Early Spring Trout Fishing
Early Spring Trout Fishing

Early Spring Trout Fishing Spring in Northeast Iowa’s Driftless Region marks the beginning of one of the most rewarding trout fishing seasons in the Midwest. This is one of the prettiest areas in Northern Iowa marked with limestone bluffs, spring-fed creeks, and rolling pastures. The Driftless Region contains a several cold, clear streams that flow steadily year-round. This creates perfect trout habitat, and spring offers fishermen peaceful days on the water. With stable water temperatures, increasing insect activity, and hungry post-winter trout, there’s no better time to explore these legendary streams. Why The Driftless Region? This region is a trout […]

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Early Season Shed Hunting

Early Season Shed Hunting: Extra Miles for the Piles

Early Shed Season: Extra Miles for the Piles Once the curtain falls on deer and pheasant season, I consider taking advantage of my last few small game opportunities, but my heart really belongs to the antlered critters, and I know they will soon be antlerless. Honestly, I love shed season about as much as I […]

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Pond Structure Improvement

Pond Structure Improvement There is no doubt that many of Iowa’s anglers began their fishing endeavors on one of the 110,000 ponds scattered throughout the State. This is true for me too, Grandpa would introduce grandchildren to pond fishing, usually with a spiderman or barbie fishing pole. A small hook with a bit of worm […]

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Ice Fishing Fish Behavior

What Goes On Under The Ice

What Goes On Under The Ice The world under the ice has always been a mystery, a guessing game you might say. When the world of the fish suddenly gets covered with a sheet of glass how do they react, their world has been changed dramatically. The more we understand about what happens to the […]

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Enrich Deer Habitat with Hinge Cutting: Whitetails 365

Enrich Deer Habitat with Hinge Cutting: Whitetails 365 Practically every timber in Iowa could benefit from hinge cutting to create cover and browse for whitetail deer. Hinge cutting is when a tree is cut, about waist high, partially through. The tree then falls with the top of the tree resting on the ground, and the […]

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Featured Story

Big Buck Profile: The 2025 Gandy Buck

Ok, this first big buck profile is a little self-serving in that it is of a buck that I personally took this past deer season. While it is likely not the “biggest” big buck that we will profile this year it is definitely one of my most special deer ever.

Turning a Dream into Reality

As has been noted in several articles since 2023, my family and I finally put together the means to purchase our very own piece of Iowa ground. “The 32,” as we call it, has become a passion project to see if we could take an unassuming piece of real estate and harvest a mature deer from there by giving him all he needs in the way of habitat. This year was the first year that the farm would be huntable in the state in which we intended due to construction projects over the past couple of seasons.

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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.