Fab from PA asks,
Hey Bill, I am on my fifth preference point for Iowa and have decided to enter into the lottery for this upcoming season. I plan to put in for your old area of zone 5. I am looking for a low key outfit, that doesn't just run guy after guy through. Someone who puts the time in and runs an honest operation. Could you recommend anyone in that area, that you think would fit? Appreciate your time. Thanks Bill!
Bill responds,
Topic: Recommending a Whitetail Guide in Iowa:
This is a photo I took of one of the giants that Steve Hanson has shot in southern Iowa. He definitely has killed his share of gross booners on his personal farms, and the ground he guides on is also very good. His operation is one that I would at least have on the list when looking for outfitters in Zone 5 (southcentral Iowa).
Fab,
I normally don’t recommend outfitters because I don’t hunt with outfitters in the Midwest.
I will say that one of the guys who used to help me on my farm in southern Iowa with habitat projects was a fellow named Steve Hanson.
He has run an outfitting business called Straight Arrow Outfitters in that part of the state in the past. I don’t know anything about it, have never hunted with him, so you will definitely need to do your own research on this one, but that gives you at least one name to add to the list. I don’t know any of the other outfitters in that area – at least not well enough to suggest you even consider them.
Be sure to check out each operation very thoroughly. Again, I hate giving any kind of recommendation when I don’t have personal experience, but Steve does have access to some really, really good ground (I know many of the farms he hunts). Good luck. (2/3/22)
Thanks so much Bill!
No problem. Good luck.