No matter where you live, you're just a few minutes away from outdoor fun with dozens of easy to get to stocked lakes and ponds in parks and along trails. Find one near you on our Fish Local interactive map.
Getting outdoors and fishing is a little different for everyone. Iowa’s many waterways are the perfect backdrop to ponder life’s biggest questions, or ignore them completely, all while reeling in a few keepers.
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Lakes, Ponds and Reservoirs
Many of Iowa’s thousands of lakes and ponds number are stocked and managed by the Iowa DNR, offering abundant fishing, especially of panfish like crappie and bluegill. Several lakes are fishing destinations for muskie, northern pike and walleye.
Interior Rivers
Head to one of Iowa’s rivers or streams to catch a dozen or more different species, including prized-size catfish, walleye and smallmouth bass in one trip. Iowa’s interior rivers are known for growing large-sized fish, and lots of them.
Trout Streams
Northeast Iowa is a regional destination for exceptional trout fishing. Find both stocked and naturally occurring trout in the breathtaking forests and streams of this part of the state.
Mississippi River
Iowa’s eastern border river is nationally known for backwater fishing for bass, catfish, panfish, pike and walleye. It is the best fishery in Iowa for abundance and diversity of fish species. Dozens of access points are available for boaters and anglers.
Missouri River
On the western border, the Missouri River offers excellent fishing for catfish and sauger. The southern part of the river is one of the only places in Iowa to catch blue catfish.