# Iowa Tips?



## TheOtherJeff (Oct 7, 2021)

I really appreciate all of the help everyone gave me last season, my first. My freezer may still be empty, but I had a great time and that's good enough for me. 

I just got a job in northeast Iowa, and will be moving out there next month. Anyone have any tips on upland game or deer out there? I'm particularly interested in any public lands that would be promising (not honey hole-specifics, of course, just enough to narrow down the options before I start scouting).

Thanks,
Jeff


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## BigT (Mar 11, 2011)

I am not familiar with all that country though I travel through there a few times a year. If I had to guess, you will see a lot of private lands with very little public access. I know there's a number of states that will pay landowners for public to access. If I were you, I would look into hunting leases on private ground that you can pay a yearly fee to have access to hunting. Good luck in your move.


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## Critter (Mar 20, 2010)

Too bad you didn't manage to bag something for your freezer and good luck on your new job.

I hunted Iowa once with a friend so I'm not much help except to let you know that Iowa is close to 100% private, not totally private but close. 
Their seasons consist of archery, shotgun, and muzzle loader if I remember correctly. They may have a straight wall rifle cartridge hunt also. But no high powered rifle hunt

Sent from my SM-J737V using Tapatalk


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## middlefork (Nov 2, 2008)

My only suggestion is to go on something like Bowsite.com and search for Iowa. Looks pretty competitive to me.


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## colorcountrygunner (Oct 6, 2009)

If you can somehow gain access to some private or find suitable public land you will be in business. Iowa is a pheasant and big whitetail mecca!


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## Deacon92 (Jun 6, 2017)

"The Flush" on youtube talks about some IHAP properties to which they hunt.

Most people I've encountered in the mid west care way more about deer than pheasants.

We have had luck asking for permission for pheasants after the deer season ends, or the property owner harvests their deer.





__





Habitat & Access Program






www.iowadnr.gov





Or....you are potentially a few hours drive to South Dakota. 

Hunting Areas 

IHAP-29,000 public accessable acres
CREP and associated properties- 5 million acres.

Whether you hunt less birds in IOWA and walk 3 hours and maybe see a bird, or drive 3-5 hours and have way more access, and potentially way more birds....

You're call.


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## caddis8 (Sep 10, 2007)

TheOtherJeff said:


> I really appreciate all of the help everyone gave me last season, my first. My freezer may still be empty, but I had a great time and that's good enough for me.
> 
> I just got a job in northeast Iowa, and will be moving out there next month. Anyone have any tips on upland game or deer out there? I'm particularly interested in any public lands that would be promising (not honey hole-specifics, of course, just enough to narrow down the options before I start scouting).
> 
> ...


Where in northeast Iowa? There's some really cool country through there and Iowa has some absolutely giant whitetail bucks. It's got good upland hunting as well. From what I understand, the pheasant hunting is better further west, but that's just what I have gathered on some forums that I'm on. 

What's the new job?


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## TheOtherJeff (Oct 7, 2021)

Thanks for the tips and good wishes, everyone.



Critter said:


> Too bad you didn't manage to bag something for your freezer and good luck on your new job.
> Their seasons consist of archery, shotgun, and muzzle loader if I remember correctly. They may have a straight wall rifle cartridge hunt also. But no high powered rifle hunt


I'm happy to call it a successful first season. I had fun, I'm sure learned a lot more bumbling around on my own than I would have learned being hand held by a guide, and did that even though I was held back by health issues that I think are now resolved. For a guy who grew up in LA, that's a darn fine start.

Iowa now allows rifles of at least .35 caliber, which I guess for a deer effectively means either a large handgun cartridge or a cartridge developed for black powder like .45-70. That sounds like an excuse to get the Henry .44 mag that I've had my eye on for a while. (This is how "a couple of guns for hunting" becomes the armory in the John Wick movies, isn't it?)



Deacon92 said:


> We have had luck asking for permission for pheasants after the deer season ends, or the property owner harvests their deer.


That's good to know. I'll be pretty much surrounded by farmland, so I might try developing some contacts that way. Now that you mention that approach, I think there is supposed to be a good outfitter in town that I could use to make some of those kinds of connections, especially if I can get somewhere asking about after deer season. I also have an uncle in North Dakota, so a South Dakota pheasant hunt might be a good option.



caddis8 said:


> Where in northeast Iowa? There's some really cool country through there and Iowa has some absolutely giant whitetail bucks. It's got good upland hunting as well. From what I understand, the pheasant hunting is better further west, but that's just what I have gathered on some forums that I'm on.
> What's the new job?


I'll be taking over as the Director of Institutional Research and Effectiveness (i.e., soulless bean counting) at Wartburg College in Waverly, just north of Waterloo. It will be a lovely change of pace from the population explosion on the Wasatch Front (and lately, Back!), a small town on the Cedar River surrounded by really beautiful farm country. I am definitely excited about the whitetail possibilities if I can find a place to hunt.


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## colorcountrygunner (Oct 6, 2009)

TheOtherJeff said:


> Thanks for the tips and good wishes, everyone.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


You're actually starting to make me pretty jealous.


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## TheOtherJeff (Oct 7, 2021)

colorcountrygunner said:


> You're actually starting to make me pretty jealous.


Lest you get too jealous, last night's low was -18, and I've seen three wind chill warnings that say not to go out with any exposed skin.


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## colorcountrygunner (Oct 6, 2009)

TheOtherJeff said:


> Lest you get too jealous, last night's low was -18, and I've seen three wind chill warnings that say not to go out with any exposed skin.


I'll take that over having to stay inside because the air is hazardous to breathe.


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## middlefork (Nov 2, 2008)

colorcountrygunner said:


> I'll take that over having to stay inside because the air is hazardous to breathe.


get your N95 wimp!


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## colorcountrygunner (Oct 6, 2009)

middlefork said:


> get your N95 wimp!


In this day and age I guess I should just get used to wearing a GD effin mask everywhere I go for the rest of my life 😒


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## middlefork (Nov 2, 2008)

Real men only live in Alaska, the mid west or south. There could be no hunting if those southern boys didn't tell us how to get it done. And White tail hunters didn't tell us that they were the equinox of big game.

Those guys in Alaska just have brain freeze.


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