Want To See Animals? Get A Game Camera

And how to set one up in your backyard for the best results

None of these images is going to win a wildlife photography award. Every single one of them is of an animal we wouldn’t have seen otherwise, or of which we’ve only caught fleeting glimpses. A simple, cheap motion-sensor game camera is the best way to see the animals that visit the places where you live or spend time outdoors. Not bad for a device that can cost under $100.

And while game cameras are typically marketed to hunters, I think they’re just as applicable to casual animal enthusiasts too.

I first started using the cameras about seven years ago. Virginia and I would find moose poop in the yard at the cabin, spot the occasional black bear, and regularly found grizzly tracks. But while we knew there were plenty of animals in the area (the cabin is a few miles from Many Glacier), we had no idea how many there were, when they liked to visit, …