Iowa guys

[jamesmc]

A buddy and I are looking into going to Iowa next year for a combo hunt duck goose and pheasant. I was wondering what area should we look into and what time of year we should go. I also need to know what hotels go for a night. I don't know that we are going to go with a guide or not. I think we are going to try public land. We are taking my 16 foot boat and our 2 layout boats and gonna start driving. Any help you could give us would be great. Thanks in advance.

James

[Jeff Gudenkauf]

Without hesitating I'd say go NW for 2 reasons:

1)That's the only place in the state with any pheasants left
2)There's A LOT of "freelancing" opportunities up there

You probably won't need the big boat for the most part, but it certainly wouldn't hurt to have it along in case you did. Many of the areas up there are smaller, walk-in type areas, but there are larger wetlands.

As far as time of year, Thanksgiving has always seemed to be about prime time though in the past several years we never saw the heart of the migration while the season was open.

[jamesmc]

Thanks Gude. How much would an out of state license cost? Do they offer it in like a 5 day? Do you know what kind of rates you can get at hotels in that area? Also Does the area hold good numbers of pheasant. My buddy is bringing his dog along as well.

[Nick James]

Iowa dosent offer any short term liscenses to my knowledge. You will have to buy an out of state liscense that would be good for the whole year. All of your info can be found at www.iowadnr.com


Good luck

[jamesmc]

Thanks Nick.

[Jeff Gudenkauf]

When its all said and done the Iowa license is going to set you back about $90.

As far as hotels in the area, NW Iowa is full of smaller towns which is where I'd look to shack up in between hunts. I think they'll have more reasonable rates not to mention you'll be closer to the areas you want to hunt.

NW Iowa currently has the healthiest pheasant population, especially close to the MN/SD border. It is also the only portion of the state that's still considered by many to be the southern tip of the PPR, so you'll see a lot more potholes, wetlands etc than any other part of the state.

That being said, if you're wanting to hunt a lot of bigger water, this isn't going to be the part of the state to look at.

[Ty515]

I would suggest the spencer area. There are alot or pot holes both walk in and boatable waters in that area, which is NW Iowa. I would come late, Mid November to late November. You may catch some snow by then but both ducks and geese should be going good by that time up there. I would suggest a sportsmans atlas which has ALL the information from hotels,all the public ground marked in red for each county, and all other pertinate info needed. They go for like $20 and you can buy them direct on-line from the mfg. Just do a google search for Sportsmans atlas Iowa and it should come right up. Pheasents are thick in some areas up that way and if you are willing to get off the beaten path in some of the public areas you should do really well. During the week up that way you may not see another hunter.

Any other questions send them our way.

Chris Seiler
Lynch Mob Field Staff

[jamesmc]

Great Info.....Thanks Ty!!

[Tad Hartwig]

I would have to agree with the other guys. Northwest Iowa has great opportunities for waterfowl and pheasant hunting. There is quite a bit of hunting pressure earlier in the year but later in November it does seem to die off a bit. Most of the farmers in that region that I've talked to seem to be quite receptive of hunters. Good luck!

[ByronBritton]

I would also look very strongly at the area along the Mississippi River from Princeton down to Burlington. There are some great place to hunt for both. As for the ducks/geese you have got Princeton Marsh, Lake Odessa and numerous other small public areas as well as the Mississippi River. And there are PLENTY of ditch chickens around anywhere inbetween. Shoot me a PM if you need more help. I lived and hunted that area for over 25 years and can put you in the right places.

[jamesmc]

Thanks alot guys. I am looking forward to gettin out there.