Every year for over the last 20 years I get my trail cameras out to monitor the deer and other wildlife in the area where I hunt and for me, this weekend is the weekend.

I was lucky to get a little bit of acreage in the Manistee National Forest before this crazy housing market kicked in and I'm right down the road from thousands of federal land so there are a significant number of deer in the area.

I have about a dozen trail cameras from a variety of brands but my Browning cameras are my favorite to use. For the money, they take a good picture or video and the hold up well in the colder months.

When it comes to trail cameras, I have used about every brand except for the ridiculously expensive models. Since they all go bad no matter how much they cost, I try to get a camera that is solid at a reasonable price.

There are lots of cameras that have satellite technology that allows you to see the pictures right on your phone. The cell service is so bad where I am, I'm gonna hold off on this technology a bit longer before I pull the trigger on one of those.

Hunting the same place for a few years really helps figure out where the deer typically move and in my case, having a picture window that overlooks my hunting area is pretty handy since I can watch their movement daily all year long.

This year I have soy beans on my property and my neighbor has corn. I am hoping to put a sweet corn plot in behind my barn but I may go with some sort of greens if I can't get this plot turned over by my farmer.

This week I have been getting out my cameras, cleaning them up and loading up the new batteries. I have four locations where I want to put my cameras but I have another six spots I like to put them so I will have out at least 10 out by the end of the weekend.

The bucks horns are popping now and are in velvet. In my experience the horns do most of their growing late June through early August which allow my son and I to watch them grow.

This year I am putting the cameras out and not going to check them until the middle of September if I can wait that long. I'm trying to stay out of the hunting area as much as possible this year.

My new neighbor and I are working together to build a habitat that will be great for deer and turkeys as well as other wildlife. We have enough property between the two of us to hold a few big deer and have agreed to stay out of a certain area to allow that to happen.

So between planting my flowers and moving gravel this weekend, my breaks will be spent making camera runs to see what is going on for this season's deer season.

You don't have to hunt to enjoy trail cameras. Many suburban areas have a lot of wildlife and it can be a fun thing to do with your kids while learning about wildlife and you don't have to spend a lot of money to get a camera that will serve your needs.

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