Iowa Sportsman

Disappearing Act: Finding Post-Spawn Crappies

Disappearing Act: Finding Post-Spawn Crappies By Rod Woten It absolutely boggles my mind! How can the same crappies that were so bunched up and easy to catch during the spawn be so scattered and elusive after the spawn? How can they just disappear? It’s not like they grew legs and walked to another lake. They’re […]

Transition Walleyes: Post Spawn Behaviors and Tactics

Transition Walleyes: Post Spawn Behaviors and Tactics By Nick Johnson Many walleye anglers define this time of year as the post spawn blues. Depending on how the spring has gone, whether warm temps have held or cold temps prevailed this can hold some truth. I like to think of this time of year as an […]

Des Moines River Kayaking

Des Moines River Kayaking  By Ricky Kinder The trip wasn’t off to a good start. At 6:30 p.m. on Friday May 10th my cousin Nick and I were standing in what used to be the parking lot for the Yellow Banks Park boat ramp, but was now consumed by the swollen Des Moines River. Three […]

Chasing Early Season Northern Pike

Chasing Early Season Northern Pike By Steve Weisman When the ice begins to leave our northern Iowa lakes, anglers head out looking for ice-out smallmouth bass, pre-spawn walleyes and panfish. However, there is one prolific game fish that is often overlooked: the northern pike. In many cases, they are totally ignored. As a result, a […]

Capturing Nature: Tips for making the most of your Outdoor Photos

Capturing Nature: Tips for making the most of your Outdoor Photos By Laura Woten Imagine the SCENE: trout fishing in the Driftless Region of Northeastern Iowa in the spring. The flowers are blooming, the trees are budding, and the water is flowing fast and clear. A mother doe and her new twin fawns wander up […]

Your Guide to Herbicides

Your Guide to Herbicides By Tom Peplinksi I spend a lot of time and money getting things to grow on my farm. Between food plots, apple trees, evergreens, and timber regrowth I’m always trying to get the varieties of plants I want…in the right places, and growing without competition from other plants. When growing food […]

Catfishing Always Presents Challenges: You can be Prepared

Catfishing Always Presents Challenges: You can be Prepared By Brad Durick It seems if you catfish it is inevitable that something will happen that can turn your day upside down. Most of this is out of your control. If you fish enough you know how this can go all too well. You know that little […]

Spring Whitetail Work For Fall Success – Podcast

The Standard Hunting Poodle

The Standard Hunting Poodle By Ryan Eder I’ll be honest, I never imagined being in a duck blind with a poodle. The thought of trekking through a field in pursuit of a rooster pheasant and shooting over a poodle just never occurred to me. I would venture to guess that this is true for many […]

Avoid the Bust: Select the Right Outfitter

Avoid the Bust: Select the Right Outfitter By Ryan Eder Sometimes as a writer I struggle to find new topics to discuss in an article. This month, however, my inspiration came easily as I had arguably the worst waterfowl hunting experience with an outfitter this season. Selecting an outfitter can be difficult; there are several […]