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Iowa Hunting and Fishing Report: Cooler Weather Signals the Fall Bite

Cooler temperatures, plenty of rain and the first signs of fall are starting to change outdoor conditions across Iowa. In the September 15, 2026, edition of the Iowa Hunting and Fishing Report, Aaron McKinney breaks down the latest fishing conditions while also getting ready for the fast-approaching bow hunting season.


A special thanks goes to Al Martin Real Estate and Auction for sponsoring this week’s report. The company has an upcoming estate auction in Bloomfield, Iowa, featuring a variety of firearms and outdoor-related items. Outdoorsmen and women looking for shotguns, rifles, handguns and other sporting items will want to check out the upcoming sale: https://almartinauctions.com/september-auctions/?_kx=z8-rbjcsRDFqtgBuODqXLA.RRbGmN#KoettelEstate

Iowa Hunting Fishing Report

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Hunting Nocturnal Bucks in Iowa

Hunting Nocturnal Bucks in Iowa: Whitetails 365

Hunting Nocturnal Bucks in Iowa: Whitetails 365 So, you’ve set your sights on bagging that elusive buck. You’ve put in your time scouting with trail cameras and glassing him in green soybean fields. Once October 1 hits, he disappears. When you do get pictures of him, it’s only at night. Now we begin the quest […]

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Top Public Upland Hunting Areas in Iowa

Top Public Hunting Upland Areas in Iowa Iowa’s rolling fields and picturesque landscapes set the stage for an exhilarating outdoor pursuit that is just around the corner, pheasant season. As the leaves begin to turn and a crisp autumn breeze fills the air, hunters from across the state and beyond eagerly anticipate the opening of […]

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5 Tips to Bag More Pheasants this Season

5 Tips to Bag More Pheasants this Season

5 Tips to Bag More Pheasants this Season It was an unseasonably warm South Dakota day, the kind of day we all love, unless we’re in the midst of a pheasant hunt. This weather made the birds jumpy, which was troublesome, considering we were hunting public land birds that receive a great deal of hunting […]

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Preparing for Trapping Season

Preparing for Trapping Season When October rolls around and that cool fall air begins to hit it always instills the insatiable desire to hunt and trap. With only a few hunting seasons open in Iowa, one of the best ways to try and scratch the itch is beginning the preparations for the upcoming trapping season. […]

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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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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.