Northeast Iowa - Bowhunting

[Forestryguy]

There has definitely been an up tick in the amount of people hunting Public in the NE. It has been published in to many magazines and online.

 

[6Popes1Booner]

Well good luck........I used to have a lot of ground up there, but eventually the places I hunted all got sold or relatives of the farmers got into bow hunting etc. My son and I spent many week ends trying to get permission and actually asked 60 land owners to bow hunt.(this was 5 yrs a go) We ended up with 0 deer spots and 2 turkey spots. State land was a joke. Put a stand up only to go back and hunt it and have a guy put a stand up 20 yds from mine! Ended up getting on private behind our cabin (6 acres). So been tough...........Drove around lansing public 11-1 and counted 17 trucks that night out hunting. So hope you have better luck than we have. By the way I've been going up there for 40 yrs as we hunt and fish up there often.

 

[Forestryguy]

Well good luck........I used to have a lot of ground up there, but eventually the places I hunted all got sold or relatives of the farmers got into bow hunting etc. My son and I spent many week ends trying to get permission and actually asked 60 land owners to bow hunt.(this was 5 yrs a go) We ended up with 0 deer spots and 2 turkey spots. State land was a joke. Put a stand up only to go back and hunt it and have a guy put a stand up 20 yds from mine! Ended up getting on private behind our cabin (6 acres). So been tough...........Drove around lansing public 11-1 and counted 17 trucks that night out hunting. So hope you have better luck than we have. By the way I've been going up there for 40 yrs as we hunt and fish up there often.

I hear you on the number of people out, especially during the rut. If the state would enact IWILL and put more money toward acquiring more land there could be more public access. Hunting public ground is now truly more about getting away from other hunters.