The next several weeks represent prime time for shed hunters.
Most whitetail bucks will have dropped last year’s head gear by the end of January and once it is a shed, it represents a coveted prize to the first person to find it.
Double the fun when a shed hunter finds both antlers — a fairly common bonus since many bucks drop both sides at nearly the same time, sometimes within a few yards of each other.
Deer sheds
Many shed hunters have become members of shed hunting clubs or at least casual like- minded groups to share looks at each other’s collections.
Some of the best finds included the sheds of the same buck found year after year. Sets like this can be displayed in sequence and often match the photos taken by trail camera. Be careful, the fun of shed hunting can be addictive.
To a shed hunter, eight point antlers are nice but bigger and better is the goal. Twelve points are better and sets of both antlers is the top prize.
More and more serious shed hunters have trained their dog to find dropped antlers. Almost any dog can and will learn how if introduced to the skill through several training sessions. Training techniques can be found online.
Best times to find sheds are following a fresh, but not deep, snowfall.
Couch potato season
The next couple months are also great times to test the springs in the couch and flip the pages of a good read.
A spanking new edition of Fishy Business has just been released, a 20th Anniversary edition of one of the most clever pieces of imaginative writing one will ever see and hopefully read.
Retired Akron educator, widely publicized outdoor writer, and overall great guy Bill Ignizio wrote one side of Fishy Business while his brother Jim penned the other.
The premise of the nearly 200 page book is how the skill, art, and strategies of fishing can help one succeed at work and business in general.
I have known Bill for years and know him to be thoughtful, intelligent, and a darn good fisherman. He has always been more than good at putting sentences together and between the brothers, it had to be a jab here and sharp response as the pair identified tips for the angler that fit just as well for the success-seeking business person.
The Ignizio brothers first published Fishy Business in 1997 and the book was featured in airport bookstores and was well received by a variety of readers.
Now released as the 20th Anniversary Edition, Fishy Business is published as a Kindle book with a preview available on Amazon.com by entering the search terms “fishy business ignizio.”
More dates
Realize Firearms Awareness Coalition will hold its annual Concealed Carry Fashion Show Feb. 19, at the Holiday Inn, Rockside Road, Independence, Ohio, at 2 p.m.
The organization will also sponsor their annual Preppers Ball and charity raffle March 11, at the Summit County Fairgrounds arena. For tickets and more information go to RealizeFAC.com.
