I live in northern central Iowa. And i was wondering how i should go about hunting around here. I have a Remington 870. All h

[Iowabuckhunter]

I live in northern central Iowa. And i was wondering how i should go about hunting around here. I have a Remington 870. All help would be greatly appreciated so when i hunt this coming fall i will be prepared.

[jamesti]

first get maps from the blm and forestry service. then know the laws. game wardens will answer most questions you have. the 870 is great`for hunting different game so you are off to a good start. go to mytopo.com or google earth to see great maps in detail.

[steve182]

I would hunt edges in agricultural areas with mixed woodlots. with slugs and a scope your range should be 100 yds. Hunt the field in the evening and 100 yds or so in the woods off the field in the a.m.

[DakotaMan]

Two Choices: a) drive deer to you or b) hunt trails

Driving deer
This works in Iowa because the timbers are relatively small and often narrow into bottlenecks between timbers or leading to fence rows. Get a few buddies to help you drive (walk through the timber clapping sticks together) deer along a river break or timber. Check out the terrain and understand where the deer will go when pushed through the timber. Try to avoid hunting along large corn fields as they will break out at any area heading for the corn field. Find a narrow stretch of the timber (like in the neck of a funnel) and stand there waiting for deer to be driven by you in the narrow portion of the timber. When they come by, you should have shots within 50 yards or so. If you can find a trail in the bottleneck, stand near that where you have good visibility of the area, the deer will have a tendency to follow the trail and my come right by you.

Hunt Trails:
Another alternative is to find a good trail in the neck of such a timber and sit near the trail from pre-daylight until late morning and a few hours before dark. The heavier the trail the better. Northern Iowa hunting is not like prarie hunting or even the big timber hunting in other states. The deer in northern Iowa bed in the timbers and river breaks but live in the corn fields until they are all down. They bed in the timbers and they travel primarily on trails when in the timber because the leaves are loud (as opposed to pine needles in other states.) Because of the abundant food (corn), they tend to populate timbers at higher levels than many other states. Therefore, the trails are heavily used and cut deep. Try these techniques and good luck. Also, note that when driving timbers where there is hunting pressure, the big bucks will tend to follow the does and lag back. If you can wait, you might see the big bucks a minute after the does pass. However, about 75% of the time, you see nothing after the does pass... something to think about while you are waiting in the trees.

[rudyglove27]

Agreed with DakotaMan answer above and A + 1 for you sir!!!