Buck Hollow Sporting Goods - click or touch to visit their website Midwest Habitat Company

Need Help! Advice

khopp4

khopp4

New Member
So here's the deal. I've been back and forth with my Dad on trail camera set up on a new property we have recently purchased. I am very familar with Trail cameras and scouting. I run 5 buckeye cams currently with 3 more on the way. Last year I had over 10k pictures. The new property is 140 acres. MY dad wants to start on one end of the property and bunch 3-4 cameras in an area to figure out deer patters in an 20 acre piece and move the cameras every 3 weeks unitl we have covered the whole ground. I on the hand would just like to spread the cameras out through out the property covering all corners. I feel deer patterns change with food/pressure/cover and we should spread them out to see what parts of the ground deer are using at give time/weather/date. I guess this pry comes down to what our main objective is? see which trails the deer take and at which times or what area the deer or using frequently and the bucks on the property...
 
My advice is different than about 90% of the guys I am friends with- I use trail cams as inventory and entertainment only:
I don't put them in my property hardly at all- most are on edges, around entrances OR when they are deeper in my land they are areas that don't mess with deer. I just look at them as pressure on deer, putting scent all over and alerting bucks. A lot of folks just blow the deer off their land or mess things up really bad. Plus, exactly- patterns change a lot/often. I see some value in patterning bucks and some guys do kill the deer by patterning it and figuring out good areas and not good areas BUT I think they do way more harm than good - plus most guys kill bucks during rut when they are all over and rediculously un-predictable/un-patternable almost. Just my 2 cents or 1 guys opinion.
 
In my opinion the deer you have on your land in the hunting season is not effected by what you do in the summer.Walking into your property to pull a card won't effect deer at all.I have cameras that get pictures on 5 minutes after I changed cards.We built a cabin on a friends property last summer and one of his cameras was less than 100 yrds. from where we were roofing and deer were tripping the camera while we were hammering away.
 
I'd establish a mineral lick near a bean field or alfalfa field and place one camera on it. Withing the next month, you will have a pretty good inventory of what you have on the farm.
 
shredder,
I would typically agree with you. I have alway done that in the past to get an inventory of the deer on the property. But we are trying to figure out travel patterns and main trails as well. Im just looking for other opinions and ideas. Thanks everyone for the input so far :) Is anyone doing anything creative on new properties?
 
I know "messing with deer in summer" isn't seen as that big of deal, maybe it isn't BUT to the mature 5, 6 or 7 year old buck that lives in solitude, in his fortress of whatever thicket he likes, I don't think they tolerate it. Heck, in the middle of fall I can mess a piece of land up really bad and 10 minutes later some does and young bucks will walk right out. 2 totally different animals. I try and make my place somewhere the mature 5-8 year old giant old buck can feel is the safest and least disturbed place around. I know for a fact all my neighbor's fooling around on there land pushes more mature bucks on mine, every year. I almost thank those folks for doing it whether it's summer, fall, winter, etc. I think a MATURE deer needs an area he feels the safest and has the least disturbance and I try and create that 364 days a year other than the day I whack him with my arrow. Works well for me and my land but I know others have their opinions and say trail cams and timing of them don't screw things up. I just disagree.

KHOPP4- are you trying to get patterns for early hunting like in October? Is your goal to get your patterns for rut later? Can you not see the main trails that should look beat down and trampled? Doing some mineral licks as well (that's more inventory, easy and fun)?
 
I have to aggree with both sides. I have areas where I never enter and I think Mature bucks feel the pressure and leave the area or go nocturnal. I have got huge bucks numerous times on camera too. I think every deer is different meaning some may not care as much as others. It is a gamble to spread scent and added pressure to the hunting area. I use mineral licks and foodplots to take inventory. These cameras are set and left alone for approx a month or two. Just my 2 cents worth
 
Don't believe for a minute you can get away with alot more during the summer months. You're not going to blow the doe units into the next county. They'll just learn to pattern you. But a 4 to 5 yr. old buck won't stand for your intrusions in his santuary. I keep cameras to a minimum, and leave them for 2 to 3 weeks at a time. I also keep my intrusions to the edges, and fields. I believe if you have a muture buck living on the land you hunt; you'll want it to be there when you can harvest it. I know i've pressured nice bucks off my land being over enthustiatic with the cameras. It's nice to have the pic's, but i'd rather have the mount.
 
i somewhat agree and somewhat disagree with the discussion of pressuring the deer off your farm. in my scenerio, i have 2 motocross tracks on my farm that are ridden on fairly frequently and i did harvest a 4.5yr old 185in 10 last year. believe it or not, he was walkin on the mx track when i chopped him down on oct 17th. ive hunted inside the big woods while there were guys ridin on the track and still had saw plenty of deer. i think everyones farm is different so what works and doesnt work varies farm to farm. just my opinion
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top Bottom