How do you use your trail camera to aid in your scouting?

[Handgunner]

Aside from just knowing a buck is in the area, do you figure out what time he's showing up from the camera and hunt further from it? See which way he always seems to come into veiw, and then hunt back in that direction? Etc...?

How does your trail camera help you?

 

[Woody]

It helps me in locating a concentration of Mature Does. -- Then hunting around them as much as possible during the peak of the rut.

A camera will also show you the areas "NOT" to hunt. -- Which is just as important.

 

[Jim Thompson]

If I could have gotten a photo in the last 2 weeks maybe I could answer this Delton.

Jim

 

[smitty]

Cameras

I use them to see whats in the area and most are taken at night, Ihave gotten alot of good deer on camera and even killed one last season.Had 2 photos of him the year before, both at night,never saw him till he showed up ..

 

[trailhunter]

Travel patterns

I think the cameras help me in several important ways:

First and probably the most important (as has already been mentioned), if you happen to luck up and catch that mature buck, you know he is out there in your woods at least part of the time he is there. If you are not that fortunate, you can at least get a good idea of the concentration of juvenile to mid-level bucks on a farm. You also can tell a lot just by looking at the doe concentrations and ages in regards to harvest decisions.

From a pre-season (i.e. no rubs or scrapes), scouting standpoint, I have found that the location of the buck and direction of travel both to and from are probably the two most important factors. If you get a mature buck's picture one time, the best you can infer is that he (a) spends at least some time on your property and (b) he came from a specific area. If you manage to get him on more than one camera or at a different location, then you have a decent idea of his range and pattern.

I worry less about the time of day a picture was taken on mature bucks mainly because I think you can throw this out the window once season starts and then again once the rut hits.

The biggest mistakes I think I have made since I started using cameras to aid in the deer management of our farms was first not letting them sit long enough (checking cameras too often) and second not moving the cameras around enough.

Just some thoughts.

th

 

[leadoff]

Mainly to let me know what is in the area. The direction is also key.

 

[hambone44]

just to find out what's nearby..it instills confidence

 

[BubbaD]

Just to add to our frustration. Last year we had pictures of at least 9 different bucks. 3-4 were good'uns. All at night of course. Once the season was over we determined only 2 of them were actually seen
Oh well it still installed confidence and I really liked information in trailhunter's post.

 

[Todd E]

To see what is in the area and to see which travel direction.

 

[flacarnivore]

last year I moved my cam. around a 20-30acre. head. set up on bait(corn)in 4 spots. this wide 6pt showed up at all 4 spots. I saw him 1 time at 20 yard in a creek bottom. I let him walk. have not gotten a photo yet this summer. at the 4 spots I had 8bucks and probley 20+ does. yes I use my cuddeback to scout. now I have 3.

 

[Bucky T]

The times they travel. That's the biggest key. Also how many times they travel at a certain time. Is it for 3 straight days, 2 days, 5 days, or once in a blue moon kind of thing.

If your seeing deer moving through your camera, say at 6:30 in the morning and you know the area well and the direction they are travelling approximately, you could set up in the morning on down from where they're passing through to intercept them at daybreak.

Sounds great, but we all know it's not that easy. I was just thinking of how I would access that hypothetical situation.

Tommy