Washburn’s Outdoor Journal

Photography courtesy of Lowell Washburn, all rights reserved.I’m not one of those people who is big on naming wildlife.  But in the case of Bobtail, it was hard to resist. Bobtail is a white-tailed doe that, at some point in […]

Photography courtesy of Lowell Washburn, all rights reserved.For Iowa birding enthusiasts, the month of May is a time like no other — the absolute high-water mark of the annual outdoor calendar.  The reason is simple.  After spending the winter months

Photography courtesy of Lowell Washburn, all rights reserved.The final segment of Iowa’s four-part spring turkey season is currently underway.  The season ends May 15. As is the case with most outdoor activities, turkey hunting success depends largely on local weather

Photography courtesy of Lowell Washburn, all rights reserved.For Iowa mushroom hunters, it’s been a cold, dark, and windy spring.  At a time when succulent morels should begin emerging in numbers, nighttime temps hover near or below freezing on an all

Photography courtesy of Lowell Washburn, all rights reserved.The white-hot stars of a spring night were rapidly fading into nothingness.  Meanwhile, the eastern horizon was being set ablaze by strengthening hues of the impending sunrise.  A new day was beginning at

Photography courtesy of Lowell Washburn, all rights reserved.To paraphrase former U.S. President, Ronald Reagan, “Here we go again.” A new wave of highly pathogenic avian influenza [HPAI] is currently sweeping across North America.  Similar to the outbreak which occurred during

Photography courtesy of Lowell Washburn, all rights reserved.Although Iowa’s spring turkey seasons are still a few weeks away, local gobblers are already strutting their stuff.  By the sounds of it, this morning would be no exception.  In spite of chilly

Photography courtesy of Lowell Washburn, all rights reserved.For Iowa outdoor enthusiasts, the sighting of a seldom seen bird is a rare treat.  And when it comes to birding in the Tall Corn State, the sightings don’t get much rarer than

Photography courtesy of Lowell Washburn, all rights reserved.Iowa bucks are suddenly losing their heads — or at least the showiest parts of them. By the time mid-February rolls around, North Iowa’s white-tailed bucks will have begun dropping their antlers.  For

Photography courtesy of Lowell Washburn, all rights reserved.On February 23, 1994, United States Congressman, John Porter [R-Il] officially proclaimed February as National Bird Feeding Month.  Reading his proposal into the Congressional Record, Porter noted that February is the most difficult