Outdoors

This time of the year is always a great time for panfishing on the Iowa Great Lakes. I especially like to target the bluegills on West Okoboji. However, this past month has been a crazy one for my wife and me. You see, we decided to downsize from our house with a huge corner lot in Arthur Heights on the east side of East Okoboji. We loved our time there, but now in our 70s, the many flower gardens, the huge yard and size of the house had just gotten too much, so we decided to put it up for sale...

Fishing is so many things to so many people. Some folks go fishing to relax, some go fishing to enjoy being outside or being with a person that they like to be with, and other people go fishing to catch a specific species of fish. For most people though, fishing is a combination of all those things...

Pheasant hunters harvested nearly 300,000 roosters in Iowa during the 2020 season, which was the second highest harvest reported in more than a decade. In 2019, hunters harvested nearly 284,000 roosters. “The 2020 roadside survey showed our pheasant population was 18 percent higher than in 2019, so an increased harvest was expected,” said Todd Bogenschutz, upland wildlife biologist for the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR). ...

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is offering a program to teach skills needed to hunt, field dress and cook mourning doves to individuals who have little to no dove hunting experience. The August 14 workshop will feature a mourning dove knowledge and skills building session with instructors that will provide hands-on learning as well as a live-fire wingshooting clinic...

If you enjoy photographing Iowa state parks, the Iowa DNR invites you to enter your photos in the America’s State Parks 2021 Photo Contest, hosted by the National Association of State Park Directors. Photos will feature state parks from Iowa and other states, and could be included in calendars and other publications...

Lots of excitement and anticipation is occurring as the Okoboji Blue Water Festival, scheduled for Saturday, Aug. 7 at the Preservation Plaza green space in Arnolds Park, approaches. Billed as the premier clean water event in Iowa, the festival offers events and activities for both youngsters and adults...

There are lots of fishing opportunities across the Midwest in the summer. We have lakes, rivers, ponds, and reservoirs that are home to a wide variety of fish species. Wherever you live, you don’t need to drive far to go fishing. Rivers can provide some outstanding fishing action throughout the summer. ...

Through my 40-plus years of working in the fishing industry as a fishing writer, fishing guide, fishing instructor, tournament angler, seminar speaker, radio and television show host, I’ve had the good fortune to fish and hang out with some very memorable people. Some were well known, some not so much. Almost all were wonderful people. It’s my privilege to share some of those memories here...

Despite areas getting much needed rain, the Iowa Great Lakes are still below crest. Big Spirit Lake is down the most at 18.1 inches below the spillway. It has pretty much remained at about this level for the past week or so. This is 40 inches below the high only three years ago in 2018, when it was 21.8 inches above the spillway...

Progress, according to the dictionary, means moving forward — the process of improving or developing something over a period of time. Sometimes this progress is an easy one that people put their efforts behind. At the same time, sometimes, it is more controversial and requires bringing together people with different opinions on the topic. It is here that give and take, compromise, often takes place...

Many people consider the 4th of July to be the doorway to summer. I suggest that summer came a lot earlier this year than most years. It’s been hotter than usual according to the people who keep track of those things, and those same people predict that the warmer than ordinary weather will continue. Summer can provide fishing challenges, but summer also provides fishing opportunities. Following are some things that anglers can do to take advantage of those fishing opportunities...

Bottom bouncers are so incredibly effective in mid to late summer for walleye on most fisheries. Would dare argue that this program might be the easiest way to catch walleye once fish start relating to deep contours, main lake structure and primary points. ...

If Iowa pheasant hunters liked the hunting they had in 2020, they should like it again in 2021. Based on the annual pheasant nesting forecast, Iowa’s pheasant population should be similar to slightly higher than last year, said Todd Bogenschutz, upland wildlife biologist for the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR)...

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is looking for help with its annual wild turkey production survey.  During the months of July and August wild turkey sightings are recorded to estimate this year’s nesting rates and nest success.  Participation is easy – just note the date and county in which the turkey was seen, if it was an adult female or adult male – males have beards on their breast – and if and how many poults (baby turkeys) were present. ...

As we move into the end of June, we’re only a few days away from the Fourth of July. It is certain to be a festive atmosphere this year. There will certainly be Fourth of July ceremonies to remember our veterans who have served to protect the freedoms we will be observing on this special holiday...

I’ve had conversations recently with people who like to fish but are a bit or a lot frustrated and disappointed. Some of these are anglers who, in years past, took annual fishing trips to Canada. Due to the border closure, they are unable to go now and they don’t know when they’ll be able to go again...

This past Sunday was Father’s Day, a very important day for so many of us. Both my father and father-in-law have passed away, but their memories remain vivid in my mind. Not a day goes by that I don’t think of something they did or said. Both were role models and mentors for me...

Summer is here, and with summer comes some very good fishing opportunities. The spawn is over, so the fish, regardless of specie, are doing one thing: They're looking for something to eat. If you can put a bait in front of a fish in a way that looks appealing, they'll probably eat it...

Troy Anderson’s phone rang just as he was walking the most recent acquisition to North Bear Creek Wildlife Area. The caller from Florida wanted to know about the deer population on North Bear and if he should put in for a tag in that nonresident hunting zone or should look e...

I had hoped after the great rain we had prior to Memorial Day that maybe we were moving out of our nearly year-long drought. Then we hit a 10-day stretch of 90-degree weather, along with some wind and no rainfall. Ouch! You could just see the topsoil on the fields going dry and our lakes dropping in water level...

Anglers can encounter unusual fishing conditions whenever they go fishing. These unusual conditions often make it hard to get the fish to bite. These conditions happen every year and often at predictable times, so in reality, they really aren’t that unusual. ...

The calls have been coming in to field offices and conservation officers for the past few weeks and will only increase as the first few weeks of June marks the peak of the deer fawning season. Callers report finding an “abandoned” fawn in an unusual place, like a flowerbed or small patch of cover. Rest assured this is normal deer behavior...

Girls and boys (ages 5-13) are invited to attend the Iowa Great Lakes Fishing Club (IGLFC) free Kids’ Fishing Clinic at Stolleys Pond from 8-10 a.m. Saturday, June 12. Registration is set for 7:30 a.m. Located just southeast of the airport in Spencer, Stolleys offers kids great shore fishing opportunities. Donuts and juice will be provided...

We’ve entered the summer season. Fishing can be good, or it can be tough. If it’s tough though, it generally doesn’t need to be. There are some things we can do to catch more fish right now. Following are some of those things. Many of us have a tendency to fish memories. ...

Weed walleye patterns are solid on so many fisheries. In fact, I would dare argue that there are not many natural lakes where there are not a large population of walleyes that are using weeds. Some of the most consistent summer patterns for walleye take place around weeds; yet many walleye anglers avoid the weeds...

Editor’s Note: Ingrid Gronstal, Water Program Director with the Iowa Environmental Council, and David Thoreson, professional photographer, world renowned explorer and environmentalist, both have a great passion and love for the Iowa Great Lakes. They have co-written this article “What is the Value of Water?”...

Recent rains are what many of us call a “million-dollar rain!” It was great for the crops, our lawns and our lakes. Lake levels did come up a little. Right now, Big Spirit is at 11.3 inches below the spillway. However, that is almost 2 inches higher than it was several days ago. Water temperature was pushing 70 degrees last Thursday, but with cooler temperatures and rain, it dropped to the lower 60s by Thursday afternoon...

When anglers go fishing, they want to catch a fish. In fact, most anglers want to catch lots of fish. While you’re probably not going to always catch lots of fish, there are some things that people who fish can do to increase their odds of getting bit. Finding the biters is a big part of catching fish...

I was under the impression more Okoboji residents knew about the little island near Gingles Point on East Okoboji Lake. After all, it is the only island we have in the Iowa Great Lakes. Surprisingly, even some longtime residents were unaware this little island existed. As the restoration project to save the island gained momentum, I kept getting the same question over and over, “There’s an island in Okoboji?”...

The Iowa Tourism Office and the Iowa Department of Natural Resources recently announced updates to the popular Iowa State Park Passport to give consumers a fun and engaging way to track their visits to state parks. The launch follows 2020’s successful centennial anniversary, with nearly 30,000 check-ins at parks across the state...