The Art of Persuasion: Deer Scents, Rattles, and Bleats 
The Art of Persuasion: Deer Scents, Rattles, and Bleats 

The Art of Persuasion: Deer Scents, Rattles, and Bleats In the 80’s, my father and grandfather were “entry-level” deer hunters.  They had been invited to begin hunting a timber here in central Iowa that had a steady population of deer.  In their efforts to learn more regarding the tactics to use to fool a wise old whitetail, my grandfather and father would douse their boots with fox urine!  It was an effort to hide human scent when they were in the woods.  It goes without saying that those boots were not allowed in the house, ever! There is no doubt […]

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Hunting Turkeys on Public Ground

Hunting Turkeys on Public Ground

Hunting Turkeys on Public Ground Your season has come and you are rearing to go! You have a tag in your pocket and the itch to get out in the timber and chase some big Iowa Easterns. The gun is dusted off, you have the ammo, the camo, and the eagerness for another hunting turkeys […]

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Fish like a Guide does to Stay on Fish

Fish like a Guide does to Stay on Fish Iowa is full of great rivers, lakes, ponds and streams.  Most have plenty of fish to keep a person busy all day long.  Whether you fish for bluegills, bass, muskie or anything in between we have all had our great days, and we have had those […]

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Skills Every Angler Should Know

Skills Every Angler Should Know

Skills Every Angler Should Know So many of us go fishing or hunting like it’s second nature. We know how to tie knots, how to load and unload a boat, and even basic survival skills. Many of us have learned these skills since we learned how to walk, but many people never had a parent […]

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Early Spring Fishing – Crappie

Early Spring Fishing – Crappie Crappie… animals that forage for discrete, isolated resources are often characterized as either “ambush” (sit-and-wait) or “cruise” (active) searchers. Juvenile white crappie, Pomix annularis, search for zooplankton prey using a salutatory search (SS) strategy. Unlike ambush and cruise, SS involves… Had all you readers going there for a moment didn’t […]

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Featured Story

Iowa Public Land Hunting 

Every hunter wants to know where to go to harvest a great deer.  We often assume that there is some “honey hole” spot out there that a person can always go to and harvest a trophy year after year.  While having hope for that, we are always keeping our ears perked for that privileged information on where the best place to hunt would be.   

Now, let me ask you, if somebody had the perfect spot to hunt where they are harvesting trophy deer year after year, do you think that they would share that information with you?  Probably not.  Unless they are VERY gracious and kind.   

In this article, I will not share any “secret spots” with you who are reading.  Frankly, because I don’t have any secret spots to share!  However, I’ve lived in Iowa long enough to steer you to certain areas of our great state that might give you a great chance to fill a tag this fall and winter.  So let’s begin with some regions of the state to key into. 

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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.