Jason Smith Hunting Land - Farmland Farm and Hunting Land (712)592-8965

Looking for an outfitter and guide in western Iowa's Loess Hills? Here is a list of active guides and outfitters serving Monona, Harrison and Woodbuy Counties in Iowa.

Timber Ridge Outfitters
Paul Ranft - Owner/Operator
2325 Lake Street Niles, MI. 49127
Phone: (269) 683-1240 Cell: (269) 930-6301
www.timberridgeoutfitters.com

McCall Hill Country Outfitters
21276 Orange Ave
Castana, IA 51010
BOOKING 712-353-6762
CELL 712-420-1494
www.mccallhillcountryoutfitters.com

Western Iowa Trophy Hunts
18995 Oak Road
PO Box 28
Castana, IA 51010
Office: (712) 353-6354
Tim:(712) 353-6360 (Home)
Mike:(712) 353-6510 (Home)
http://www.westerniowatrophyhunts.com

Iowa Trophy Whitetail Hunts
Judd Cooney Operator
Postal address PO Box 808, Pagosa Springs, CO 81147
Telephone 970-264-5612
http://www.juddcooney.com
Whitetail hunts in Harrison and Monona County

Western Iowa Outfitters
70911 Independence Road
Wiota, Iowa 50274
712-254-0747
712-254-1747
www.westerniowaoutfitters.com

Iowa Hunting Adventures
P.O. Box 203
Correctionville, IA 51016
712-372-4774
http://elwood.longlines.com/~rleonard/

Jason Smith Hunting Land in Iowa 712-646-2061 Whitetail Trophy Properties

There is no doubt that if you are an avid whitetail hunter like myself you have heard of Pike County Illinois. I've been there many times, in fact our main office is located in Pittsfield Illinois right in Pike County. While there for meetings and training we always stay at Hadley Creek Outfitters north camp in southern Adams County Illinois. Pike County and Adams County are two of the most well known whitetail hunting counties in the United States. The terrain there is as flat as can be coming off of the Mississippi River valley and eventually grows into rising timbered ridge lines with long draws mixed with agricultural fields making some great habitat. The rough and rugged terrain of Pike and Adams Counties along with fertile river valley soils makes a great place for bucks to get proper nutrition and provides them with the security needed to grow big. All of these are great things to consider when evaluating a hunting land purchase but maybe you don't know that Pike and Adams have an Iowa equivelent.

Now that I've told you all about Pike and Adams Counties lets take a look at a few statistics. Joel Helmer wrote a Geographical Analysis of Boone and Crockett Whitetail harvests in the United States. Joel used a computer program to enter all of the B&C records to find a visual representation along with some hard facts about where the most trophies are coming from. If you click on the link above you can read his report but I'll quickly summarize what you will find in that report. When the numbers were entered Iowa was #1 in B&C entries of all time but I think the most impressive part of his report was in the break down by counties. There are only two Iowa counties in the top 10 counties across the United States and they were Allamakee County in Northeast Iowa and Monona County in west central Iowa. In fact both Iowa counties in the top 10 of all time were tied for 4th place with Adams County Illinois. Pike County Illinois was #3 on the list of all time B&C entries. Depending on which time period you look at on Helmers report Pike County Illinois and Monona County Iowa are only separated by 1-2 entries for that time period.

In fact Monona County Iowa also has a neighboring county or its equivalent of Adams County which is Harrison County Iowa. Harrison and Monona Counties in Iowa are the equivelent of Pike and Adams in Illinois.

If I was to give you a description of Monona and Harrison in Iowa like I did Pike and Adams in Illinois above I could copy and paste it here but I'll save you the trouble. Instead I'll tell you the differences in the two areas. In Pike County Illinois you will find rock bottom creeks and in Monona County Iowa you will find dirt and sand bottom creeks. In Monona and Harrison Iowa you will find Loess soil towering nearly 300 feet above the face while in Pike and Adams you'll find more limestone bluffs. In Monona and Harrison Counties you'll find a much more rugged terrain that provides an even greater degree of security for whitetail deer. In the western Iowa counties instead of the Mississippi River valley you'll find the Missouri River Valley.

To illustrate the very similar nature of Monona and Harrison to Pike and Adams I've put together a few terrain maps to show you how similar they are.

ILLINOIS

ABOVE is a terrain map from Pike and Adams County Illinois. You can see to the left (west) the flat Mississippi River Valley and then as you move to the east the land abruptly changes to a rough terrain with river valleys and the work of many years of erosion down those valley's creating many fingers that if you looked at an aerial photograph are heavily timbered.

BELOW is the equivalent in Monona and Harrison County Iowa. Again to the left or west you see the flats of the Missouri River Valley and as you make your way east across the graphic you notice they rise into steep ridge tops that have been weathered by erosion over thousands of years creating the same timbered ridges and valley's as you see in Pike and Adams County Illinois. This rough terrain stretches from northern Iowa all the way into Missouri along the western edge of Iowa.

IOWA

West Central Iowa has some of the best whitetail habitat on the face of the earth hands down and its a huge secret that's likely to stay that way for some time. Despite the heavy horned deer here in the Loess Hills it doesn't have the reputation or fanfare other location get. What does that mean to the recreational land buyer? It means there is somewhere else you can buy Pike County quality land with Pike County quality deer at a smaller price tag and certainly less crowded gravel roads. Thats enough to set any whitetail hunters pulse racing right?

Did you notice there was not one southern Iowa county in the top 10 counties of all time? I spend my days stomping around the Loess Hills in Western Iowa hunting and marketing hunting properties in the Loess Hills which gives me the chance to put my feet on literally hundreds of farms and I know the deer that are out here.

In fairness I have to mention other counties in west central Iowa that border Harrison and Monona because as you know county lines were not drawn along the lines of whitetail habitat when they were drawn. On thing you will notice about west central Iowa is that when you draw a line about the hot spot Monona County is the county that holds the larger piece of it. Woodbury, Ida, Crawford and Shelby also produce B&C entries as well, they just hold a smaller piece of the pie when you look at it.

Finally I will leave you with this excerpt from and Iowa Department of Natural Resources brochure called White-tailed Deerthat I was reading the other day. This excerpt will give you an idea of the deer roaming the Loess Hills in Western Iowa. "Fawns weigh from four to seven pounds at birth and will gain 80 to 100 pounds in their first six months of life. Adult males reach an average weight of around 240 to 265 pounds at about four and one- half years of age while adult females average 140 to 160 pounds. The largest deer ever reported in Iowa was a 440-pound buck taken in Monona County during the 1962-hunting season."

Jason Smith, Land Specialist

712-646-2061

Whitetail Trophy Properties

On September 13th the QDMA Heartland Branch that serves western Iowa and eastern Nebraska held its first annual REACH banquet and boy did we have fun doing it. Thanks to the generosity of many sponsors and donors we were able to raise money to further our mission and implement some of the programs we originally intended to. I wanted to share a few photos from the event so here you go.

There were lots of exhibitos including my own Whitetail Properties with Iowa hunting land listings and free information. The Nebraska Big Buck Classic, Cabelas, Bass Pro, Atkinson Expeditions, Barry and Gene Wensel, Rocky Oak Hunting and Fishing, Pennington Seed, Premier Archery, Full Draw Archery, my friendly competitors at Premium Properties and Big Tex Trailers. Jolie Edwards (our co-president) and her band put on a great concert during the banquet.

Nebraksa Big Buck Classic! Coming to Omaha next April. Visit their website for more information.

A multitude of factors have caused the number of pheasants in Iowa to decline this year continuing a long trend in Iowa pheasant populations. Still in the top states in the nation we've always been proud of our great pheasant population but its been better. The loss of CRP ground that is being broken back open for farming and a rotten winter 2007-2008 are especially to blame this year. One area in Iowa experienced an increase in the number of birds counted this year and that is northwest Iowa where they did not experience the same winter conditions the rest of Iowa did last winter.

Each year the Iowa DNR publishes a report that every pheasant hunter should read. My good friend and fellow auctioneer Cory Behr in North Central Iowa is a wildlife biologist and dedicated Pheasants Forever member. Cory forwarded me a copy of the 2008 Iowa August Roadside Survey. This report has literally everything you needed to know about pheasant populations in Iowa and should be an alarm to anybody that reads it. The loss of CRP ground is a key element in the decline and something I'm sure we all hate to see. Certainly it would be hard to blame producers that are enjoying great commodity prices right now because many of them have worked hard to own their farms in Iowa and worked through tough times to get where they are today.

Still, there are things we can do to slow the decline and they including leaving more habitat in other places. One of Iowa's largest pieces of habitat is road ditches. They take up 1% of the land mass in Iowa and I often see people mowing or burning them when it is not necessary, or at the most detrimental of times. If you plan to burn grasses do it outside of nesting season and don't burn in the fall as the ground will sit bare during the winter providing no value to wildlife at all.

On your farm or property is it necessary to mow everything that you do or are you just mowing it because you already have? Could you let an acre or two go back? Even a half an acre is an addition. If you are not familiar with native grasses you just might find it enjoyable to learn about them and plant your own native grass patch. You'll find by mixing grasses and forbes you can add beautiful color to your farm or acreage and get so much enjoyment out of it. I've always found native grasses to be fascinating. There is so much to learn from them and at the same time you are providing a great piece of habitat for birds, mice, rabbits and more. It will give you enjoyment year after year so give it a try. Even if its just a small strip along the lane, or part of the back yard it really will do good.

An excellent resource that we have in each county is your local county conservation board. Each county has one and you can always contact them for advice on projects in your area. Each county has their own biologists and naturalist that will give you information on plants and grasses specific to your area. You can find contact infrormation for each board at the Iowa Association of County Conservation Board website.

IT'S FINALLY HERE, NEBRASKA'S FIRST STATEWIDE BIG BUCK CONTEST AND OUTDOOR SHOW!!! April 17. 18, 19 2009 at the Qwest Center in Omaha Nebraska.

J&J Hunting Productions is going to do what nobody else has, bring a statewide big buck contest and outdoor show to Nebraska. Our good neighbors to the west in Nebraska are very deserving of a great show like this and certainly a great opportunities for whitetail fanatics from western Iowa like myself to get to attend another show.

Here in Iowa we have the Iowa Deer Classic each March and while its billed as "the Greatest Whitetail Show on Earth" I'm confident that the Nebraska show will be just as good and an excellent opportunity to showcase the whitetail opportunities in Nebraska. Each year Nebraska produces tremendous trophy whitetail without the fanfare other Midwestern states get.

In talking with Jason and John Schendt of J&J Hunting Productions I know their lineup sounds great. When you come out of the gate with Lee and Tiffany your first year you know its going to be a good show.

I'll continue to update my blog with more information as it becomes available so keep your eyes open as hunting season heats up and bring your Nebraska trophy to the show in April for all to see. Here are there rules to keep in mind as you hit the woods this fall for the Big Buck Contest.

If you can't get the big boy on the ground this you you'll be glad to know that if you can find his sheds you'll still be in the running at the shed antler contest.

• Must purchase general admission ticket before you enter the contest
  
• All contest entries must be registered by noon on Sunday.
  
• Shed antlers involved in the contest are not required to remain at the show, however those sheds that remain on display at the booth thru noon on Sunday will be included in a special drawing and eligible for awards.
  
• Special drawing and awards will be held at 2:00 on Sunday of show.
  
• All entries must pay a registration fee of $8.00 for singles and $15.00 for matched sets. This fee will cover contest entry and also inclusion into the 5th edition of the Official Record Book of North American Big Game Shed Antlers.

Nobody gets left out at the Nebraska Big Buck Classic. If you can't get him on the ground and can't find his sheds you still have a shot in the trail camera pics contest at the show.

The contest is open to everyone. You must first purchase a show general admission ticket before you can enter the photo contest.

There are 8 categories in the photo contest:
1) Whitetail/ Mule Deer - bucks
2) Whitetail/ Mule Deer - groups
3) Whitetail/ Mule Deer - other
4) Predators (four-footed & flying)
5) Big Game other than deer
6) Wild turkey -- gobbler(s)
7) Wild turkey -- groups
8) Weird and unusual stuff / Miscellaneous

Entry fee is $5 for up to three photos, and $5 for every additional group of one to three photos. Bring your entries to the Trail Cam contest booth ; no mail-in entries are accepted.
Entry deadline is 11 a.m. Sunday.
Black-and-white or color prints only.
Photos may be mounted, but cannot include glass and cannot be framed.
Image size can be anywhere from 5x7 minimum to 11x14 maximum.
Your name, address and telephone number, including area code, and choice of contest category, must be on the back of each entry. Judging will be at noon Sunday. There may be up to three awards per category

For more information, sponsorship and advertising opportunities or to become and exhibitor visit their website at www.NebraskaBigBuckClassic.com or use the information below.