# Trail Cam on Public Land



## hmmmnomaybe (Mar 24, 2020)

I've been reading through the 2020 deer regs and I saw the section regarding tree stands/ground blinds on public land. 

I haven't been able to find any information regarding trail cams on public land. Are there regulations, if so what are they?


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## Bob S (Mar 8, 2000)

There are no regulations regarding cameras on public land.


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## Bucman (Jun 29, 2016)

I think the rule is hide it well or it will be confiscated.


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## trucker3573 (Aug 29, 2010)

Bucman said:


> I think the rule is hide it well or it will be confiscated.


This exactly...lol. Call it an unwritten rule. Can’t trust other people. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## hmmmnomaybe (Mar 24, 2020)

Bucman said:


> I think the rule is hide it well or it will be confiscated.


Is this from personal experience? I've got one but no way of securely attaching it. Just a strap with a buckle.


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## SuperHunter18 (Oct 23, 2004)

hmmmnomaybe said:


> Is this from personal experience? I've got one but no way of securely attaching it. Just a strap with a buckle.


I had one "confiscated" about two days after I put it up last year! Same guy that "confiscated" it also cut a 3 foot wide trail all the way back to his tree on stateland. I had it locked up and everything, he definitely had with him or went and got some type of serious cutters to get through the lock and cable I had on it. I was more dumbfounded that he actually found it, it wa no where near a path in the middle of no where....however his new clear cut lane went back to exactly where i had it. Guess he knew it was a good area.

Can't leave anything out there that you don't want to get "confiscated"


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## hmmmnomaybe (Mar 24, 2020)

SuperHunter18 said:


> I had one "confiscated" about two days after I put it up last year! Same guy that "confiscated" it also cut a 3 foot wide trail all the way back to his tree on stateland. I had it locked up and everything, he definitely had with him or went and got some type of serious cutters to get through the lock and cable I had on it. I was more dumbfounded that he actually found it, it wa no where near a path in the middle of no where....however his new clear cut lane went back to exactly where i had it. Guess he knew it was a good area.
> 
> Can't leave anything out there that you don't want to get "confiscated"


Wow. Guess he didn't want photographic evidence of that trail cut getting out.


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## MSUFW07 (Jan 22, 2009)

I thought the regulation was you had to have 2 at a time out there. One to take deer pictures and one pointed at the first so you can get a picture of the guy who stole the first one... guess I'm lucky I never got a ticket for not having 2 out there at a time. 

Long story short, hmmmaybe, don't put anything out there you are not willing to loose. Trail cams, tree stands, ladders included. Things have a strange way of growing legs and walking away on state land.


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## jjlrrw (May 1, 2006)

Only regulation I know of would be the way you mount it to a tree


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## Woodbutcher-1 (Nov 21, 2004)

hmmmnomaybe said:


> Is this from personal experience? I've got one but no way of securely attaching it. Just a strap with a buckle.


Get rid of that strap and buckle and use rusted wire to secure it the tree. That strap anyone can see, the wire won't be as visible. Your welcome.


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## bowhunter426 (Oct 20, 2010)

I take 2 climbing sticks with me and place the camera up out of reach of a normal person. Use a 2x4 cut at and angle to wedge the camera down. Havent lost a camera since doing this.


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## 12970 (Apr 19, 2005)

There is none but as mentioned some will take it! As for cable locks if is only good for keeping some honest people honest as they are not hard to Cut! I had one I could not get open with the key and it did not take much to cut the 5/16 cable. I won't mentioned what I used but it did not take much and it was not any kind of "cutting tool" like a cordless tool. Most put them high and out of view. But most security boxes stick out and screwing it to a tree is not allowed to lesser the ability to get the cam...

Maybe some think where you put it is their hunting ground and take it!
As for cutting a trail I thought that was Not allowed?
But I have not hunted public land in years but I do secure all my cams with a box and some kind of lock... 
Newaygo1


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## Bow hunter on a Mission (Oct 15, 2017)

bowhunter426 said:


> I take 2 climbing sticks with me and place the camera up out of reach of a normal person. Use a 2x4 cut at and angle to wedge the camera down. Havent lost a camera since doing this.


This is a very good idea. Getting it up out of the line of vision of someone walking through the woods will keep 99% of people unaware it’s even there. Maybe still put a cable on it in case the 1% that happen to look up and they’re not as honest as we would like them to be.


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## SuperHunter18 (Oct 23, 2004)

Newaygo1 said:


> There is none but as mentioned some will take it! As for cable locks if is only good for keeping some honest people honest as they are not hard to Cut! I had one I could not get open with the key and it did not take much to cut the 5/16 cable. I won't mentioned what I used but it did not take much and it was not any kind of "cutting tool" like a cordless tool. Most put them high and out of view. But most security boxes stick out and screwing it to a tree is not allowed to lesser the ability to get the cam...
> 
> Maybe some think where you put it is their hunting ground and take it!
> As for cutting a trail I thought that was Not allowed?
> ...


Yup, very illegal to cut such a path on public ground. Like one of the posters said, probably why he didn't want his picture taken.


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## Martian (Apr 28, 2011)

I have hung them 3-4 ft. off the ground, and way up, only to have them stolen. I have adopted a new method. find a downed trunk on the ground , they are never perfectly flat, and in the area where it rises off the ground, put it under the log, sort of facing up, pack leaves around, I have gone back to retrieve them and thought it was taken, only to find it with more looking. Bolt cutters open anything. i had one, I hollowed out a hole in the ground , about an inch deep, set the cam in it leaning against the trunk and leaves sticks around it, for that flat trunk. good luck . REMEMBER WHERE YOU PUT IT lol. i have also found stumps with little hollows in thm . up in the air, you may as well have a sign


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## carpetbagger (Jun 12, 2015)

Only use the cheap $28.99 Tasco cams that you can buy at Walmart. A respectable thief won't usually bother taking one of them, and believe it or not they actually take pretty good pics and are fairly reliable until it get below 32 degrees for a sustainable period of time.


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## BumpRacerX (Dec 31, 2009)

I have two cellular ones out currently. One has never even captured another person and is in an area that I figured would.

The other went "offline" for about an hour right after sending me some pics of a person approaching it. As I was nearing the area that this one was to catch the person it came back online and sent me pics. The mounting was slightly different. Someone realized they had swiped a cellular trail cam and the pic was probably already uploaded and put it back.


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## wpmisport (Feb 9, 2010)

Bow hunter on a Mission said:


> This is a very good idea. Getting it up out of the line of vision of someone walking through the woods will keep 99% of people unaware it’s even there


Trail cams work much better if they are about 4 foot off the ground and pointed in a horizontal direction. They cover a lot more territory this way. If they are to high up then the angle will not detect as much but would work okay for checking out a runway.


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## Bow hunter on a Mission (Oct 15, 2017)

wpmisport said:


> Trail cams work much better if they are about 4 foot off the ground and pointed in a horizontal direction. They cover a lot more territory this way. If they are to high up then the angle will not detect as much but would work okay for checking out a runway.


True but they don’t work very well for you when someone else runs off with them.


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## brushbuster (Nov 9, 2009)

Martian said:


> I have hung them 3-4 ft. off the ground, and way up, only to have them stolen. I have adopted a new method. find a downed trunk on the ground , they are never perfectly flat, and in the area where it rises off the ground, put it under the log, sort of facing up, pack leaves around, I have gone back to retrieve them and thought it was taken, only to find it with more looking. Bolt cutters open anything. i had one, I hollowed out a hole in the ground , about an inch deep, set the cam in it leaning against the trunk and leaves sticks around it, for that flat trunk. good luck . REMEMBER WHERE YOU PUT IT lol. i have also found stumps with little hollows in thm . up in the air, you may as well have a sign


This is how I set mine up. I either screw them into dead fall on the ground or wire them in place.


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## 22 Chuck (Feb 2, 2006)

trucker3573 said:


> This exactly...lol. Call it an unwritten rule. Can’t trust other people.
> 
> There are thieves out there regularly. Anyone w/ boltcutters along are not just out for a woods ride. They are after anything they can steal and get many tree stands also.


Look on youtube and may see some 'new' ways of mounting. Recall seeing some a few months ago.

If it cant be stolen it may well be shot, bird season is on. Ive got a spot Id like to watch but cant figure how to 'safely' do it so I havent.


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## Martin Looker (Jul 16, 2015)

We work on the Midland to Mackinac trail and find lots of cameras. Those boys are really good at spotting cameras and tree stands. So if you have a camera on that trail and get some goofy kid pictures they will be ours.


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## Bow hunter on a Mission (Oct 15, 2017)

Martin Looker said:


> We work on the Midland to Mackinac trail and find lots of cameras. Those boys are really good at spotting cameras and tree stands. So if you have a camera on that trail and get some goofy kid pictures they will be ours.


I’m all about photobombing trail cameras on public land when I find them lol. Harmless fun.


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## TriggerDiscipline (Sep 25, 2017)

I very, very rarely get another person on my cameras. All of mine are on deer paths off the beaten path of hiking paths, ATV trails, or roads. I put python locks on all of them, and security boxes on the more vulnerable. It keeps the (usually) honest people honest. Frankly, putting a $100+ piece of equipment on public land, sitting there for the taking, is just asking for it. Can't think of any other sport/activity where something like that is done. It's really a testament to the general good of most people that more cams don't get stolen. 

Whenever I come across one, I flash a peace sign. If you live in Northern MI, and you see a lanky dude in a green Columbia jacket flashing a peace sign, that was me.


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## 22 Chuck (Feb 2, 2006)

I havent spent too much time lately but have never seen one except in my back yard, camera or stands. 
Way back when stands were just legal I made several stands.
Got some slabs from the saw mill-found 2 oaks about 3-3.5'apatt and nail slabs on. On top put 2 slabs w/ board for seat. Worked great. 
Prof stand makers got laws in place so we had to buy theirs and here we are.


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## Martin Looker (Jul 16, 2015)

Ground blinds are still home made.


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## buggs (Jan 21, 2011)

FWIW, We've had much fewer issues with theft on public land (Manistee) over the years then we have on ours and/or our older members non-homestead, sparsely utilized private property.


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## on a call (Jan 16, 2010)

SuperHunter18 said:


> I had one "confiscated" about two days after I put it up last year! Same guy that "confiscated" it also cut a 3 foot wide trail all the way back to his tree on stateland. I had it locked up and everything, he definitely had with him or went and got some type of serious cutters to get through the lock and cable I had on it. I was more dumbfounded that he actually found it, it wa no where near a path in the middle of no where....however his new clear cut lane went back to exactly where i had it. Guess he knew it was a good area.
> 
> Can't leave anything out there that you don't want to get "confiscated"


Did you ever confront him and get it back ? You know who did it...although he/she could just deny it.


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## on a call (Jan 16, 2010)

Exploding trail cameras....watch out

https://www.fieldandstream.com/blogs/a-sportsmans-life/danger-exploding-trail-cams/


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## no1huntmaster (Sep 6, 2015)

in the end.... a *real* hunter does not thieve from another hunter.


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