Do you have to use a trail camera?

[Fishndude]

I got tired of getting the film developed just to see squirrels and coons.

Those pesky stones were hard to chisel

[MtnMike]

One of the best tools for documenting what you have and may or may not want to harvest. As well as understanding your hog or predator problem. And you might catch a Trespasser or Poacher in the act!

[S-3 Ranch]

Loved them when I managed for MLD , have fazed them out as they broke and am not on MLD anymore

[Aggiehunter08]

I will not hunt without them, cell cams specifically. Time is one of the most valuable things we have on this earth and I don’t want to waste it on poor stand selection.

[cehorn]

I won't hunt without them. I haven't gotten into cell cams and not sure I will unless for pigs, etc. Going back to when I hunted in Uvalde, without cameras I would have sworn there were no deer out there and quit. But seeing the deer, bucks specifically at night, on camera kept me going.

More recently I'm not sure I would have gotten my buck this year. All thru bow season he was a regular at a stand with a protein feeder. The week before rifle season, he moved to a different stand. I moved there and killed him opening morning of rifle Without cameras, I would have still been hunting the other feeder.

From a management standpoint, I have used cameras for my deer surveys and I have also used them to identify bucks that we want to hunt including my buck from this ear. I had decided I was only hunting that buck this year unless somebody else got him.

[tpack]

They have taught me that when the pre-rut or rut starts, you have a good chance of seeing bucks that you don`t have pictures of and may never get a picture of them. We`ve killed 3 nice bucks in the past 7 years that never went by a game camera. All of these bucks were killed after November 10th. So, if I don`t see a really nice buck on my camera, I don`t get down about it because I`ve learned that cameras don`t show the whole picture at all. On the other hand, we don`t hunt hard late season because we`ve usually tagged out or just had our fill of hunting. Our game cameras always seem to catch a few good bucks that never show up until after Christmas or New Years. Sitting later in the a.m. or going as early as 1 p.m. for an evening sit will educate you that many bucks are moving that time of day but never go by a game camera. Since retiring, I`ve been sitting much, much longer than I used to. Eye opening what you miss if you head back to camp at 8:30 or 9 a.m. and a game camera would not have shown you. Time in a stand is better than any camera.

[Voodoo]

I only use them to monitor for two legged intruders, I WON’T HUNT INTRUDERS WITHOUT THEM BECAUSE I DON’T LIKE TO BE SURPRISED 😂🤣😂

[Twist]

Of course you need trail cams. How else would you get a picture like this:

[Greenheadless]

Dont care to use them anymore other than management reasons (keeping inventory).

I much rather show up to a stand and be surprised by what you see.

[Drycreek3189]

I like to use them, but I don’t base my hunting off of them. If I did, I would be sorely disappointed. I base my hunting on weather, wind direction, and whether I want to hunt that day or not.

[Fishndude]

I will not hunt without them, cell cams specifically. Time is one of the most valuable things we have on this earth and I don’t want to waste it on poor stand selection.

Bam!! Same

[HunterMatt]

i use them and like them. I don't base my hunting time on them, because i had no deer on cameras this hole year but still went every change i got. the one good thing i like is you can see the bucks and judge on camera and see if they are legal or not instead of having to do it all in seconds in the stand.

[jdavidson]

Trail cameras are the best tools ever created for having history on deer. Takes the guess work out of aging on the hoof.

After 13yrs in Webb Co… what I find is I can spend a hour looking at a deer through 10 power binoculars
at 100yrds and have my opinion of age change back and forth. And because of this… I absolutely will not
assign age to a deer based on trail cam pics. I have no confidence in my ability to do that.

[jerp]

The pics sent from cameras at our feeders mostly are of the usual suspects with the occasional surprise. I do however enjoy the pics from cameras at creek crossings and on trails deep in the woods - you never know what type of critter will stroll by

[bugleboy]

I use them, but with the understanding that there are deer you may never actually get a picture of. But it’s also nice to know what bucks you might want to put on the known hit list.