Iowa Sportsman

Unlocking the Secrets to Trolling for Walleyes

Unlocking the Secrets to Trolling for Walleyes By Steve Weisman As a fishing guide on the Iowa Great Lakes, M. Doug Burns is often asked by anglers, “What should I do when I troll for walleyes?” Burns, who has been a professional guide since 1986, begins to answer this question by saying, “There is not […]

Pontoon’s As Fishing Boats?

Pontoon’s As Fishing Boats? By Steve Weisman Ever since I purchased my first boat over 40 years ago, nothing has been more exciting, time consuming and, yes, even exasperating as it has been to narrow down the list to my final choice. Back in 1972, I began with a 14-year-old 14-foot Crestliner and a 10 […]

Rut Tips

Rut Tips As whitetail hunters, we all know that hunting the rut can represent the best opportunity to catch a vulnerable monster buck out in the open. Vulnerable is rarely a word used to describe the nature of a big whitetail buck, but the craze of the rut can help to tilt the scale in […]

Back To The Whitetail Basics – Podcast

Hacks Every Angler Should Know

Hacks Every Angler Should Know By Todd Reed Each and every angler that makes a cast wants to accomplish the same thing, to catch a fish.  Some anglers are quite serious about this task, while others fish to catch a fresh meal, or to unwind from the busy day.  No matter what reason you go […]

The Geography of Catfishing

The Geography of Catfishing By Brad Durick When you are sitting along a river bank or in your river boat have you ever just taken a moment to look around? Have you ever just sat and studied the banks? Looked at what is happening at every bend? If you have, you understand more about how […]

Avoiding Boating Mistakes

Avoiding Boating Mistakes By Steve Weisman I’ve been a boat owner for over 40 years and for the most part have enjoyed my boating experiences. At the same time, along the way I have witnessed and been part of mistakes that have certainly affected those experiences. Some have been laughable, some what I would call […]

5 Summer Key’s to Fall Success

5 Summer Key’s to Fall Success By Kevin Sturm Over the years my wife may have mentioned to me a time or two that hunting season seems to never end, and after some reflection I would have to say she is exactly right. I have learned over the years, there is a huge difference in […]

The Best Locations for Food Plots: Whitetails 365

The Best Locations for Food Plots: Whitetails 365 The first food plot I ever planted was a very small field of corn. I had no equipment; none! I didn’t even know how or where to purchase field corn seed. Fertilizer…no idea? If I recall correctly, I had no idea about herbicides either. But I had […]

Chasing Nighttime Fish

Chasing Nighttime Fish How’s this for fishing the first night of this past Walleye Opener on West Okoboji? Six walleyes 15-16 inches, another 12 walleyes in the slot from 17-22 inches, 5 walleyes over the slot with the largest at 25 inches. Oh, and a 22.5-inch/7-pound 4-ounce trophy smallmouth! Not a bad night’s work, I’d […]