GREENOUGH - Hundreds of hunters and wildlife enthusiasts gathered near Clearwater Junction on Monday, May 15, 2023, for a different kind of hunting season - shed hunting.
“We’re just doing a shed hunt. And it’s a big family tradition that we do and it’s a lot of fun. My grandpa’s been doing it for probably over twenty years and same with my aunt and uncle, and dad and mom,” shed hunt participant Quinlenn Tennison said.
The annual event draws people from all over who are eager for a chance to snag some antlers that elk shed off. The sheds can be posed alongside for photos, made into art, or even sold for profit.
A group of boys came to the Greenough area all the way from Bonners Ferry, Idaho.
They heard about the event from friends and wanted to be a part of the action.
“Been out here driving. Got here at 3 o’clock last night, spent the night on the side of the road in a cot,” Nolan Hubbard said when asked about his journey from Bonners Ferry.
Everyone waited alongside Montana Highway 83 for 12 p.m. which is when the Blackfoot Clearwater Game Range opened for the spring, making it legal to enter for the first time since fall hunting season.
“The adrenaline rush. 12 o’clock hits and everybody just starts their vehicles," Tennison told MTN News.
People can even hop on a horse or simply just start sprinting into the mountains on foot.
“I found my first elk shed here so that was cool," said Tennison. "Just being with family, I think that’s the best part.”
Hubbard also expressed why getting out and hunting means so much to him and his friends, “Getting out there. Adventures. Seeing stuff people aren’t really seeing every day.”
Many people were out searching for antlers but not many seemed to be successful in their quest.
