Quality Deer in Area - Question???

[Woodtick]

I have had 10-14 camera's out for a while this year. Like many of you I am a trophy hunter and set limitations on what I will and will not harvest. The area that I hunt does not product a lot of big deer however each year I usually have 1 or 2 shooters identified. As of last weekend I do not have anything that I would shoot on camera.

My question is knowing that I have nothing on camera, do I stick with that area or do I try to find somewhere else?

 

[INative]

That's really up to you. With running that many cameras, are you tracking up the whole property badly?!

I have often been in the same shoes you are, though I only run a few cameras. Lots of times, I don't get ANY shooters on camera until late October or early November. So although maybe you don't have any big bucks that call your property home, some will definitely start coming through when the pre rut/rut picks up. Also if your area is agricultural, you will see more action when the crops get out.

 

[BDAHMS]

Come rut that will all change! Not saying shooters will move in- but if you have a good doe population- once they become
Hot- the mature bucks won't be far behind.

Last year I had very few shooters on camera and 2nd week of November I saw a ton of shooters

 

[StickersNKickers]

Not many "shooters" on camera last year either until late October. I'm in the same boat where the more mature deer don't usually call the places I hunt home, but move thru every once in a while, depending on time of year and where the food is. Not many on cam yet this year either, so hoping some move in/thru later.

 

[meyeri]

I was in your boat man, on my primary ground I didn't have a deer on cam over 120" till last week. Usually I have velvet pics of several shooters so I sought out some new properties and was pleasantly suprised at what I was getting on cam.

I wouldn't give up on your property, but I wouldn't sit idle either. Every year you hear stories of guys smoking monsters they have never caught on cam. But you should definitely be proactive in finding some new properties just in case, besides you can never have too many options!

 

[hornhntr]

I am in the same boat, I am still going to hunt my place but I also have got my eye on a piece of public land that has had some good bucks taken off of in the last several years.