Iowa Sportsman

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Best Tackle for Catching More Walleye

Best Tackle for Catching More Walleye As spring approaches, Iowa fishermen pack away ice fishing tackle and prepare for spring fishing and walleye spawning. As water temperatures warm, walleye feed heavily to prepare for the spawn. During this time walleye hardly eat at all and then after their spawning period they are ready to replenish […]

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3 Spring Mushrooms to Forage in Iowa

3 Spring Mushrooms to Forage in Iowa When spring rolls around and temperatures start increasing, Iowa foragers become excited knowing that soon spring mushrooms will be popping up in our Iowa timbers. Here are a few you may expect to see: Morels One of the first mushrooms to begin growing in Iowa are morel mushrooms. […]

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The Lone Star Tick and Alpha-Gal

The Lone Star Tick and Alpha-Gal You may think this is a story involving two characters in heroic quests in the outdoors.  I can assure you, there is nothing fun about this duo. Anyone that spends very much time outside understands what it is to have a tick bite.  In Iowa, we usually deal with […]

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Walleye regulations on Iowa Great Lakes

Walleye regulations on Iowa Great Lakes The brood stock lakes of northwest Iowa offer anglers excellent walleye fishing opportunities. In addition, Big Spirit Lake, East Okoboji, West Okoboji and Storm Lake are home to the female walleyes that give up their eggs each year so Iowa’s hatcheries can raise the millions of walleye fry and […]

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Henry’s First Turkey Hunt. Part II

Henry’s First Turkey Hunt. Part II When the April 7th youth season opened, we were ready. We hunted hard that first weekend, getting up early and staying out late, but the birds nor weather cooperated. I was impressed by Henry’s patience and stick-to-itiveness. He was a real trooper, especially on Sunday. Sunday started in the […]

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Mistakes that Spook Coyotes

Preventing the Mistakes That Spook Coyotes

When It All Goes Wrong: Preventing the Mistakes That Spook Coyotes It was all going perfectly to the plan. My friend and fellow Iowa Sportsman Magazine writer Nick Johnson had traveled down to film me calling coyotes for an episode of Iowa Sportsman Television a few years ago and his camera was rolling on the […]

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Iowa walleye and musky fishing

Improving Walleye and Musky Fishing in Iowa

Improving Walleye and Musky Fishing in Iowa: What Anglers Need to Know How is Iowa improving walleye and musky fishing? Iowa is improving walleye and musky fishing through: Strategic stocking programs in lakes and rivers Fish barriers to reduce escapement Tagging and tracking studies (PIT tags and telemetry) Habitat and population monitoring Public participation in […]

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The Pontier Buck

The Pontier Buck

The Pontier Buck November 5th, 2016 is a day I’ll never forget. It all started in July 2016 when I first laid eyes on the deer that would forever leave an imprint on my mind. At this time of the year, I had been putting out trail cameras to figure what bucks had made it […]

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ice fishing speed fishing technique

Ice Fishing Strategy for Active Fish

The Need for Speed: Ice Fishing Strategy for Active Fish Sometimes Mike and I call it our hurry-up offense. It’s that mode we go into when time is short during a tournament and we need a few more kicker fish…or we need to finish out our limit. Also, it’s a technique that Mike Riley, my […]

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Tips for Trapping Coyotes

Through the Eyes of A Coyotes

Through the Eyes of a Coyotes “Where did he go?” How many times have I wondered that about a coyote that has seemingly just disappeared from the face of the earth? I swear, nothing in the world has the ability to disappear into thin air better than a coyote. Maybe that’s why Native Americans used […]

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