Trail camera delima

[east_ky_hunter]

Thinking about not running trail cameras anymore. Deer hunting for me was much more fun when I didn't. The surprise of it all. Now, if I have a great buck on cam I'm disappointed when I see a really good buck or disappointed if I don't get pics of any good bucks. I think it's a lot more fun just not knowing and being surprised with the first good encounter presented.

 

[muddhunter]

I didn’t run cameras this year on either of the places I hunt. I didn’t see any good bucks while I hunted. I say it’s more fun to see them on camera than not at all. I did run a camera behind my house at the corn pile. Saw plenty of does, small bucks,coyotes and a bunch of fat coons. The camera behind the house was entertaining. Keep running your cameras.

 

[bgkyarcher]

I had no cameras on the creek bottom I concentrated on. Saw deer I didn’t get pics of. Dunno what I’ll do next year.

 

[Little FR]

I ran less cameras this year than I ever have. If I have a well known “good” spot, I like hunting it in the blind better. Just kill whatever gets my blood pumping. I’ll know it when I see it.

I still run cameras on my mystery spots.

 

[257Wmag]

I’m starting to think cameras save more deer then help hunters. Guys I’ve been hunting with can’t seem to stay away from them, want to check em constantly or need to change batteries on cell cams constantly.

I try to run cell cams or only check my regular cams when I go in to hunt or feed.

 

[At Full Draw]

For me, cameras all part of a 9 month process. A kill is the icing in the cake. I enjoy planting food plots, prepping stands, sharing pictures from trail cameras, strategizing, etc. I run 9 cell cameras, my brother has 5 or 6. Most are on the free/cheap plans on hard to reach areas in bedding areas, on minerals, trails or scrapes. Since we started using them vs standard cameras our success on mature deer went way up by not having the intrusions checking SD cards. We start our process in June/July and it goes through March to see which deer survived the winter. Then we use the cameras for turkey, too, so it's pretty much a year-round activity for us.

I do understand your point on wanting to he surprised. I hunt public land, too, and I enjoy not knowing what is there, and there's no pressure associated with it. You could not put out any cameras at the beginning of the season next year. If you decide you dont like it, we have a 5 month season to adjust and put some out.

I say do what makes you happy and keeps you in the woods, there is no right or wrong answer.

 

[Grago]

I didnt run any this year, or didnt run one, all i ever do anyway. Wasnt sure my health would let me be able to go. I like the cell cam, it dont help me in anyway, hunting, and i have never run one, where you got to go pull the card out and look at the pics. If i had to do that, will never run one. And all the pics mean to me, is the buck was standing there, when that pic was taken.But i can see where they would help people in some situations, but not me. But i dont sleep much anyway, and i get a lot of pics on a cam when i got one out. I do enjoy a lot , when i get a notification of a pic on my phone. Cant wait to see what it is. I have them sent immediately , on my phone. Granted im only about 2 miles from where i hunt. But i have been in the stand and see a deer walk up in front of the cam, and it immediately sends it. I think they are just like a text. So for me, i really enjoy getting pics on my phone, but as far as helping me kill a deer, they dont, and i agree, somebody said they thought they saved more deer than not, that probably is true, if someone is gonna go in and check them all time.

 

[beauhunter41031]

I’m 99% sure that the largest deer I had on the farm this year relocated Because he became aware of the camera. Ppl say they don’t get that big by being stupid and I think it’s 100% the situation in this case.

I will still continue to run cameras just because I love seeing what’s going on around the farm but I agree it definitely takes The positive suspenseful feeling we used to get when we made sets just by simply looking for physical sign And having a gut feeling it was gonna be a good spot

My latest cam check (update)

Figured I would share. Sure would like to see him when I’m 25 foot up a tree with my bow in hand

www.kentuckyhunting.net

 

[Cole505]

I think I depends on how you use the cameras. If your waiting on daylight pics to hunt a certain stand you’re doing it wrong. I have never let camera pictures dictate if I was going to hunt. I use the pictures to tell me if I need to go in deeper/ make adjustments. As I’ve gotten older I check them less and less. Had a few cameras that only got checked once so far this year.
There is definitely credence to a deer patterning you by going in there a couple times a week.
As far a cell cameras, there just fun plain and simple. I live nearly 2 hours from both properties I hunt so it allows me to be there “in spirit”.
I realize not everyone is after the biggest buck but I personally am. Camera pictures let me pass 3 year olds that are damn nice, let’s me build history with deer and watch them grow knowing there is a bigger deer (that I also have history with).
I went back through old pictures and found the buck I killed this year as a 2 year old. That’s cool to me, I enjoy that history and confirmation of age.

To each their own.

 

[rockhousehunter]

I think I depends on how you use the cameras. If your waiting on daylight pics to hunt a certain stand you’re doing it wrong. I have never let camera pictures dictate if I was going to hunt. I use the pictures to tell me if I need to go in deeper/ make adjustments. As I’ve gotten older I check them less and less. Had a few cameras that only got checked once so far this year.
There is definitely credence to a deer patterning you by going in there a couple times a week.
As far a cell cameras, there just fun plain and simple. I live nearly 2 hours from both properties I hunt so it allows me to be there “in spirit”.
I realize not everyone is after the biggest buck but I personally am. Camera pictures let me pass 3 year olds that are damn nice, let’s me build history with deer and watch them grow knowing there is a bigger deer (that I also have history with).
I went back through old pictures and found the buck I killed this year as a 2 year old. That’s cool to me, I enjoy that history and confirmation of age.

To each their own.

Yep, agree. I am curious as to one of your statements. How does a picture tell you if you need to go "in deeper"? Not being a smartbutt just trying to learn things from other hunters. You're never too old to learn, right? Yeah that's one thing I like about cameras is that they allow you to know a certain deer. Often times you don't have all day to make a decision on whether to shoot or not and if you recognize a certain deer you've had on camera you instantly know to shoot or not, none of that wondering from now on if he was a shooter or not. When you see a shooter, you'll know it but many times you can't get a good view of the rack but can lay one in his chest.

 

[Cole505]

Yep, agree. I am curious as to one of your statements. How does a picture tell you if you need to go "in deeper"? Not being a smartbutt just trying to learn things from other hunters. You're never too old to learn, right? Yeah that's one thing I like about cameras is that they allow you to know a certain deer. Often times you don't have all day to make a decision on whether to shoot or not and if you recognize a certain deer you've had on camera you instantly know to shoot or not, none of that wondering from now on if he was a shooter or not. When you see a shooter, you'll know it but many times you can't get a good view of the rack but can lay one in his chest.

So it’s gonna depend on the camera location. If it’s a bait site or field edge, and I’m getting pictures within an hour of shooting light but still in the dark, I am gonna try to get to where he’s coming from “deeper”.
Hopefully catch him in daylight.
If it’s on a scrape and I’m only getting him on camera here and there I know he’s not bedding super close, probably not in his core area. I need to adjust.
Deeper doesn’t always mean further in. But I would say it usually does.
If it’s on a funnel or heavy trail, im looking at the number of times I get him in daylight using that. If it’s a lot, hunt him there. If it’s minimal, im gonna make an educated guess where he’s coming from and move a camera there until I find him in daylight consistently.
Sometimes I don’t even move a camera. It’s just helping me narrow down an area to hunt him.

 

[Drahts]

I run majority of mine more for security and intel on people being where they aren't supposed to be. Someone got in my barn, which is 1/2 mile from my house behind a locked gate. I don't keep anything in there really though would like to store implements there to get em out of the weather and off from around the yard but for this reason have not started. Anyhow, I now have a cell cam mounted to that end of the barn on the second story. Since putting it there, it's captured all game an no people, I'm good with that. But I do still enjoy running cams. Several I only pull once or twice in the fall. I use them to tell me what out of town bucks cruised thru that I may not have seen. Like this fat boy.

 

[ManofManyStangs]

I will continue running cameras, I hunt 2500 acres just about have to to find the good ones. The way I look at it my target buck escaped this year but I let plenty of 120-130 deer walk that should be better next year.

 

[Snareman2]

I like running them, not just the the critters, but also security. Some deer sense the cameras and I found that afew deer don’t come to the corn. It is still fun to see what is out there and around. But, I get what you are saying. The cameras help me gauge the movement, nocturnal or day, also pattern times.

 

[xbokilla]

I just like to look at pics. Doesn’t dictate how I hunt really. I’ve only ran two the last few years. More that anything, with the cell cam, I can see if anyone is trespassing. I think people put too much stock in it though. Saw two good bucks chasing does this year. Neither camera had a pic of either one of them and saw them both running the area of both cameras. One ran within 20 yds of the cell cam, only behind it.