Heavy boat traffic expected for Labor Day weekend
Boaters heading out for the Labor Day holiday will likely find busy waterways across the state.
Susan Stocker, boating law administrator and education coordinator for the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, said boat operators need to operate with caution and to watch for hazards in the water.
The weekend weather forecast is favorable for boaters and combined with a three day weekend should produce heavy boat traffic. Stocker said ramps will likely be busy, placing boating etiquette at a premium.
“Everyone is excited to get on the water,” she said. “Be patient, and when it’s your turn be ready to launch. Courtesy on the water goes a long way in avoiding problems.”
She said an obvious way to prevent problems is for boat operators to avoid alcohol while operating the craft.
“We want boaters to have fun on the water, but we don’t want that fun to end in a boating tragedy. Boaters need to keep safety in mind while on the water,” Stocker said.
Preparing for a safe day on the water begins in the driveway. Make sure to have a properly fitting life jacket for each person on board and that all of the safety equipment, including a properly working fire extinguisher, is on board.
“Remember, life jackets only work when worn,” Stocker said. “Life jackets float, you don’t.”
Boating safety tips
Alcohol and boating don’t mix. Wind, sun, glare and heat can enhance the effects of alcohol hindering the operator’s ability to make decisions. Before leaving the house, check the trailer lights, wheel bearings and the hitch. Make sure there is a current fire extinguisher and horn/whistle, a wearable life jacket for everyone and a USCG approved throwable device onboard. File a float plan with a friend, including your destination, expected time of return and type of boat. Wear your lifejacket - it floats, you don’t. Inflatable lifejackets are light weight, comfortable and USCG approved. Wear it. Take a boater education course. It has valuable information and many insurance companies will offer a discount on boat insurance.
Top two safety violations in Iowa are having inadequate life jackets and operating too fast and too close to other vessels.
Dove season
begins Sept. 1
Iowa’s sunflower fields will be busy places over the next few weeks as doves begin to gather for migration and rows of sunflowers get mowed in preparation for the opening of dove hunting season.
Iowa's dove hunting season begins Sept. 1. A list of wildlife areas that have one or more managed dove plots on them is available online at www.iowadnr.gov/doves.
Todd Bogenschutz, upland wildlife research biologist for the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, said hunters should scout those areas ahead of time to learn how many doves are using the area and their flight patterns, and check if the area requires non toxic shot.
“Dove hunting has a social aspect to it and usually has a lot of action which makes it a great opportunity to include kids or novice hunters with the group,” Bogenschutz said. “When hunters are finished for the day, we would like to see them leave the area better than they found it by picking up all their shells and any other trash they find. We want to set a good example of taking care of our natural areas.”
The set up is pretty simple – bring a bucket, lots of shells, set up where doves are feeding or flying through and sit still. Doves will be active early and late in the day.
“Hilltops, wide open areas, areas with small grains like winter wheat, millet, oats, milo, or the pasture ground around watering ponds, silage fields or weedy areas are attractive to doves too,” Bogenschutz said. “And try to blend in to the background.”
Shooting hours are one half hour before sunrise to sunset. The daily bag limit is 15 doves with a possession limit of 45. Hunters are required to have registered with the harvest information program (HIP) before hunting migratory game birds.
An estimated 11,400 hunters harvested 117,000 doves in 2015.
Iowa’s rabbit
season opens Sept. 3
Iowa’s cottontail rabbit season opens Sept. 3. Cottontails can be found in every county but higher populations are found in southeast and south central Iowa.
Rabbit hunting is most commonly done with a .22 rifle or shotgun in areas with shrubs, brush piles or field edges. Most of the hunting takes place later in the fall and winter.
Shooting hours are sunrise to sunset. The daily bag limit is 10 cottontail rabbits, with a possession limit of 20. Rabbit season closes on Feb. 28, 2017.
Rabbit numbers are included with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources August roadside survey that will be released in early September at www.iowadnr.gov/pheasantsurvey.
Squirrel season
begins Sept. 3
Squirrel hunters should expect to find an average to above average squirrel population over most of the state, with higher squirrel numbers in areas with higher acorn production. Squirrel season opens Sept. 3.
Fox squirrels can be found anywhere there are a few acres of trees, but gray squirrels are generally limited to the heavily forested areas in eastern and southern Iowa.
Hunting opportunities for squirrels are excellent because hunting pressure is low. Because of the lack of competition, squirrel hunting is a good way to introduce novice hunters and youth to the outdoors.
“If you spook a squirrel or mess up something, there’s probably another squirrel over the next hill. Young hunters can learn and fail which is how many of us learned our woodsmanship skills – without the pressure of a short season or competition from other hunters,” said Jim Coffey, forest wildlife technician with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources.
Squirrel hunting is done by either sitting-and-waiting, or by still-hunting.
The sit-and-wait technique is similar to turkey hunting. Hunters will sit near likely feeding areas, such as beneath oak, walnut, or hickory trees or along corn-forest edges and many will call them. Plan to wear plenty of camouflage and consider a face net to avoid bugs.
The still-hunting technique is employed by slowly walking through forested areas and stopping frequently to watch for feeding squirrels, then sneaking up on them. The best hunting times usually are during the morning and afternoon feeding hours. Squirrel season runs through January 31, 2017. The daily bag limit is 6 (fox and gray squirrels combined) and the possession limit is 12. There are no restrictions on shooting hours.
Online Hunting Atlas offers places to go
Des Moines – Iowa hunters have been using the interactive Iowa hunting atlas to find new places to go hunting. The hunting atlas features more than 680,000 acres of public hunting land that is owned by the state, county or federal governments. It's available online at www.iowadnr.gov/hunting.
This tool allows hunters to see which zone the public area is in, type of shot allowed, wildlife likely to be found, get an overhead look at the terrain and a downloadable or printable map. The mobile version of the atlas will show hunter location on the area if granted permission.
The atlas view from above allows hunters to zoom in on an area, see how to get there, the lay of the land and where one parcel of public hunting land is in relation to others and print off maps.
Information is updated as public hunting lands are acquired.
The hunting atlas also includes private land enrolled in the Iowa Habitat and Access Program (IHAP) where private landowners receive assistance to improve habitat on their land in exchange for opening the property for hunter access. The program has 25,700 acres where hunters can access private property.
Site maps are available at www.iowadnr.gov/ihap showing boundaries, which species would be most likely attracted to the habitat and the location of a comment box where hunters are encouraged to leave their feedback on the program.
Walk-in public hunting through IHAP is available between September 1 and May 31.