Check Out Our Current Issue!

In this Issue of The Iowa Sportsman August 2025:
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- 5 Low Tech Hacks for Soft Plastics and Bass
- Fall Fishing in Iowa
- Dove Opener Countdown
- Unlocking the Secrets of Extended-Range Accuracy
- The Status of Mountain Lions in Iowa
- Saddle Hunting for those who Say they Never will
- Optimal Stand Placement
- The Triton Buck – A Rut Story
- Get Your Weapon Ready for Deer Season
Click Here To View This Issue Now!

Top 4 Bowhunting Mistakes: Whitetails 365
Top 4 Bowhunting Mistakes: Whitetails 365 As in all things in life, if you want to get better at something, a good plan is to repeat the things that work for you, and stop doing or change things that aren’t working. It sounds like pretty easy common sense, but it can be very hard to […]
READ MOREBorn to Duck Hunt
Born to Duck Hunt To say a diehard duck hunter is a breed of its own is, well, definitely not an understatement. After all, who else would be excited about waking at 3 am in the morning, facing below freezing temperatures, battling strong northwest winds than one of those crazy diehard duck hunters hoping that […]
READ MOREExploring Iowa’s Pheasant Heritage
Exploring Iowa’s Pheasant Heritage I venture to guess that Iowa residents of Black Hawk, Grundy, Butler and Bremer counties in 1901 and 1902 had to wonder, “What is this mysterious bird that seemingly appeared on the Iowa prairie almost overnight?” It’s large chicken-like size, beautiful plumage and distinct white stripe encircling the male’s neck made […]
READ MORESummertime Slabs
Summertime Slabs Ah, summertime… that time of year when we’re all looking for a place to cool down. The average day in August typically reaches highs in the mid-’80s, and lows will dip down to the mid-’60s. We have had, as you all know, days and even weeks that will reach up into the mid-’90s […]
READ MOREFeatured Story
10 Killer Big Buck Bow Hunting Ambushes
Why do top notch hunters shoot quality mature deer year after year? Sure they scout, don’t shoot young bucks, maintain their land, pay attention to the wind, plant food plots, are in big buck country, ect. Yes all of those and many more reasons can attribute to better chances of shooting bigger bucks consistently. However do you know the most important reason why people shoot big deer year after year? Because they place their stands in locations where big bucks like to frequent…it really is that simple. They are in the right place at the right time. You will never consistently shoot mature deer if you are not putting your tree stands in the proper locations.
Whitetails are creatures of habit and instinct, they do everything for a purpose and that is actually a good thing for us hunters. If we know what they like to do, what they don’t like to do, and how they navigate their day then we can key in on certain geographical locations on our properties and ambush an unsuspecting bruiser.
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.