Free Fishing Weekend: What to Know Before You Head Out

Free Fishing Weekend (June 3, 4 and 5, 2016) is the perfect time to take kids fishing or introduce someone to fishing. Have some fun, create new memories and spend quality time with your family and friends.

Travel to one of the hundreds of Iowa lakes, thousands of miles of rivers or a nearby pond for a few hours of outdoor fun and relaxation. 

Follow these simple tips to help your family have a fun and safe free fishing weekend.

Attend a fun, hands-on fishing clinic to learn the basics of fishing. A list of fishing clinics, derbies, and other fun events co-sponsored by the DNR is available on the special events page.

A small hook (size 6 or 8), bobber (size of a nickel and no larger than a quarter) and a worm will get you started. Bring something to get the hook out of any fish that you catch - needle-nose pliers work well.

Learn how to tie at least one basic fishing knot. The uni, palomar, blood and improved clinch knots are strong, reliable and easy to tie. For step-by step instructions and illustrations, check out our Knots Every Anglers Should Know.

Fish in the morning and evening; fish are more active during these times.

Fish like structure so they can hide. Fish in or around trees and stumps in the water. If you can see the fish, they can see or hear you, so try not to let your shadow scare the fish. Pinpoint panfish hotspots with downloadable fishing structure location maps available on the DNR’s Fishing Maps website.

Some species of fish have length and bag limits so make sure you know the fishing regulations.

Keep a bottle of sunscreen, a pair of sunglasses, and a hat with a brim in your tackle box to help protect you from the sun. Children fishing around deep or fast-moving water should wear a life jacket. Make sure the life jacket fits your child snugly and won’t ride up around their face.

If you are going to release the fish, handle it as little as possible and with damp hands. For more catch and release tips, see our 6 Tips for Catch and Release Fishing.

Commemorate your child’s First Fish with a frameable certificate. Submit your entry online .

Spring Fishing In Full Swing Across Iowa

Crappies and bluegills are biting in small ponds and lakes across Iowa. Spring panfish fishing is a great opportunity to introduce beginners of all ages to fishing.

“Late May and early June is an excellent time to take kids fishing since many species are spawning and do not spook as easily,” said Joe Larscheid, chief of the Iowa Department of Natural Resources Fisheries Bureau. 

“Parents can make the trip more memorable by bringing snacks, taking photos and celebrating each fish as if it were a record breaker,” said Larscheid. “Sharing and teaching fishing skills to our kids will help pass along this Iowa tradition.”

Look for any type of structure in the water, like rocks or a pile of brush or gravel to find bluegills or crappies. Bass will be around brush or boat docks or rock piles. Pinpoint panfish hotspots with downloadable fishing structure location maps available on the DNR’s Fishing Maps website.

“Keep the hooks, bobbers and bait small because panfish have small mouths,” Larscheid said. “The biggest problem we see is anglers using too heavy of line with large bobbers and hooks. Use as light of tackle as you can. I suggest using four pound line, a bobber the size of a quarter and a size 8 hook.”

"We have a lot of good opportunities close to home," Larscheid said. "Make sure a rod and reel are part of any weekend plans. Fishing makes memories that will last a lifetime."

Anyone catching their first fish is encouraged to take a photo of it and send it in to receive the DNR’s first fish award. The DNR will commemorate the event with a certificate suitable for framing with the submitted photo. Apply for a first fish certificate online.

Enjoy Iowa’s outdoors and spend some time fishing this spring. Find tips for catching crappie, bluegills and yellow bass on the DNR website.

Iowa Great Lakes Crews Net 25 Year Old Musky

Excitement and pride echoed through the Iowa Great Lakes fisheries netting crew in late April. “It is amazing that this male musky is alive and doing well in West Okoboji Lake 25 years later,” said Joe Larscheid, chief of the Iowa DNR’s Fisheries Bureau.

The fish was purchased by the Upper Great Plains chapter of Muskies Inc. in 1991 and stocked into West Okoboji Lake in April 1992 at an average length of 12.7 inches.

“Every muskellunge stocked in the Iowa Great Lakes was batched marked with a freeze brand so we know what year and lake it was stocked,” said Larscheid.

A few years after being stocked, the muskies grow large enough to be caught in the gill nets set out by fisheries staff at night in the spring. All muskies caught during the gill netting season are tagged with a Passive Integrated Transponder (PIT) tag which uniquely identifies these fish for life.  “Every time this fish is caught we record all information in our database which allows us to look up the individual recapture histories of each fish over time,” added Larscheid.

This 41.6 inch, 17.5 pound fish was originally tagged in 1994 and was recaptured in 1998, 2000 and 2006. It is one of the first groups of muskies held over the winter at the hatchery then stocked in the Iowa Great Lakes in the spring. “Based on the success of these fish we switched all of our musky stockings to spring yearlings which dramatically improved the survival and health of our musky populations in Iowa,” Larscheid said.

“To my knowledge, this fish is the oldest known-age muskellunge ever recaptured by fisheries crews in the Midwest,” said Jonathan Meerbeek, DNR fisheries research biologist.  Last year’s crews were impressed with their recapture of a 21 year-old, 41 inch male muskellunge. “Recapturing a 25 year-old fish of known age is almost unheard of,” Meerbeek said. 

The anal fin and right pelvic fin taken from this fish will be used in a known-age muskellunge research project that will assist managers interested in estimating muskellunge age across the country.

Spring and Summer Fishing Events

Whether you want to learn to fish at a clinic, compete for prizes at a tournament, or just have some fun, there is something for everyone. Activities vary at each event and may include fish identification, how to operate a reel, different ways to cast, knot tying, how to handle fish, bait presentations and different fish cleaning methods. 

5/13/2016

4:30 p.m. – Fishing Frenzy!, Grays Landing, Castana

5/21/2016

8 a.m. – HBFAKids Fishing 2016, Mississippi River Pool 19, Fort Madison

5/28/2016

10 a.m. – Youth Fishing Clinic, Lake Icaria Marina, Corning

6/3/2016

5 p.m. – Free Fishing Friday, Grays Lake, Des Moines

6/4/2016

8 a.m. – Central Park Annual Kids Fishing Derby, Center Junction

8 a.m. – Langwood Adventure Day, Langwood Education Center, Wapello

8 a.m. – Pleasant Hill Youth Fishing Derby, Copper Creek, Des Moines

8 a.m. – CARPFest, Grays Lake, Des Moines

8 a.m. – Northwest Iowa Outdoors Youth Fishing Derby, Little Sioux Lake, Correctionville

8 a.m. – Annual Lake Pahoja Youth Fishing Derby, Lake Pahoja, Inwood

8:30 a.m. – 17th Annual Cops N' Bobbers Fishing Clinic, West Des Moines City Hall Pond

8:30 a.m. – Family Fishing Clinic, Clear Lake, Ventura

9 a.m. – Brushy Creek Fishing Derby, Lehigh

9 a.m. – Kid's Fishing Day, Willow Lake, Woodbine

9 a.m. – Family Fishing Day, Riverside Park, Stacyville

9 a.m. – Youth Fishing Clinic, Ice House Point Park, Lake View

9 a.m. – Hook, Line and Sinker Fishing Derby, Newton Izaak Walton League

9 a.m. – Youth Fishing Clinic, Lost Island Huston Park, Ruthven

9 a.m. – Kids Fishing Seminar and Derby, Environmental Discovery Park North Pond, Muscatine

9 a.m. – Kids Fishing Clinic, Pinicon Ridge County Park, Central City

9 a.m. – Kids Fishing Derby and Clinic, Hawkeye Park Pond, Ankeny

10 a.m. – Lake Anita Kids' Fishing Day, Anita

10 a.m. – Youth Fishing Clinic, Davis County Pond 2, East of Bloomfield

11 a.m. – Scranton’s Kids Fishing Days, Scranton

3 p.m. – Kids Fish Iowa! Adventure, Lowe Park, Marion

6/5/2016

9 a.m. – Youth Fishing Clinic and Derby, Pollmiller Park Lake, West Point

4 p.m. – Family Fishing Fun, Glissman Pond, Adel

6/12/2016

1 p.m. – Kids Fishing Derby, Spring Lake, Jefferson

6/18/2016

8 a.m. – Pollmiller Kids Fishing, Pollmiller Park Lake, West Point

6/19/2016

Noon – Father's Day Float and Fish, Des Moines River, begins at Prospect Park

7/3/2016

9 a.m. – Manchester 150th Sesquicentennial, Tirrill Park, Manchester

7/23/2016

8 a.m. – Chatfield Kids Fishing, Chatfield Park, Keokuk

9 a.m. – Taste of Hope Fishing Derby, Lutheran Church of Hope pond, West Des Moines

10 a.m. – Youth Fishing Clinic, Southwood Conservation Area Pond, Smithland