Trail Cams - More Good Than Bad?
Connecticut
I continue to read thread after thread about how no deer are showing on my trail cam, should I switch spots, or where did they go, or is the rut over, etc????
I know the cams add information that would otherwise be missed since you can't be on stand 24/7, however think of this.
There are days when you go hunting with your buddy, he's 400 yards from your stand, you see zero deer and he has 10 deer walk by his stand. Are there deer in the area, yes or no?
The camera can't pick up what's not in the line of fire, so don't get discouraged just because the number of pictures changed, or a certain buck is no longer showing up. Lack of confidence in the field can lead to sloppy hunting, leaving the stand too early, or in short; not trying your best.
If you don't think that there's a deer behind every tree, then you'll see less deer. Hunt like that big buck is looking at you every minute, and it's up to you hunt accordingly.
You and I think alot alike. Good info. -DUncan
I use the plot watcher and catch a lot of deer movement my other camera misses.
I like scouting after fresh snow better than cameras to see deer movement/routes.
i like to go swiming with bow legged woman....
Another thing, Bob, is that some hunters disturb their hunting area just to check the card. The camera is a crutch, that retards woodsmanship. For the most part, I just leave them up for the season and look at them retrospectively.
On the positive side, It's nice when you get a big one and check the camera and find pictures of him. Or if a buddy gets a gagger buck and you can add to his thrill by providing him a picture of the deer on the hoof.
Been using cams for many years. I have found them to be useful for taking inventory on the deer in a particular area, and not much more.
As far as woodsmanship goes, you can't just stick a camera up anywhere and expect to get pics of lots of deer, unless it's a swing set in Darien. In my world it takes as much experience and skill to set up a cam in a good spot as it does to set up a stand.
Ok so I am a newer hunter but ill be devils advocate. I just read a post where a hunter was on a stand for 10 1/2 hours and didn't see a deer. For me that would be 4 hunts. If that was me i would seriously rethink my strategy. Im gonna hunt when known deer are there consistently. yeah I got the huge deer come by but wife tells me i got a job to do. Bring home the bacon I mew. Venison. Gonna go with the odds.
Perfect example, I have 4 acres private I hunt, no pics on cam after September. I only hunt there 1 time a month. Was in stand and had a doe come by on a different path 40 yards away. Not in line of camera....deer are now using a different trail which I found after that day. Don't know exactly why....maybe my scent on trail cam, etc. but they still pass through !! Keep at it!
I spoke with a long time bowhunter yesterday, who tells me that his trailcam has helped him decide not to hunt his formerly hot spots in Connecticut. He said that in three weeks time, he had over 300 pictures and that only three were in daylight/shooting hours. He attributes the nocturnal traffic to baiting. The deer simply wait until dark to visit bait sites. His take on baiting, is that it has produced the opposite effect that was intended. He believes that more deer could be seen if baiting stopped.
OntheHunt
I think most of the guys are saying that they use the cameras but it's not the deciding factor as to whether to hunt that area of not, it's just one of the many tools in the tool box that they use.
To me, if I hunt a certain tree every day for a week in Sept and see only a couple of does and no bucks, should I assume there's no bucks in the area? My answer is absolutely not. So if I decide not to hunt that tree I could be walking away from the best buck attractant there is, the does.
I'll bet you there are just as many threads on the site that say something like "This buck never showed on my trail cam before,......"
I say use them, but always keep your options open by doing your scouting and spending time in the woods.
here are three bucks that just showed up if it were not for the trail cam I would not know they were there.so I give the cam a +++
were did that come from ???
never layed eyes on these deer and never had them on film I think there moving a lot farther now
Steve
so you got them on the cam at 7:39pm on 11/11/14. Have you hunted that area yet? If so, I'd be curious if you saw them? If not, please let us know how you make out.
I look at this way (and this is just me):
WITHOUT the trail cam I BELIEVE that at some point in the past several days, weeks, months a huge buck walked right past my stand when I wasn't there,.....so I couldn't have shot it, but I believe he's still around.
WITH the trail cam, I see a picture of a huge buck that walked right past my stand in the past several days, weeks, or months when I wasn't there,.....so I couldn't have shot it, but I haven't seen him on the cameral since, so I believe he's no longer there.
I think if you place all you eggs, especially your emotional eggs, in the camera basket you can make the wrong decision in the field. I say use the camera, but remember it's no different than being in the woods, you turn to look to your right and there's that huge buck standing there that you didn't see before when you were looking straight ahead,.....field of view can only show you so much.
I haven't seen any of these bucks, the time is a hour off its 630 just saying I hunted this spot a lot passed on 10 different buck the these 3 show up in 2 days .steve
I like using cams but lately I am in the hurt you club. I think they miss alot of deer and make you change stands. They also get you pumped when a monster shows up. I could go either way on them, one great example is that Ive been getting all night pics but walked up to deer two different times in the morning just 200 yards away from cam. I just dont buy theirs nocturnal deer, I think its just wrong place wrong time as deer have to eat and cant just eat once a day. Just my opinion.
Mine go up in late September where I plan to hunt on my 2 week November vacation which just ended..I pull em last Sunday in October and then just hunt hard sun up to sunset and think to myself," anything can happen in November." One trip in, one out.
