Iowans are used to dealing with extreme weather. We take it in stride. But you have to admit that at 19-degrees, winds gusting to 26 mph, and several inches of bright snow on the ground, that the Opening Day of the 2018 Iowa turkey season was a bit out of the ordinary. We really hated to
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  Early April is not only a good time to put the finishing touches on spring turkey scouting; it’s also a great time to hone your calling skills.  Nothing sounds more like a hen turkey than, well, a hen turkey.  Spring hens will never be more vocal than they are right now.  If a hunter really
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    The redhead is one of my favorite ducks. I know. I say that about a lot of ducks. But when it comes to redheads; I really mean it. All things considered, there’s really nothing not to like about these incredible heavy bodied, broad breasted, monster-webbed, red headed deep divers. They’re big. They’re beautiful. And they readily
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When Pursuing the World’s Ficklest Fowl, You Just Never Know What’s Going to Happen The phone didn’t ring until late afternoon. It was my friend, Curt Stille calling with the latest, most up to date snow goose report. Surrounded by a spread of white wind socks, Curt was currently perched atop a prominent North Iowa hillside
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 WINTER STORM UMA MARCH 23 & 24, 2018     Promises. Promises. Promises. After a full season of hyping those great big winter snow storms that never ever materialized, the Weather Channel finally got it right. Dubbed by the channel as Winter Storm Uma, the massive system that plowed across parts of Iowa Friday night was a real winter
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Sometimes the Simplest Methods are the Best “Can I get you anything?” the guy behind the Fareway meat counter asked. Stopping my cart, I replied, “No thanks,” and then mentioned that we were having fresh snow goose for supper. “Hmmm; snow goose,” he mused. “Don’t they melt when you put ‘em in the oven?” “Good one,” I said.
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We’ve all heard how one rotten apple can spoil the whole barrel. That’s kind of the way it is with sparrows. Imported from Great Britain during the 1800s, the house sparrow [also called English sparrow] took America by storm. Today, it has become one of our most familiar – and despised – bird species. Universally
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  Iowa is well known for its late season, often-spectacular March snowstorms. This year proved no exception when, on March 5th and 6th, anywhere from four to seven inches of heavy, wet snow descended on the state’s northern counties. Although the weather event didn’t exactly fit the description of an old-fashioned prairie blizzard, the snowfall was enough
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  Widespread and abundant, cottontail rabbits are an important component of Iowa’s natural food chain. I’m an active member of that chain. I love finding, chasing, and consuming rabbits. White, light and extremely nutritious, rabbit is one of my favorite entrees. There are lots of ways to pursue cottontails. I’ve hunted them with bow and arrow,
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    The swift and powerful group of raptors collectively known as goshawks reside in forested habitats across much of the planet. The northern goshawk is the subspecies nesting in northern North America. Large and aggressive, northern goshawks are fast enough to catch ruffed grouse and strong enough to easily subdue snowshoe hare.   Although certainly impressive, northern ‘gos
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