Trout Fishing

These are a few of my favorite streams…..

These are a few of my favorite streams….. By Rod Woten While they’re not raindrops on roses or whiskers on kittens, there are definitely a few of Iowa’s fabled coldwater spring streams that have become my favorites for chasing angry brown trout, elusive brook trout or flashy rainbow trout. Some of them are my favorite […]

Trout Stay-cation

Trout Stay-cation By Rod Woten Stay-cations are all the rage now. Taking a vacation without investing lots of time and money getting to the destination just makes a lot of sense. After all, the less time you spend traveling to your destination, the more time you can actually spend enjoying your destination. So what if […]

A Professor of Trout

A Professor of Trout By Eric L. Kilburg By late January the accumulation of snow on the park road at Backbone State Park was, without a doubt, impassible by car, even for a couple adventurous college boys (i.e. the road gate was locked closed). Temperatures in past days depressed our hopes of finding a pool […]

Knots for Fly Anglers

Knots for Fly Anglers By Rod Woten Anglers love their knots. I think the only other group that displays more affinity towards knots would be The Boy Scouts. Fortunately, for most recreational freshwater anglers, a couple good knots are really all you need to know. That being said, almost everyone has their favorite method for […]

Troutin’ About in Iowa

Troutin’ About in Iowa Use the word “trout” and “Iowa” in the same sentence and you’ll definitely get some funny looks. Trout are rarely the first fish that comes to mind when most think of Iowa. Fish more typically thought of, as “Iowa fish” are bluegills, catfish, largemouth bass, white bass and crappies. I never […]

Best of Both Worlds

When Van Halen released their 1986 hit song “Best of Both Worlds”, I highly doubt they had fly fishing in mind. That’s unfortunate because my favorite fly fishing rig, the “hopper-dropper”, gives me exactly what they’re talking about in their song. It allows me to catch Northeast Iowa trout in the two worlds that their […]