Iowa Sportsman
Early Season Whitetail Scenarios: What Would You Do?
Early Season Whitetail Scenarios: What Would You Do? Situation #1: The Curveball – A group of bucks changes their trail routine just as the season opens. Early season scouting has shown a group of three bucks that bed on a hillside above a clover food plot. Every evening, like clockwork they filter down through a […]
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Summer Prep For Fall Hunting: Whitetails 365
Summer Prep For Fall Hunting: Whitetails 365 As a year-round deer hunter, I don’t consider the legal season opener as the start of my hunting season. In fact, there is no start for many whitetail hunters like myself who have never stopped. On the last day of the legal season to hunt, I am already […]
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Hammock Camping in the Hawkeye State: Hanging Out in Iowa
Hammock Camping in the Hawkeye State: Hanging Out in Iowa It doesn’t seem to matter where we camp, our hammock setup always seems to be the talk of the campground. If we had a nickel for every person that stops by and asks to check out the hammocks that Laura and I camp in, we’d […]
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What to do When Skunks Spray
What to do When Skunks Spray Time seemed to stand still in the weeks leading up to our South Dakota pheasant hunting trip last fall. At last, the morning finally came! With trucks loaded with gear, we set out on the 6-hour drive to our pheasant mecca, anticipation building by the mile to get our […]
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Mature Velvet Bucks and Cameras
Mature Velvet Bucks and Cameras One of the most exciting times in my opinion to be a whitetail hunter is the end of July and August. All the sweat equity is almost done minus fall brassica plots and it’s now time to take inventory of what bucks are still around and what bucks are calling […]
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10 Disasters to Avoid with your Gundog
10 Disasters to Avoid with your Gundog I remember as a kid thumbing through an outdoor magazine and noticing a striking advertisement- the product being advertised was evidently irrelevant to the function of my long term memory, but the message must have been worthy. In bold white lettering above a picture of a pointer blasting […]
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Bluegills for Young and Old
Bluegills for Young and Old Let’s face it, I am a bluegill fishing fanatic. And why not? They are plentiful, they put up a great fight and they are great table fare. Oh, and one more thing, they are great fish to get a youngster hooked on fishing. I will also say this: you still […]
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The 5 Key Fundamentals to Shooting a Rifle
The 5 Key Fundamentals to Shooting a Rifle If it is your first time firing a rifle or your one-millionth, good rifle marksmanship is accomplished only through having a good foundation of the basic fundamentals. Even an experienced shooter will never improve if he or she changes a fundamental each and every time they pull […]
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Catching Musky and Pike in Iowa
Catching Musky and Pike in Iowa Muskies (aka the musky or muskellunge, plus many other spellings and titles) are the largest of the pike family. Usually, they prefer clear water lakes and rivers and are most actively feeding in water temperatures 55° to 70° Fahrenheit. They will eat any fish they can catch and prefer […]
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Great Catfishing Destinations in Iowa
Great Catfishing Destinations in Iowa We are already well into the open water season and the catfishing is in full swing. As anglers we always want more and bigger fish. Catfish anglers are no exception. If you are willing to do some driving and some walking if you are a shore angler there are some […]
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