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It Doesn’t Get Any Better Than This
Little did 14-year old Dalton Christoffer, a freshman at Estherville Lincoln Central in northwest Iowa, know when he headed for northeast Iowa to participate in the youth dear season that a trophy buck just might be in the picture. He was pretty sure that he’d have a chance at a nice buck. After all two years before, he had shot a nice 8-pointer in the same area, and since he began deer hunting at age 10, he’d shot a deer every year. “We hunt near Yellow River Forest by Harper’s Ferry,” says Dalton. “We always hunt the same area. My grandpa Christopher (who lives near there and is a longtime deer hunter himself) had been scouting the area and had [...]
Back to the Basics: New Gear Gives You No Guarantees
It seems like only yesterday my father and I were making a trip to Cabela’s in Owatonna, Minnesota to check out hunting gear. I was twelve or thirteen and had been planning my first deer hunt for a while through hours of watching and learning everything I could from the hunting channels we had on our Dish Network package. I remember watching all of the ads from all the different brands sponsoring various shows, and at the time, this is what I concluded would happen at Cabela’s: I would be buying either Mossy Oak or Real Tree camo, a Mathews Switchback bow (clearly the leader in bow technology at the time), Gold Tip arrows with Muzzy broad heads, and I [...]
Whiskers and Ditty Poles
One of my fondest memories of setting bank poles, or ditty poles as many call them, took place on the Des Moines River two summers ago. My friends Josh, Jarred and I fished for two nights out of Jarred's big twenty foot flat-bottom and camped along the bank. It was one of those trips where an angler really connects with the river and becomes a part of its mystique. I remember waking up the morning after the second night to heavy air and a quiet river gurgling by. Everything was in slow motion including us, struggling to pull ourselves from the sleeping bags after a big meal of fried flathead and frog legs the night before. Our lines which hadn't [...]
Fishing Myth Busters
No matter how often you fish, or don’t fish there are many people that have certain beliefs about fishing. What makes fishing better...what you can’t do when you fish. There are many myths about fishing that the common public say and truly believe in. Perhaps Grandpa said these things about fishing, or the guide you hired in Minnesota mentioned it one time. While there are many different reasons and circumstances that seem to make some days much better than others for fishing, the following “old sayings” or myths about fishing are simply not true. MYTH #1- If I have heard this once, I have heard it over a hundred times. “Fish bite better when it is raining” Typically people don’t [...]
Preparation = Early Season Bow Hunting Success!
By Ricky Kinder It goes without saying that preparation leads to success, and this couldn’t be truer in terms of bow hunting early season whitetails here in Iowa. If you want to harvest a mature whitetail buck during the early parts of bow season you need to get to work right now! Some of the most serious hunters that I know undoubtedly say that there past early season success stories has been a direct result of the summertime preparation work they put in during some of the hottest and muggiest days of the year. Below I have compiled a few preparations every hunter should be performing now or very soon to get himself or herself equipped for the fast approaching [...]
Fallback Stands For Archery Season
Have you ever been sitting in a treestand and seen a large mature whitetail buck coming your way only to have it skirt your stand by 70 yards for no apparent reason? I have fallen victim to this scenario more than once. It is a frustrating ride of mixed emotions; one minute your heart is pounding as you are holding your bow just waiting for the deer to commit to the trail and the next moment you are standing there in disbelief as the large buck does a 90-degree turn and walks around your stand. Most of the time this scenario isn’t by coincidence. The fact of the matter is that deer probably knew you were sitting in that tree [...]
The Essential Tools of a Turkey Hunter
By Nick Johnson Gear is something that we as hunters pay a great deal of attention to. Most of us who hunt own a fair assortment of "stuff"; the essential tools that drive our success and empty our wallets. Some of it is a complete necessity, some a pertinent addition for key applications and some just serves no other purpose but to keep us busy with dreams afield using it. Let's not discuss the latter as the list would span beyond many issues of The Iowa Sportsman and do nothing but promote bankruptcy and discouraged spouses. Rather, let's take a look at some of the key tools and gear that turkey hunters attribute to success year after year in various [...]
The Five C’s To Fishing Success
By Dan Galusha People have long talked about certain lures and techniques being the secret to fishing success. However, sitting back and thinking about the lures and techniques there is usually a reason as to why they are successful. In most cases they fall into one or more of five categories that create most successful fishing trips. These five categories can be called the “Five C’s” to fishing success, which are casting, control, confidence, concentration and courage. While each is a separate part of the equation, they must work hand-in-hand to bring about maximum results. The following breakdown explains each of the categories. CASTING It is extremely important to learn the proper way to use spinning, spin casting and bait [...]
Troutin’ About in Iowa
Use the word “trout” and “Iowa” in the same sentence and you’ll definitely get some funny looks. Trout are rarely the first fish that comes to mind when most think of Iowa. Fish more typically thought of, as “Iowa fish” are bluegills, catfish, largemouth bass, white bass and crappies. I never cease to be amazed by the number of people in the state that have no idea that we have cold water streams in the northeast corner of state that support active, robust and very fishable trout populations. Not only do these trout provide for great angling opportunities, but also the chance to catch a trophy fish is a real possibility. The scenery is absolutely breathtaking, and total solitude is [...]
Gaining Permission: A Gentle Art
Many of you reading this I’m sure would rather have a root canal than walking up and knocking on the door of an unfamiliar landowner to ask permission to his or her property. Indeed it can be a nerve wracking endeavor because you really have no idea how this landowner will react. Maybe you caught them during a family meal. Maybe they just had an argument with their spouse or a long day on the farm. Truthfully though, landowners are by and large friendly people, who when approached in the right manner often reward the courteous hunter access to their ground. There are certain things a hunter or fisherman can do to put the odds of granted permission in their [...]
