One of the questions we get asked a lot is how often to check trail cameras. Everyone is eager to know what’s on their cameras but checking them too often can leave a lot of scent behind and give mature deer a reason to avoid the area.
Consider Trail Cam Locations
The location of your camera has a lot to do with how often you should check it and each situation can be a little bit different. In a situation where you have a camera on a row crop field edge or well-traveled road, it's not going to hurt to go check your camera every couple of weeks, especially if you can check it out of a truck or UTV. On the other hand, if your camera is close to a bedding area, heavy cover, or a remote food source you don’t want to go in every few days to check your camera.
Checking Trail Cams Digitally
A great feature of some cameras is the ability to send pictures through a cellular network. The cell capable cameras work well if you live a long way from your land and it isn’t feasible to check them as often as you would like. Cameras that send pictures through either email or text messaging can be really advantageous to absentee landowners or cameras placed in hard to get to areas. It is very tempting to check cameras every couple of days, but remember that disturbing the woods too often and leaving human scent behind can be counterproductive to your hunting and land management.
For more GameKeeper tips on using trail cameras read “Trail Camera Settings.”
