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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Summer Deer Season Preparation

Summer Deer Season Preparation It’s July and for bowhunters all across the state they will begin patterning summer deer and making plans for the upcoming bow season, youth season and early muzzleloader season. If you are like me, keeping low pressure on your hunting area is always a top priority. Mature deer do not tolerate […]

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Strategizing with Trail Cameras: Whitetails 365

Strategizing with Trail Cameras: Whitetails 365 The phrase “here he comes again” was a common displeasured utterance at my local Walmart photography department during my youth. Trail cameras that housed 35mm cameras were becoming all the rage and my brother and I had collectively received a unit for Christmas. We’d load the camera up with […]

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Dutch oven Campfire cooking

Dutch Oven Campfire Cooking

Dutch Oven Campfire Cooking Camping season is upon us and it’s time to think of what you’re going to eat. Sure, you could do the easy stuff like cereal for breakfast, sandwiches for lunch, and roast a hotdog over the fire for dinner. But why not try something a little better? Who wouldn’t like a […]

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Kayak Bass Fishing in Iowa

Kayak Bass Fishing in Iowa If you are like me, you grew up watching bass boat tournaments on TV. Most people thought that looked like fun, but bass boat tournaments are a significant investment when you get the bass boat, truck, trailer, gas, and upkeep. Kayak tournaments are just as fun and more affordable in […]

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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.