? about trail cam on public land

[DC]

What do you think about placing a trail cam on public land ? If you do it; do you try to hide it as best as possible and hope you don't lose it? This time of the year probably wouldn't be as risky as it will be closer to hunting season.   Drew

[Mo. Huntin]

I would not even consider it around here.  I have zero doubt that it would be stolen.  Plus it will give away any possible stand sites you may be considering.  I would not depend on the thief not having bolt cutters handy because a thief is a thief and he will prolly have a set in the truck.

[Desert_hunter]

It really is a shame when you have to worry about things like this. I've set mine out on private land and for the week I had it out I was worried about it being stolen, thankfully it wasn't, I could only imagine having it on public land.

[GrnMtnTradNut]

Use a climbing stand and set it up off the ground with a wedge of wood, works great and the pics come out awesome. Chris

[Killdeer]

Note to self: Do not pee in the woods in Mississippi.

Killdeer   :(

[Don Stokes]

If you choose your place carefully and camouflage it from humans, you can get away with it. I like to set mine low, with overhanging limbs, so a person can't see it without stooping. Just don't put it in an obvious place, and if you have to wade poison ivy or bust thick brush to get to it, most people won't go there. Humans always take the easy route. It helps to have a small camo one like the ScoutGuard, with no visible flash. Mine's not on public land, but it might as well be. I've gotten pictures of several people who never noticed the camera. Sometimes I have trouble finding it myself- that's when I know I have a good setup.

Killdeer, it's OK. I do it all the time!

[owlbait]

I like the climbing stand idea. You might consider a non-flash camera also. They make those, don't they? Infra-red?

[Steel]

I know a guy who uses three of the camo SG 550's on public land and has not lost one as of yet in over a year++.He takes a tree stand style allum climbing stick to the woods and puts his cameras about 10ft to 12ft high aiming down on trails. I went and checked cams with him one time he had to point his cameras out to me or I would have walked right by!

[Bonebuster]

I put mine out on public land all the time.

I`ve gotten pictures of people who did not know it was there, and some of those who did.

My name is carved deep into the plastic. If it gets stolen, then it`s always going to bug me, but if it doesn`t get used for fear of theft, thats even worse.

Trail cameras are a ton of fun. Don`t deny yourself the fun. Just hide it reasonably well.