180 class in the 70's and 80's. I have multiple pictures of 170-180 class deer taken in Crook and Grant county, we didn't usually take a picture of a 160 type buck who cared. those of you who don't see a problem with deer numbers don't remember the days of photos, on film, that's right we took pictures of those bucks and they're on paper not digital. trippy huh?

Oregon has never had 180 class bucks on every ridge, I never said it did. what it did have was lots of deer and lots of mature bucks . if we're going to take 160 class deer and call them 180 class deer then it would have impressed you even more.

I don't expect deer numbers to ever be close to what they were when I was a kid, I'm realistic. what I want it a return to at least what they were in the 90's. I've seen MUCH lower deer numbers in Murderers Creek in the last 15 years than I saw in the season of '93 after the last bad winterkill 0f 92-93. far fewer. on my place the deer numbers are a total joke anymore but that doesn't bother me so much.



I'll just keep hunting out of state where I actually have fun and hope enough people get discusted to start a fight for the oregon mule deer. if they do I'm there with whatever support I can give.



Stay thirsty my friends

 

[tchoate3]

I've started to see a few more deer in one of the units I like to hunt, apperntly ODWF did to. They added 100 more tags this year! No wonder we can never get the populations up, they just give out more tags when they start to. I wish I could afford to hunt out of state every year. If I could, I wouldn't even hunt Oregon for deer.

 

[bonepicker]

Choate,
I agree. If populations are up in some areas, they are not up very much and it may just be that they have merely stopped dropping. There is definitely no reason that tag numbers should go up at all. I hope that what I see is correct and that there is a little recovery,but that would all be undone if odfw does not give the deer a break.In the case of odfw,I agree with 440, doom and gloom, they need to see how bad the deer herds are doing. Odfw needs to play it safe and assume the worst, keep tag numbers where they are or even drop them in struggling areas AND put a lot more money into recovery. As an optimist, I really hope they will. As a realist, they haven't done much to this point so I have some serious doubts.