Fishing
Gold On Ice: Tactics for Winter Carp
By: Nick Johnson Pound for pound, not many North American fish in fresh water fight harder than the Common Carp. There is no question that many, if not most of our bodies of water in the state contain them and plenty of anglers have had their hardware tested by the brute fight of one of […]
READ MOREFly Fishing for Stream Carp: Iowa’s Bonefish
By: Nick Johnson Arguably the hardest fight I have ever experienced on a fly rod did not come from a 4lb smallmouth bass, or a 20″ cutthroat trout, or even a pike, all of which I have landed on fly gear. No, the hardest fight came from an average sized common carp a few miles […]
READ MOREWhen the bite is on
By Ben Leal September…ahhhhhh…cooling temps, well at least we hope they start cooling off. We’ve just wandered through the heat of July and August and it was in a word, hot! Fishing, for the most part, was an early morning or late afternoon evening event. Two reasons really; you want to avoid sweating for eight […]
READ MORETop Five Flathead Baits
By Brad Durick In the world of catfishing it seems we hear about the mighty blue cat or the abundant channel cat more often than their big cousins with bad attitudes, the flathead. Ok, the flathead is pretty popular too. The anglers who love flatheads seem to have an addiction for catfish that is a […]
READ MOREThe Dog Days of Smallmouth: Reading the River
By Nick Johnson It was one of those late summer days where you could chew every breath of humid air. –The bugs were thick– Sweat became commonplace and unavoidable, even in the shade along the riverbank. The water was so warm that a quick dip would hardly offer comfort from the sweltering stale heat. I […]
READ MOREFall Wipers And White Bass
Make no mistake; fall fishing for wipers and white bass on lakes can be great fun. The action is fast and furious, exciting, hard work and these true members of the bass family fight like carp on steroids! Wipers are actually a hybrid cross between a white bass and striper and this marriage of the […]
READ MOREDog Day Fishing
By Ben Leal August in Iowa can be quickly summed up in one word…hot! July has just passed by and the average temps have been hovering around the mid 80’s, August continues the trend with Mother Nature throwing in some 90 degree days, as well as a few century mark days just to let us […]
READ MOREThree Surefire Presentations to Catch Bass Through the Ice
By: Mark Anderson Many ice fishermen around central Iowa spend the winter months targeting panfish through the ice. I am no exception; I love to catch big bull bluegills and slab crappies as much as the next person. Panfish are more than willing to bite during the winter and their sheer numbers allow anglers the […]
READ MORESpawn – Post Spawn Crappie
BY BEN LEAL For Iowan’s all across the State, crappie fishing means that old man winter has finally released his grip for the year and the weather has become seasonably warmer. Days have become increasingly longer, sun warms the soil and the water and nature in general is coming out of a long winters slumber. […]
READ MOREHot Weather Whiskers
By: Nick Johnson In my early cattin’ days I struggled like any beginner trying to succeed. Summer, hot weather catfish would sometimes find their way to my hook but the bites were few and the bigger fish substantially fewer. I found myself pursuing the same tired out presentations and locations with nothing to show. One […]
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