fishing

Targeting Shallow Weed Walleyes
Targeting Shallow Weed Walleyes Over the 40 plus years that I have lived in northwest Iowa, I’ve enjoyed fishing walleyes on the Iowa Great Lakes. My target lakes have included Big Spirit, East and West Okoboji. For many years, however, I missed a real opportunity during the summer months. After fishing the weed edges in […]
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Jugging for Catfish
Jugging for Catfish “FISH ON! FISH ON!” That phrase struck an adrenaline rush that only two things could ignite, a first kiss and “juggin” for catfish. At that moment every head in every boat turned like a top trying to find that one Gatorade bottle creating a wake across the waters of the Des Moines […]
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A Place For Family and Friends: The Outdoors
A Place for Family and Friends: The Outdoors As a young man growing up in the Loess Hills of western Iowa, I was too busy pursuing teenage interests to realize the beauty the hills had to offer. It wasn’t until I was older and a college student at Mankato State University that I found myself […]
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Improving Walleye and Musky Fishing in Iowa Project Update
Improving Walleye and Musky Fishing in Iowa Walleye always seem to be at the top of our favorite fish to chase here in Iowa. March begins the Walleye spawning run in many rivers and lakes, tempting fishermen and women out of hibernation to chase after them just after ice-out. Musky…the elusive yet hard fighting predatory […]
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Fishermen’s New Favorite DIY Project
Kayaks: Fishermen’s New Favorite DIY Project Kayaking has become increasingly popular in the past few years in the state of Iowa. Kayaks have become much more affordable, and much more accessible with them being available at major box stores as well as your local outdoors store. With their increasing popularity, many folks have turned their […]
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5 Favorite Campgrounds Across Iowa
5 Favorite Campgrounds Across Iowa When summer rolls around, campers emerge and begin looking for new camping destinations. Some stunning campgrounds are hidden across Iowa and closer to home than some may realize. Camping is an activity that will fit you, regardless of you interests and current chapter in life. And since the Covid pandemic, […]
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Fly Fishing the Driftless
Fly Fishing the Driftless Nick’s heart tightened as the trout moved. He felt all the old feeling….Ernest Hemingway, Big Two Hearted River Part I. It is the Driftless region of Iowa. Located in the northeastern part of the state extending roughly from Manchester to the Minnesota border and east towards the great Mississippi, it is […]
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Wonderboy
Story of Wonderboy While many may disagree, one of the greatest sport’s movies is the 1984 masterpiece, The Natural, starring Robert Redford. It is a movie not about baseball, but of fulfilling lost dreams and redemption. Throughout the film, the protagonist, Roy Hobbs, incredible talent, was due to his bat “Wonderboy”. Something made carefully by […]
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Springtime Spawning
Springtime Spawning Largemouth bass are a worldwide favorite sport fish, and, luckily for Iowans, they can find them all over the state. In fact, the Iowa DNR currently reports the presence of these bass in over 500 lakes and streams. So it comes as no surprise that warm temperatures lead many of Iowa’s dedicated fishermen […]
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Farm Ponds at their Finest
Farm Ponds at their Finest Fishing in Iowa is a diverse experience. Two heavyweight rivers set the borders on the East and West banks where 100 pound flatheads and extraterrestrial looking paddlefish wait for willing anglers. Flowing in stark contrast to those monstrous border waters are the pristine cold water creeks of the driftless northeast […]
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