Iowa summers mean long days, warm nights, barbecues, bonfires, and one of our favorite pastimes, fishing – which means you’ll need to know the spots for the best fishing in Iowa. While we have countless rivers, streams, lakes, and ponds, it can still be difficult to find a good fishing spot. Luckily for you, we have a list for that. Here are nine of the best fishing spots in Iowa that will pretty much ensure you go home with a catch.

1. East and West Okoboji, Dickinson County
Daniel Matthews (Dan)/Google
Combined, East and West Lake Okoboji - in the so-called Iowa Great Lakes area of Dickinson County -offer a total of 11,366 acres of aquatic diversity, with more than 40 species of fish. The lakes are particularly well known for largemouth and smallmouth bass fishing.
2. Spirit Lake, Dickinson County
vandenn/Flickr
Big Spirit Lake is the best for smallmouth bass fishing in the spring.
3. Siewers Spring waterfall at the fish hatchery, Decorah
J. D. Adelmund/Flickr
Trout Run trail near Decorah has several easy-access fishing spots. Start in Decorah at the Bow String Bridge Park along Highway 9 and cast your way all the way to the trout hatchery. You can bike or walk the trail, or hop from spot to spot in your vehicle.
4. Viking Lake, Montgomery County
S C Hargis/Flickr
Viking Lake near Stanton is only 136 acres, but it offers big opportunities for anglers. The catch rates are good, with most largemouth being around 20 inches.

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5. Clear Lake, Cerro Gordo County
Winnie Logan/Google
Anglers will not be disappointed by the pristine waters of Clear Lake. Situated at the south edge of the city of Clear Lake, the eponymous body of water is home to an abundant variety of fish, including: yellow bass, largemouth bass, channel catfish, walleye, and more.
6. Lake Ahquabi, near Indianola
Kvhuegel/Wikimedia Commons
According to the Iowa DNR, anglers at Lake Ahquabi have, at times, caught an average of 2.7 fish per hour, twice the catch rate of most Iowa lakes. Look for bluegill, black and white crappies, redear sunfish, largemouth bass, and channel catfish.
7. Little River Lake, near Leon
Little River Recreation Area/Facebook
Little River Recreation Area is a lake located about about an hour from Des Moines, and it's a hot spot for fall fishing. The lake produces healthy populations of walleye, bluegill, largemouth bass, and channel catfish.
8. Cedar River, between Mitchell Dam and Nashua
Denise Krebs/Flickr
The Cedar River offers quality smallmouth fishing, especially the stretch between the Mitchell Dam (in the city of Mitchell) and the city of Nashua in Floyd County, as there is cleaner than average water.
9. Pleasant Creek Lake, Palo
Colleen Hepner/Flickr
Pleasant Creek Lake in Linn County is a 400-acre lake that offers plenty of excellent opportunities for anglers. You can expect to see plenty of bluegills, white bass, hybrid striped bass, largemouth bass, and more.

Grab your fishing rod and tackle box, a cooler full of cold drinks, sunscreen, and a bottle of bug spray because it’s time to head out for some of the best fishing in Iowa! Are there any spots we missed on this list? What are some of your favorite spots for fishing in the Hawkeye State?

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More to Explore

Where To Find The Best Fishing In Iowa

Trent Jonas | January 05, 2023

Iowa Fishing Lakes

Several bodies of water in the state are designed as Iowa fishing lakes, that is, they're stocked with fish by the DNR to ensure that anglers are rarely disappointed. You can find a list of such fishing lakes, reservoirs, and ponds on the Iowa DNR's website. 

Other Fishing Lakes In Iowa

While the Hawkeye State does not have a large number of lakes, you'll certainly find many excellent fishing lakes in Iowa. From Iowa's Great Lakes region, which includes Spirit Lake and the Okobojis to the Coralville Reservoir and Lake MacBride, you're sure to find a lake to catch the species you're chasing.

Some Of The Other Best Fishing Spots In Iowa

In the Driftless Area of northeastern Iowa, many small streams are clean enough and cold enough to support trout, which makes many of the streams in this part of the state some of the best fishing spots in Iowa. You'll find trout streams in several counties, including Howard, Winneshiek, Allamakee, Clayton, and Delaware. Fish hatcheries in Decorah, Elkader, and Manchester stock many of the streams with rainbow and brown trout on a regular basis. Some, however, are considered "put and grow streams," in which the trout are left to breed and grow naturally. In some creeks, the DNR has experimented with reintroducing brook trout, a smaller species and the only salmonid native to the region.

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