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Better understand your hunting optics to get better performance
For nearly 1,000 years, we’ve worked to improve our vision.
Italian monks made eyeglasses by the 13th century. In the 1600s, seafarers gazed at distant shores through spyglasses. The first telescope was patented in 1608. Many credit Benjamin Franklin with inventing bifocals. Even thermal technology has roots going back more than a century.
Today, anyone else who wants to see the wild world better has an array of options, from eyeglasses to optics that seem like something from science fiction.

Silent entry and close encounters: Kayak tactics to help you kill more deer
Winds were gusting to over 40 mph on the afternoon of Nov. 2 last year

Feds finalize habitat protections for endangered rusty patched bumble bee
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is designating approximately 1.5 million acres of occupied critical

Better understand your hunting optics to get better performance
For nearly 1,000 years, we’ve worked to improve our vision.
Italian monks made eyeglasses by the 13th century. In the 1600s, seafarers gazed at
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IA Fishing News
Fishing Reports
Iowa’s statewide fishing report on June 11, 2026
Iowa’s statewide fishing report on June 4, 2026
Iowa’s statewide fishing report on May 28, 2026
Iowa’s statewide fishing report on May 21, 2026
Lake Profiles
Ada Hayden Heritage Park Lake a trout opportunity in Iowa’s Story County
Bluebill in Iowa’s Cerro Gordo County is small body of water with a few options for anglers
Bass, crappie, bluegills biting on Iowa’s Lake Hendricks in Howard County
Fall bite for bass, panfish, walleye going on Iowa’s West Okoboji Lake
Fishing News
Commentary: After Boundary Waters vote, no public lands are off-limits
Commentary: Drastic budget cuts will undermine conservation and public lands
Mastering muskie fishing’s art of the figure eight
Opinion
Commentary: Drawing a line for America’s public lands
Commentary: Proposed USFS changes will harm forest resources nationwide
Outdoor Insights: Wild deer for sale? Idea still deserves a hard pass
Commentary: Another farm bill extension and what it means for conservation
Commentary: TRCP looks back at 2025, ahead to 2026
All About Hunting

Commentary: The Roadless Rule is under attack
When I draw a hunting tag, especially for elk, one of the first things I do is pull out a map. I look for public land – and then I look for roads, because that’s where the elk aren’t.
That’s because elk need food, water, and a secure place to bed – and that usually means being miles from any open roads. Want to fill your freezer? Find the roadless area. The Roadless Rule was written for hunters like me. And for anglers – because roadless areas provide crucial native habitat, protecting fish that have never seen the inside of a hatchery.

Better understand your hunting optics to get better performance
For nearly 1,000 years, we’ve worked to improve our vision.
Italian monks made eyeglasses by the 13th century. In the 1600s, seafarers gazed at distant shores through spyglasses. The first telescope was patented in 1608. Many credit Benjamin Franklin with inventing bifocals. Even thermal technology has roots going back more than a century.
Today, anyone else who wants to see the wild world better has an array of options, from eyeglasses to optics that seem like something from science fiction.

Silent entry and close encounters: Kayak tactics to help you kill more deer
Winds were gusting to over 40 mph on the afternoon of Nov. 2 last year as I slipped quietly up the river in my kayak for an afternoon bowhunt.
These types of winds are not a reason to stay home. They are an opportunity to get close to whitetail bedding areas undetected. The plan that day was to take advantage of the conditions and set up in a tree 20 yards off the river in thick cover. This would require using the kayak to slip past a primary bedding area.
Podcasts

Episode 596 – New ELS impressions, Lake Detective, Hemingway’s last written words, dock rental fees?
Tim Lesmeister and Rob Drieslein start the show with their first and

Episode 595 – 80M pounds of fish harvested in MN? New licensing system, and latest CWD headlines
Tim Lesmeister and Rob Drieslein start the show with some fishing chatter

Episode 594 – BWCA rescue and smallmouth bass, new MN muskie plan, photography tips, corner crossing
Tim Lesmeister and Rob Drieslein start the show with some Boundary Waters

Episode 593 – MN legislative recap, BWCA smallies, cougars and bears, our 2026 Person of the Year
Tim Lesmeister and Rob Drieslein start the show recapping the 2026 Legislative
All Iowa Articles

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Star Watch: Our two brightest planets get together
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Iowa’s statewide fishing report on May 14, 2026
Here’s a look at the Iowa fishing report from across

Five big-bass sweetspots in the Great Lakes
It’s no secret that the Great Lakes have produced a

Nature Smart: Identifying the purple vs. the house finch
Identifying some bird species can be challenging, especially with some

Backyard and Beyond: Nesting season, already
Stately great blue herons are some of the earliest birds

Iowa’s statewide fishing report on May 7, 2026
A look at the Iowa fishing report from across the

Creative tactics fill a 2026 Iowa turkey tag
Two pale white heads appeared on the hillside not 20

