Well look at it this way. The downside is your cam got stolen. That sucks. The upsides though: 1) now you know not to hang a cam there again. 2) you know there are other idiots who may hunt that area and you can use that to your advantage by either picking a better, more secluded spot or use the idiots and their hunting pressure to try to figure out where they'll push deer. You just need to look at the possibilities from all angles before hanging another one. I have one camera on public land. Prior to hanging the cam I thought about my situation. I knew it was a spot that is a good ways off the beaten path and I knew it was probably a good trail to put a cam on. However, I also figured there was at least one other hunter that hunted nearby since I saw him one day from the stand. I also knew at least one other hunter saw the cam last year because I actually talked with him walking out one day and he said he saw a camera but left it alone. (I was more than happy to talk with him about the pics I got). I figured the risk was low since I only saw two people right in the area I wanted to put the cam on and it was a cheap camera. Turns out it's worked fine so far and I got some nice pics last year that showed me that the area is a good travel spot during the rut. I'll probably sit there all day a few times this fall. You just gotta weight the risk vs the reward AND really do your homework on the area.
if your going to hunt public land, you need to scout for traffic before committing to placing a camera. Look for signs of 4 wheeler/ truck/ foot traffic. i also recommend taking extra effort into walking off the beaten path. most guys wont want to make the trek. Lastly, invest in a lock box. The $25 is well worth protecting your $150 + camera.
Just "moon" the other camera as long as you don't have any recognizable marks (like birth marks) on your butt. I get those every year, but I know they are from the landowner who is a friend...and certified pervert.
yup, gotta love public land. i would have taken a chainsaw to every tree around that i saw a tree stand in
I wonder if you could buy those exploding ink packs that cashiers slip into bank robber's bags and rig them to pop if someone messes with the cameras? From what I read it takes over a week to wear off...
I had an experience like that last year put a camera out with a security box and double locked comeback two weeks. Laterand now camera really makes me made when someone steals something work hard for.
Sucks you got your cam stolen. I wouldnt just take the other cam because yours was stolen. Makes you the same as them. I would definately talk to the guy whos stand is nearby, maybe there is an ongoing problem there. I hunt public land a lot and you just gotta keep in mind the spot is not yours and there could be someone sitting there at anytime. I have 3 different locations within a 5 -10 minute walk for this reason. And I only leave my stand if I leave at dark and am going to be back at first light. Last year I got the **** scared out me whe I got down and started walking out the same path I always take and walked next to a guy up in a treee 50 yards from were I was. Never knew he was there. First time in 3 years Ive seen another hunter there. If its a good spot, people will find it, after all, you did
That does suck, don't forget, DEC/EPA will also take your cam. Sounds like you hunt in a dense area filled with people, is there a better spot further out, away from it all? They need to start adding GPS to the cams with a locator feature, or password protect the cam so none else can use it, similar to a smartphone.
i hunt public land in Ohio..i havent seen a hunter in 4yrs..but i still want leave anything ...sory for your loss
Yeah it's a pain. And ironically there are no signs of anyone else around. Maybe they passed mine going deeper in (but I'm already 3/4 a mile in) so who knows.
I hunt public land and have hunted it for the last few years and never had a problem with anyone stealing my game cams. What I do with mine is take a large dog choke chain and wrap that around the tree and lock it to my cam.
Sorry to hear, I hate to hear when other hunters cant respect each others stuff. After all we are all out there trying to accomplish the same thing for a sport and hobby we love...SAD Maybe look into locks or a lock box
All I hunt is public land. I've been lucky so far as not to have anything taken or messed with. Locks only keep honest people honest . I also keep track of if there's an increase of either vehicle or foot traffic . Last year I got a couple of pics of another hunter walking by my camera twice, days after I shot my deer. After that nothing stayed out there the rest of the season. Sorry to hear about your bad luck and there seems to be more googans out there each season.
That does suck man, that's the nature of the beast I guess. I had someone cut down a tree to steal one of my cameras haha I had it locked on so they cut it down and took it. People are crazy
