Trail Cam Placement

[Jarred525]

Once fall hits and scrapes open up, I like to put my cameras on scrapes. Pics of mature deer usually decrease once rut hits and then I will get a few every now and then after rut on scrapes.

My question is what is everyone's strategy with trail cam placement once the rut hits hard and post rut? I don't feel like at the moment I am getting the most out of my camera placement. Should I shift more to trails and food plots once the rut hits and post rut? Thanks.

 

[BSK]

My placement regime:

Summer (through August): salt-licks and food sources (especially small food plots)

Early fall (September into early October): food sources (natural, food plots, and the edges of agricultural fields), old roadbeds, terrain and habitat funnels, low spots or gaps in fences, staging areas into open food sources, entry/exit trails into thick cover.

Rut season (mid-October through mid-December in my area): 50-75% of my cameras will be on scrapes, with the rest scattered in the same types of locations as listed for Early Fall.

Post rut (after mid-December): primarily food sources, especially food plots.

 

[Jarred525]

Thanks BSK.

 

[Vermin93]

Very helpful, BSK. Thanks for the info.

 

[catman529]

I don't know what I'm doing but I've had a camera on a salt lick since February and then another camera that I move all over the place. That one I usually place on a good deer trail somewhere and I get bucks and does. I tried a scrape for a few days during the rut and got a couple of young bucks and does. But most were passing through and not even working the scrape. I think it may have been just past the prime of rut when I had the camera there. I got a pic of the 9 pt I've been chasing on a well established "doe trail" by my treestand during peak rut at 11 pm.