Is there anything wrong with not using trail cams?

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Re: Is there anything wrong with not using trail cams?

Unread postby JohnFunn » Sun Jul 31, 2016 3:12 pm

mheichelbech wrote:Don't mean this toward guys on here but I bet most trail cams are mis-used and cause more than good for the hunter using them. Kind of like trying to pick up a girl while drunk...normally fruitless and if do get one, probably not a keeper.

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Bahahaha! So true!!!

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Re: Is there anything wrong with not using trail cams?

Unread postby iowa whitetail » Sun Jul 31, 2016 3:31 pm

Nothing wrong. They do give you a good idea of when, what is there. But they don't aways, I have 2 cams one my farm and there are bucks on each cam that the other doesn't have, only 160 acre farm cams are not even quarter mile apart. If you use that info to your advantage then you can kill also.

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Re: Is there anything wrong with not using trail cams?

Unread postby iowa whitetail » Sun Jul 31, 2016 3:31 pm

Nothing wrong. They do give you a good idea of when, what is there. But they don't aways, I have 2 cams one my farm and there are bucks on each cam that the other doesn't have, only 160 acre farm cams are not even quarter mile apart. If you use that info to your advantage then you can kill also.

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Re: Is there anything wrong with not using trail cams?

Unread postby Stanley » Sun Jul 31, 2016 3:51 pm

Many a good buck has been killed without the use of trail cameras. Good hunters make the best trail camera operators. :think: Using trail cameras doesn't make the hunter work better, the hunter makes using the trail camera work better.
You can fool some of the bucks, all of the time, and fool all of the bucks, some of the time, however you certainly can't fool all of the bucks, all of the time.
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Re: Is there anything wrong with not using trail cams?

Unread postby Dewey » Sun Jul 31, 2016 5:40 pm

I used trail cams in the past but can't say I ever killed a buck I had a picture of or even seen any of them while on stand. They probably hurt me more than helped back then because I was using them wrong. Mounting them in spots you plan on hunting and then checking them too frequently is a recipe for failure.

Now I mainly use them for getting an idea what is around in areas that are a long distance from home like northern WI or out of state where shining and glassing are very difficult. The key I found is to let them out for at least 3 months without checking to get a better picture of what is around and do it with zero impact from scent being left by checking them all the time. This is where cellular cams are a huge advantage.

Honestly I think many use cams all wrong and damage their hunting more than help. It's the same guys every year around mid-late August who are showing me huge bucks they get on cam. Never fails they can't resist checking their cams every 3-4 days and then end up never seeing the bucks all season because they pushed them out of the area. In that situation it's probably better to not even use cams.

Big bucks are killed ever year by guys that never use trail cameras. Scouting and knowing the land in addition to glassing and shining will put you way ahead of guys that only use cams and nothing else.

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Edcyclopedia
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Re: Is there anything wrong with not using trail cams?

Unread postby Edcyclopedia » Sun Jul 31, 2016 10:18 pm

I have yet to kill a good buck using trail cams...

I have killed 2 decent bucks by scouting on foot.

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Re: Is there anything wrong with not using trail cams?

Unread postby DaveT1963 » Sun Jul 31, 2016 10:52 pm

You don't have to use Cameras.... but then again you don't have to use maps, boots, aerial photos, biniculars, GPS, trucks..... but all of them have been proven as effective scouting tools when used right. I'd venture to guess that plain old stinky hunting boots have ruined far more set ups then all the others combined. Have to use any tool properly.

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Re: Is there anything wrong with not using trail cams?

Unread postby Whitetailaddict » Mon Aug 01, 2016 1:09 am

I don't see anything wrong with not using them. I am a little nervous about running them on public for the fear they will be stolen. It will just take more time scouting to get to know an area and I think Muddy mentioned this on a post somewhere about using cameras kind of takes the excitement out of seeing a buck because you already have so many pictures of him and you knew he was there. I kind of like the surprise when a buck shows up but I can see how effective of a tool cameras can be.
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Re: Is there anything wrong with not using trail cams?

Unread postby Jrichard » Mon Aug 01, 2016 7:18 am

I use trail cameras for specific purposes. I feel as though I have (through trail and complete failure) learned how to use them well. I feel as though its one of my stronger suits at the moment while I get with the program. lol. I learned last year that the best thing to do is prep for a hunt (scent free clothes/shower ect). It helps but like everyone knows its not going eliminate everything. I hang my cams on a tree in my yard (goody looking if you ask me) and I spray them down and let them air dry for a day or two. Then I use gloves and throw them in a BIG Ziploc bag and into my backpack. Then I am off to the woods. Now a big part of this situation has not been mentioned. I ONLY put out trail cameras during or before we are in for a good rain. This will help wash away some scent or dull it. Then when I hang them I take a climbing stick with me and I hang them about 12 feet off the ground or higher. Then I wedge a stick behind the camera so it tilts down and points where I want it to point. Deer hear the clicking of the camera. Some cameras claim they don't click. They all click and the deer hear it. Also if you put them out I never put them out for last than 3 weeks before checking them. Its better to go longer but if you cant you cant. Also I use them to clarify what I am thinking. If I see a run and it looks really nice I'll put the camera in that spot to see whats using it and when. Because if its a section of the run that deer are using at 1 AM and I didn't use the camera and saw the sign, I would have set up there and more than likely gotten skunked. But if its a part of the run they are using at 6 PM and the sun goes down at 8, I know there's a good shot that they will be there during daylight hours. So it'll tell me whether its worth hunting there. Also a key note is that I pull my cameras well before the season. This way it gives the area some time to calm down. I was hunting this spot last season, and I couldn't tell why the deer weren't where I was. But I always saw them in the field when I was leaving. It turns out I wasn't hunting the spot at the right time. Only after putting up my trail cameras this spring, I found out the deer were using this run to go BACK to the bedding area in the morning. So I was hunting it backwards. My friend told me there were TONS of deer in this spot, and he was right. 15 or so deer use this saddle to dead back to the bedding, but they use a separate one when they go to the fields. Honestly I trash the nighttime pictures unless its a picture of a monster. lol

So an example as to where I failed. I have a spot that is producing about 200 pictures for me every 3 weeks on public land. Now last year at this time i put out a trail camera. With no scent blocker nothing. No prep at all. I put it about 3 feet off the ground or so. I thought I was in I was like heck yeah IR flash, noise free, black out flash. I am set no deer is going to get spooked. Now for the funny part. Every picture I got from the day I put it out till the first rain, EVERY SINGLE DEER that walked by this god forsaken camera found it. They would be browsing in one pic. Then the next picture they'd have their ears perked looking around. The next picture would be the deer leaning in smelling the camera. Then the next picture would be a completely empty picture or the deer end jumping out of there. And I kept doing this for 2 or 3 weeks and just wondered why. And my one week of 200 or so pics turned into 10 every 3 or 4 weeks if I was lucky. So I knew I had to change something. So I let it cool down for 2 months. And I did it one more time. After pulling the SD card I saw that it had 180 pics on it and I was so excited. BUT THE SAME THING HAPPENED! So I started spending more time at the bait shop in town and I started hearing people talk about how they only put trail cameras out before rain storms and such because it helps dull the scent left behind. Then it clicked in my head. Only the first week or so were of deer that smelled the camera and took off. So when I lined up when the pictures were taken and the last rain we had, it hit home. The deer weren't as alert to the camera, yeah they heard it and looked at it, and tested the wind, but they'd just put their head down and start browsing again. It was crazy. But I feel that the older bucks I get on camera just seem to know once they see it. They just look at it and run if they see it. And that's why I put it up in the tree. Because most deer don't look up. But if its near eye level they will see it.

So I hope you enjoyed my story. Its kind of depressing thinking I spent almost half a year kicking my self in the but. But I learned a lot. And I learned first hand how trail cameras can REALLY hurt you. But personally I love it. And it helps me with my hunting prep practice. IT helps me with my scent control and some times if I am putting a new Camera out i will take my tree stand with me and practice climbing the tree QUIETLY with it. And its easier using a tree stand with a foot board than it is using a climbing stick lol.
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Re: Is there anything wrong with not using trail cams?

Unread postby JoeRE » Mon Aug 01, 2016 8:42 am

Heck no there isn't anything wrong with not using cams.

Hunting shows would also indicate the way to kill a big buck is out of a cozy box blind over a food plot.

Is there anything wrong with shooting a recurve or a longbow or a muzzleloader, or a rifle with open sights...or heck, just hunting on public land? If inches of antler at any cost is a hunter's goal, then all those hurt that goal.

Imposing certain restrictions will make you a better hunter, not a worse hunter. Woodsmanship has taken a big nose dive in the last few decades. 200 years ago if a modern hunter walked up to some frontiersman and said "I'm a hunter but I don't know how to track game" the frontiersman would laugh in their face.
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Re: Is there anything wrong with not using trail cams?

Unread postby mainebowhunter » Mon Aug 01, 2016 8:54 am

JoeRE wrote:Heck no there isn't anything wrong with not using cams.

Hunting shows would also indicate the way to kill a big buck is out of a cozy box blind over a food plot.

Is there anything wrong with shooting a recurve or a longbow or a muzzleloader, or a rifle with open sights...or heck, just hunting on public land? If inches of antler at any cost is a hunter's goal, then all those hurt that goal.

Imposing certain restrictions will make you a better hunter, not a worse hunter. Woodsmanship has taken a big nose dive in the last few decades. 200 years ago if a modern hunter walked up to some frontiersman and said "I'm a hunter but I don't know how to track game" the frontiersman would laugh in their face.


I am pretty sure that most us could figure how to kill game and feed our families with just a rifle or muzzleloader. Most of the effort we put in has to do with trophy animals.

I am pretty sure if you talked with a settler and told them you were looking to kill a 5.5 yr old buck they would probably would laugh in your face.

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Re: Is there anything wrong with not using trail cams?

Unread postby JoeRE » Mon Aug 01, 2016 8:57 am

mainebowhunter wrote:
JoeRE wrote:Heck no there isn't anything wrong with not using cams.

Hunting shows would also indicate the way to kill a big buck is out of a cozy box blind over a food plot.

Is there anything wrong with shooting a recurve or a longbow or a muzzleloader, or a rifle with open sights...or heck, just hunting on public land? If inches of antler at any cost is a hunter's goal, then all those hurt that goal.

Imposing certain restrictions will make you a better hunter, not a worse hunter. Woodsmanship has taken a big nose dive in the last few decades. 200 years ago if a modern hunter walked up to some frontiersman and said "I'm a hunter but I don't know how to track game" the frontiersman would laugh in their face.


I am pretty sure that most us could figure how to kill game and feed our families with just a rifle or muzzleloader. Most of the effort we put in has to do with trophy animals.

I am pretty sure if you talked with a settler and told them you were looking to kill a 5.5 yr old buck they would probably would laugh in your face.

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True :lol:
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Re: Is there anything wrong with not using trail cams?

Unread postby Crazinamatese » Mon Aug 01, 2016 11:37 am

I don't use them. I used one once on private land 6 years ago and it ended up stolen by trespassers. $150 down the drain. That was enough for me.
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Re: Is there anything wrong with not using trail cams?

Unread postby mipubbucks24 » Mon Aug 01, 2016 1:45 pm

I have never owned a trail cam, I would like to use them but am too afraid to spend money on something that will just get stolen. I mostly hunt public land in Michigan. Probably what scared me off was getting 3 platform stands and tree steps stolen in 2009, off private land, farmer had no clue who else would have been out on his property, made me a little leary of leaving stuff in the woods. Anyways not against them just a cost vs risk type of deal.

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Re: Is there anything wrong with not using trail cams?

Unread postby oldrank » Mon Aug 01, 2016 2:00 pm

I was running a few at the beginning of summer. I stopped because the places I was running them dont hold deer come fall. The big bucks are bachelored up feeding on easy crops. The pressure beds are not being used. I switched to glassing to check invetory. I plan on putting them back out during season to monitor a few areas. I am working on a system that works but at this point feel they were more for entertainment, not great intel. A few nights of glassing pretty much gave me a good idea of what my areas hold. Its far less invasive n results are instant.

My plan is to scout fresh rub lines in September n set cams in non-invasive areas on the outside of known bedding..

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