Looking for Iowa 2020 hunt
Contributors to this thread:Whitetail Deer
From: TNRAMBLINMAN
30-Nov-19
Please note any highly recommended outfitters in southern Iowa.
From: leo17
30-Nov-19
leo17's Link
Steve Hanson Straight arrow outfitters. He’s in zone 5. Sponsor here. That’s the go to guy for Iowa. You won’t be disappointed
From: Pyrannah
30-Nov-19
Public is pretty damn good
From: Pickahair
30-Nov-19
Fountain outfitting (Paul Fountain) I killed my biggest archery w him 164 in 07 and buddy killed 179 w him in 2010, same 700acre farm. Takes 4 yrs to draw archery tag though. U hang your own sets w him which suits me anyway, good luck! U won’t be disappointed w him!
From: c5ken
01-Dec-19
Shermoe adventures LLC Bryant Shermoe 586-212-4319 One of the best. You will not be disappointed
From: TNRAMBLINMAN
02-Dec-19
Thanks to all for replies.I have four points so I should be able to get tag. Knew Steve way back in the mid 90s when he first started and he was top notch even then.
From: olebuck
02-Dec-19
I went last year - I hunted with Chad Johnson at Midwest Antler company.
I can't give a better review - unreal place - set up for bow hunting- tons of deer - accommodations are great, food great, and tons and tons of big bucks...
From: Pat Lefemine
02-Dec-19
Nice mature 8 killed while hunting with Steve Hanson
Nice mature 8 killed while hunting with Steve Hanson
Steve Hanson is the only one I have experience with, but I was extremely impressed with his ethics, hard work and properties! The price was extremely reasonable and included both superb lodging, great food, and great hunting. I also killed a great buck.
From: Shawn
05-Dec-19
Public, unless you only have a week. If you have a couple 3 weeks public can be awesome and a whole lot cheaper. Shawn
From: bighorn
08-Dec-19
Check out Wicked Whitetails Iowa
From: Rupe
09-Dec-19
The problem with Iowa has been the huge die offs caused by EHD. It killed 1000s of deer this year. Most of them bucks in a 3 county area. It was terrible this year.
From: leo17
09-Dec-19
True I’d wait till 2024 to burn my points
From: t-roy
09-Dec-19
There’s no guarantee that EHD won’t be an issue in future years, either.
From: Chief 419
09-Dec-19
Another recoomendation for Shermoe Adventures. You won't be disappointed with Bryant and his farms.i
From: kevin3006
10-Dec-19
I have hunted with Steve Hanson three times and killed three bucks. He gets my vote.
From: Quinn @work
10-Dec-19
Anyone know how much an archery hunt during the rut is with Straight Arrow? I can't seem to find anything online.
From: Elite 1
15-Dec-19
Wondering has anyone hunted with BBD out of Iowa?
From: gobble50
16-Dec-19
Rupe is right. I live in the epicenter of the EHD epidemic and THOUSANDS of deer are absolutely gone! Near as we can tell, there are 3-4 fawns in our entire section (640 acres). I didn’t hunt at all. An old bowhunter near here hunted hard the entire season and said he saw one doe and two fawns. It (EHD) will be in another part of Iowa next year & another after that, ad infinitum. It’s very sad.
From: IdyllwildArcher
16-Dec-19
The EHD outbreak was mostly in unit 4.
From: Don K
16-Dec-19
So where was the epicenter of the EHD epidemic? It was supposed to have hit the area I was in this year hard and if it did I sure would like to have seen it before it happened as I didn't notice any deer shortage
From: t-roy
16-Dec-19
Warren County, directly south of Des Moines, was the epicenter. Roughly near Indianola.
From: t-roy
16-Dec-19
Not sure when these numbers were last updated.
From: Hans 1
17-Dec-19
The above map was one of the earlier ones. I think the final total that was reported in WArren county was over 800. The EHD was very much in pockets in the county’s near me. Generally it seem more near Desmoines and less south and east. Of the county’s I hunt and help manage land. Lucas,Monroe and Appanoose, northern Lucas county was affected the most and my guess would be up to 25% could have been lost. My farms in Monroe and Appanoose actually have to many deer and we are harvesting does through a depredation program. The hardest part is not knowing if the particular buck we were seeing in the summer and early fall made it or was one EHD victims. We were not anticipating any trouble this year due to all the moisture .
From: Trial153
17-Dec-19
I hunted the east end of 5 and it hit there as well, dispite what that maps shows
From: Tradmike
17-Dec-19
X2 on Paul Fountain, he wilk put u on some great property. The rest is up to u.
From: Don K
17-Dec-19
t-roy, Thanks for the map. I guess I was lucky, hunted two of the colored counties on that map and had a good hunt.
From: Rupe
19-Dec-19
Rupe's Link
This was in the Des Moines Register on November 20th, 2019. They have a pay wall so not sure if link will work.
‘“Brought on by a virus, epizootic hemorrhagic disease causes heart and lung tissue in infected deer to weaken and burst.
Some areas of Iowa are experiencing a significant EHD outbreak this year. In Warren County alone, it has killed at least 773 deer — and likely many more, officials say. Across the state, the disease has killed at least 1,800 whitetail deer.
EHD is not a threat to humans — the virus cannot be transmitted by eating infected deer meat — but it threatens to thin herds and affect hunting in central Iowa.
For subscribers: Disease has killed hundreds, potentially thousands of deer in central Iowa
The Iowa Department of Natural Resources provided the following information about EHD:
Is deer meat safe to eat?
There is no evidence to suggest a human health risk from the handling or consumption of infected deer. EHD is not known to infect humans. However, consuming meat from known diseased animals is not recommended.”
I hunted hard for 17 days, all day stand sits and I had 9 days of not seeing a single deer. Saw only 2 mature bucks during the entire time. It was pathetic. To give you an idea I hunted the same area back in 2017 and I saw 5 shooters in one day. Killed a 155” 6 1/2. year old. Last year I saw a 200 inch NonTypical and at least 10 shooters in a 14 day hunt. Deer everyday. It was eerie how dead the woods were this Fall.
From: JL
19-Dec-19
I'm thinking any reputable Iowa outfitter worth a salt will tell potential clients whether or not their properties/leases have been hit hard by EHD and if the hunter should just sit on their points for another year or so.
From: Rupe
19-Dec-19
I agree JL. The problem is the draw is way before EHD rears it’s ugly head, but they should tell you if they were hit the year before. Ask for lots of current trail cam pics and pics after mid October 2019 since the EHD cycle ends after the 1st frost.
From: t-roy
19-Dec-19
Good point, Rupe. Might not be a bad idea to ask about any outbreaks even 2-3 years back.
From: gobble50
20-Dec-19
Rupe is right. I live in the epicenter of the EHD epidemic and THOUSANDS of deer are absolutely gone! Near as we can tell, there are 3-4 fawns in our entire section (640 acres). I didn’t hunt at all. An old bowhunter near here hunted hard the entire season and said he saw one doe and two fawns. It (EHD) will be in another part of Iowa next year & another after that, ad infinitum. It’s very sad.
From: Hans 1
23-Dec-19
What county are you located in Gobble 50. I sat last night the last day of Iowa’s regular gun season, had a friend with his 11 year old daughter set to shoot a doe . Between the 2 spots on the same farm we saw 21 bucks and 30 to 35 does. This was Monroe county and the temperature was 55 degrees. I feel fortunate that we weren’t affected like the above post. The young lady made a perfect shot on a big doe.
From: midwest
24-Dec-19
Good to hear Steve. Feel bad for the guys living in the areas affected. Could hit anywhere.
From: Rgiesey
24-Dec-19
Good thing we’ve all been warned so we can avoid the horrors of hunting in Iowa.
From: Bowfreak
24-Dec-19
In KY we had the worst EHD outbreak in my area in 2017. It was tough in 2017 and 2018 with 2019 only slightly better. There were still deer to be had, just not what you typically see. 2020 should be closer to normal, but I do believe it takes a little longer for your age structure to stabilize.
From: Don K
15-Jan-20
Don K's Link
Looks like they posted a map of the EHD outbreak on the Iowa DNR site yesterday for those that are interested.
