Outdoors

As I prepared to attend this year’s Prairie Lakes Conference, I looked at the array of topics. There were so many that I had to pick and choose. One title caught my interest: “History of Carp Management.” Ben Wallace, DNR fish management biologist, who manages a 12-county district in northwest Iowa, was the presenter...

DES MOINES — A unique relationship between Iowa bowhunters and the Iowa Department of Natural Resources Wildlife Research Section is entering its fourteenth year of partnering to collect observation data on wildlife they see while sitting in their tree stand...

I’m very fortunate to have been able to fish in a lot of different places during the past several decades. I’ve got lots of memories of outstanding fishing trips with wonderful people. Many of those memorable fishing trips occurred in the autumn. The fall months are a great time to be on the water for a number of reasons. Across the Midwest, fall fishing is the best season of the year to be on the water in the minds of many anglers. Following are some fall fishing memories of mine...

The weekend of Oct. 27-28 features one of the most time-honored hunting openers in Iowa: the pheasant opener. Lots of preparation goes into preparing for this opener. Often times, hunters return home to meet with friends and family members. It almost becomes a homecoming of sorts. So, what can hunters look forward to this fall?...

DES MOINES — Wait, armadillos in Iowa? Yes, you may get a glimpse of one of these unique critters in our state from time to time. If you do, send a report to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, so they can document their location in the state. In the meantime, did you know these interesting facts?...

DES MOINES — Migration season is always a birder’s paradise as species that aren’t usually found in Iowa can be seen passing through. August through October are typically peak migration months. Warblers are one such group of birds that are fun to watch. During fall migration many warblers have their winter coats instead of their bright breeding plumage which can make it an extra challenge to identify the different species...

DES MOINES — Fall is often one of the best times in Iowa, with warm days and cool nights, low humidity, very few insects and the brilliant autumn colors of our trees. Every year, thousands of Iowans and visitors flock to the countryside to view nature's colorful display of red, orange, yellow and purple leaves...

Fishing after the sun goes down is a foreign concept to a lot of anglers, and there’s good reason for that. An angler certainly can’t see as well at night as they can during the day, so simple tasks like tying on a new lure gets a little more complicated...

Fall is a great time to catch fish with family and friends. The air is cool, the views are picturesque, lakes are less crowded and the fish are easy to catch. “Fantastic fishing opportunities await both new and expert anglers,” said Joe Larscheid, chief of the Iowa Department of Natural Resources Fisheries Bureau. “Get out and enjoy them.”...

On Sept. 18, Secretary of the Interior Ryan K. Zinke announced a $1.3 million distribution from the Land and Water Conservation Fund to Iowa for state-identified outdoor recreation and conservation projects. This is part of a $100 million distribution from the LWCF to all 50 states, the Territories, and the District of Columbia. ...

In walleye country, it’s apparent that autumn is not far away. The days are still warm, but not as warm as they were two weeks ago, and, most noticeably, the nights are cooling down. Autumn means different things to different people, but for walleye chasers, it’s maybe our favorite time of the year to go fishing. ...

It just seems to happen almost overnight. One day the fields are still green and suddenly within a day, they begin to turn and by the end of the week they have turned mostly brown. At the same time, the gardens suddenly become full of ripe squash and pumpkins, another sign that the growing season is done and fall is knocking at the door...

DES MOINES — The Iowa River, from the Coralville Dam to Hills, was the focus of this year’s annual research project to inventory and map the distribution of Iowa’s mussels, often called clams. More than 50 biologists, students, county naturalists and volunteers collected 22 species of freshwater mussels in the Iowa River during the three-day event held each August since 2005...

The Dickinson County Nature Center has a brand new live animal ambassador. Bindi — named for the late Steve Irwin’s daughter — established residence at the nature center in Okoboji in mid-August, and people have taken quite the liking to the newest member of our environmental family...

Muskie anglers get ready! The Upper Great Plains Chapter 29 of Muskies Inc., is hosting the 30th annual IDSO Muskie Fest on Saturday, Sept. 29. Cost to enter is $25. Each participant is responsible for submitting a completed registration form and completed release of liability waiver form in the mail by Friday, Sept. 28 to:...

A good number of very successful anglers commit a lot of their fall fishing time to rivers, and for good reason. Most rivers are home to a wide variety of fish species. Those different species of fish will gather in the fall and they'll be hungry. If you can find the fish in the fall, you can probably catch them. Following are some ideas for catching fish from rivers in the fall...

Last weekend I had the chance to take part in the 30th annual Pocahontas Iowa Great Lakes Invitational Tournament with two of my former teaching buddies from Estherville, Bill Elling and John Amick. It is a three-person team tournament, and one of the rules is you have to have one member of the team be from or have been from Pocahontas. ...

DES MOINES — Whether you call them trash bandits or just ‘coons, most everyone in Iowa has met this prominent Midwest mammal. While they may have a rather unfavorable reputation in urban environments for ransacking trash cans, they’re one of the best urban-adapted animals in existence today and fill a necessary ecological niche around the world. See how well you know your local masked bandit with the trivia below!...

DES MOINES — The campaign to reduce and eliminate tree stand accidents by raising awareness of this issue and providing education about safe tree stand hunting best practices appears to be getting positive results. Nationally, the estimated number of falls from tree stands requiring emergency room visits decreased by 28 percent in 2017...

BOONE — Iowa’s pheasant hunters can expect to find more birds this fall when they head to the fields, predict state wildlife experts. That forecast is based on the recently completed statewide population survey of pheasants, quail, partridge, cottontail rabbits and jackrabbits...

In-line planer boards are a very effective tool for catching walleyes and trout. In recent years some anglers have been employing boards to catch a variety of other species of fish. On a recent trip to Big Stone Lake on the Minnesota/South Dakota border we caught a bunch of perch in a short period of time, and planer boards were instrumental in our ability to do so. Here’s how we did it...

Saturday, Aug. 12, was quite a celebration here in northwest Iowa as the third annual Okoboji Blue Water Festival took place at the Green Space in Arnolds Park, One of the big attractions was the fishing seminar. At high noon under the shade of the big tent, over 70 eager anglers took their seats to hear the words of Iowa native and highly acclaimed tournament angler Tommy Skarlis...

Every year, it seems like when Labor Day weekend hits, things really begin to ramp up, and our chances to enjoy our outdoor activities become really complicated! Four hunting seasons started this past weekend alone, let alone all of the other openers that will come over the next month or two. Water temperatures are beginning to drop, which should provide a jump-start for fall fishing. Add in work and the fact that school has started with all of its activities, and it becomes a really full slate!...

I have often heard not to fish memories. When I look back however over my own fishing career, some of my greatest fishing memories involved trolling deep diving crankbaits over deep water. So many situations from midsummer on where traditional live bait locations and tactics just got tougher. Situations where big fish were difficult to find until we put deep diving crank baits behind the boat and focused on deep contours or in some cases, suspended fish...

Labor Day 2018 has come and gone. When it comes to people who like to go fishing, for many of them, there are two switches that could get flipped at this time of the year. For some anglers, Labor Day flips that switch that says fishing season is over...

DES MOINES — Though they be but little, they are fierce! The least weasel (Mustela nivalis) is the smallest species of true carnivore, coming from the order Carnivora. They are found across North America, Europe and Asia, primarily in grasslands, pastures, and shrubby areas...

PERCIVAL — Pheasants Forever and a coalition of partners recently announced a new project in southwest Iowa to stimulate outdoor tourism, rural economies and ag production. The initiative — Southwest Iowa Communities for Pheasants and Farming — focuses on development of wildlife habitat and public access on private lands to enhance outdoor recreation opportunities while increasing agricultural profitability in the region...

Recently Mike Frisch and I got together for an afternoon of fishing. Our plan was to chase largemouth bass on a lake that is very similar to lots of other lakes across the Midwest. What Mike and I relearned that afternoon always helps us catch more fish at any time of the year...

Although there were many highlights at the recent Okoboji Blue Water Festival, one of the most anticipated events was the water quality/Natural Resources protection issues panel discussion. With Bill Maas, president of the East Okoboji Lake Improvement Corporation, and John Lundell, chairman of the Clear Creek Watershed Management Association and mayor of Coralville, acting as co-moderators, the panelists spent the better part of two hours in a spirited give and take over key environmental issues.. ...