While gun hunting public land this year with our group of 4, we located at least 15 trail cameras in the areas we were hunting. We have been hunting this area on public land for around 30+ years. Between the county continually clear cutting the wood, our group is constantly hunting multiple stands to keep trying to find moving deer. The private land hunters hunting food plots (defacto bait piles) have moved alot of the public land deer out. We had a group of 15 people show up right after first light by the cameras, they shot up the woods like little Vietnam and cleared out by noon. They stomped by us multple times in the morning and from what we found later they only harvested one deer. Is this going to be the new normal for public land or should there be restrictions on deer camera use on Public lands??? Come to find out at the local watering hole later that evening that the cameras have been put out by the hundreds on Public land by an Outfitter trying to sell hunts. WTF???
General Hunting Discussion
Hunting trail camera use on public hunting land concerns. Should it be regulated on Public lands.
One day and alot of very different opinions.
Nature should be nature, not surveillance.
When you have your opening day screwed up from some profiteering operation, you will whistle a different tune.
This is just another topic that will divide actual hunters, not birdwatchers.
Work 2 Fish, No Way... They are not Deer cams. They are trail cameras that non hunters also have the right to place on public lands during hunting seasons. For other wildlife even. As hunters, we don't need more enemies than we already have. Just my opinion..
Not an outfitter. A wealthy business owner who has a resort up north that caters too and brings in clients that they take out hunting. I've heard this because someone I knew was offered said job of checking cameras and setting up hunting spots. No money exchanges hands, its on public land and over the counter tags make it work. With thousands of acres of public land, not too difficult to pull off.
Sounds like one heck of a story. Can you imagine the expense of batteries and sd cards? Who in their right mind is gonna spend 600-800 bucks on batteries every couple months? Let alone the cost of the cameras, SD cards and the time/fuel involved deploying and checking.
I would think an outfitter knows how to read deer sign and be successful without using hundreds of cameras..
Just what we don’t need is more restrictions and regulations. Other states like Arizona may be starting to regulate trail cameras and in very limited circumstances, it makes sense. For instance, dozens of cameras on the only water hole for 50 square miles. Yes, that would cause issues with people staking claim and getting possessive over public spots. I just don’t see things like this being an issue in states like Wisconsin where the terrain and habitat is so diverse and most public lands are heavily wooded.
