Slide
Listen Now! To the Iowa Hunting and Fishing Report

Watch the October 6th Iowa Hunting and Fishing Report!

Fishing: The fall bite is on! Panfish are still biting, the walleye bite is finally starting to pick up too.

Hunting: Congrats to all the youth hunters who were able to fill their tags. Bow season is now open, movement has been okay.

This week's sponsor of the Hunting and Fishing Report is Polk County Conservation's controlled waterfowl hunting program. Waterfowl hunting blinds at Chichaqua Bottoms Greenbelt in NE Polk County can be reserved by calling the Chichaqua office at (515) 323-5395 from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The twelve blinds are located in both marsh and woodland settings. Blinds cost $30 per day and hold up to four hunters. Reservations are available for both the early split (October 10 – 16) and late split (Oct. 24 – Nov. 30).

Click here to reserve your blind today!
https://www.polkcountyiowa.gov/conservation/things-to-do/hunting

Iowa Hunting Fishing Report
Watch Now!

Check Out Our Current Issue!

Ice Augers for Every Situation and Budget

Ice Augers for Every Situation and Budget  By Todd Reed  Ice Fishing… it is almost here for the 2026/2027 season.  Last year, the ice season ended very rapidly, leaving a lot of anglers hungry for the upcoming season.    Investing in Gear  Oftentimes, as ice anglers, we look at all the details of our bait, […]

READ MORE

Where to Find Late-Season Pheasants in Iowa

Where to Find Late-Season Pheasants in Iowa  By Shannon Rivers  Late-season pheasant hunting is a different game. As winter settles across Iowa, crops disappear from the landscape, temperatures drop and snow begins to reshape the way pheasants use the available habitat. Hunters who are willing to adjust their strategy can still find birds, but success […]

READ MORE

How to Process Your Own Venison

How to Process Your Own Venison  By Cole Rozendaal  When the time comes to fill your deer tag, it can be a tough decision what to do with the meat. Going to the butcher is an easy and convenient way to have your meat processed, but the pricing can be expensive. One thing I can […]

READ MORE

A Minnesota Winter of Big Fish and Miles of Trails

A Minnesota Winter of Big Fish and Miles of Trails  By Joe Henry  Some folks spend winter counting the days until spring. In Minnesota, a lot of us count the days until the lakes lock up. Once the snow flies and the ice thickens, the whole state opens for business. Frozen lakes turn into angler […]

READ MORE

Featured Story

A Classic Evening with an Iowa Giant – Bowhunting Boone & Crockett Bucks

Does a plan ever fall into place the way it should? The months leading up to October and November are filled with daydreams of target bucks making their way in front of our stands. Perfect conditions, with a shooter buck coming in on a string, setting up for perfect shot placement. If only that was how it worked… but that wouldn’t be as rewarding, would it?

READ FULL STORY

Created By Iowans, For Iowans

The Iowa Sportsman website and magazine are Iowa’s only privately owned media sources catering to hunters, anglers, and outdoor enthusiasts here in Iowa. Simply put, we are unlike other Iowa outdoor media sources: All our staff is from Iowa, from our publisher to our writers. We actually follow through on what we advertise; we provide knowledgeable content from people who know the industry or sport discussed.