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Blog Posts > For Giant Whitetail Deer – No Better Place than Iowa

For Giant Whitetail Deer – No Better Place than Iowa

Casey Mekelburg

| May 10, 2022

Casey Mekelburg
May 10, 2022

Location: Iowa

If hunting big whitetails is at the top of your list (as it is on mine), then purchasing an Iowa preference point every year is a must. The reason I bring it up now is because the deadline to obtain this valuable point is June 3.

Also, if you already possess the required number of preference points to draw an Iowa whitetail tag, then booking a hunt before this deadline is the next smart step to beat the rush to the top outfitters.

Here are two excellent deer camps well worth considering, either for this year or in the future. These are WTA TAGS’ most long-standing and reliable whitetail—big whitetail—outfitters in the great state of Iowa.

Afton, Iowa Whitetails

This comfortable, professionally-operated camp is run by a group of absolute gentlemen—simply great guys who know how to put on a deer camp. They are well-known, well-liked area firefighters, and during the Iowa deer season their stealthy approach has been helping our clients put the smackdown on some of the Midwest’s biggest bucks. This country has more of a roll to it with huge stands of hardwood ridges and deep ravines leading into flowing creek bottoms and massive cornfields. It is a true masterpiece combination of habitat and opportunity, and an absolute pleasure to hunt. The biggest whitetails in the country roam these hollows. The outfitter has the area stacked with strategically placed, extremely comfortable Millennium ladder stands for long sits in the timber, if necessary.

Availability here for 2022 consists of 3 archery openings from October 31–November 5, 2022 and 3 openings from November 14–19, 2022. If you have at least four preference points in your pocket, you should consider booking this archery hunt today. We also have 4 shotgun openings for December 3–7 and 3 muzzleloader openings for January 3–7, 2023. The shotgun and muzzleloader hunts will take at least two points to draw the tag.

Iowa Whitetail Hunting

This hunt takes place near the town of Brooks. This middle-of-nowhere location is a haven for big bucks because it has a perfect mix of farmland, thickets, cedars, and hardwoods…ideal habitat for whitetails. And, this outfitter controls thousands of acres and has dozens of strategically located, comfortable stands. Morning sets, evening sets, different wind directions—this outfitter is completely dialed in. And on top of the great hunting, this family operation will make you feel at home as you settle in for the week. Their newly constructed lodge and excellent home-cooked, hardy meals will help keep you rested and focused during your days perched in the stand. If you are interested in archery hunting in 2022 and have four preference points, there are 3 openings for November 13–18, 2022.

Also, several openings are available for the December shotgun and December/January muzzleloader. And these firearm hunts require only one preference point to book.

The state of Iowa offers a deer hunter his or her best chance at harvesting a Booner, especially during the November archery season. I also believe Iowa, particularly the operations mentioned here, is primed to peak again, both from a deer-numbers standpoint and age-class perspective. I can’t say it any clearer, now is the time to book Iowa!

If I could bow hunt the big-buck country of Iowa every year I certainly would, but I can’t. It takes preference points. At a very minimum, you should buy a point before the June 3rd application deadline. In the near future, you will be glad you did. If you are already sitting on the required points to draw (four points for archery, one point for gun), the sooner you cash in these points, the better so you can enjoy your hunt and also start building points for a future hunt. Don’t sit still, not for a year, not for a season. Never. Cash in those points, go hunting, build points, repeat.

Call and we can discuss the details of the two hunt options I mentioned above. Remember, the June 5 application deadline day falls on a Sunday this year. That can trip some people up. Don’t wait until the 5th and miss out. Call us and we’ll handle your application and/or book your hunt. June is almost here. Call by Friday, June 3.

We can be reached at 800-755-TAGS (8247) or email us here.

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Dialed In: A 360-Inch Bull Elk and the Luck that Made It Happen

Winning one hunt sweepstakes through Worldwide Trophy Adventures feels like a long shot, but winning two? That’s the kind of luck I still can’t fully wrap my head around. I started entering WTA sweepstakes a few years ago, taking full advantage of their Bonus Bucks program and hoping to win someday. I’ve hunted whitetails in Minnesota’s flat woods, mule deer out West, and Sitka blacktails in Alaska’s rugged country, but this was different. When Worldwide Trophy Adventures called to tell me I’d won their 2024 Nevada bull elk hunt, just a year after winning a Utah mule deer hunt from them, I was stunned. Two sweepstakes wins in two years? Unreal. And the icing on the cake? I’d be hunting with a crew that truly knows their elk. As Erik Schell put it: “John, when it comes to elk, these guys are paid killers.” He wasn’t wrong.

I opted to drive from Minnesota to keep costs down and bring back as much meat as possible. I loaded my truck with Yeti coolers and hit the road for the long drive, stopping in Denver for a steak dinner with a hunting buddy before tackling the last 10 hours to Baker, Nevada. That stretch through Loveland Pass was sketchy with snow and ice, and on the way back I detoured through Gillette, Wyoming to avoid a 30″ Denver snow dump. Long haul, but worth it to have my truck for the meat.

Baker is a speck of a town, population 16, just shy of the Utah line. The outfitter set us up in an Airbnb called The Corner Place. It was homey, with enough beds for me, another hunter, and the guide crew. The kitchen had stacks of premade meals like casseroles and snacks, whipped up by the outfitter’s wife. We heated them up after long days, but if we got back late, we’d hit the Border Crossing, a bar and greasy spoon split between Nevada and Utah. One side had slot machines, the other a gas station. We’d grab burgers and a bucket of Budweiser, the guide Richie’s favorite, and swap stories. It was simple, but it hit the spot.

The outfitter’s team was world-class. They’d been scouting for a week, pinpointing a bachelor group of bulls in a canyon 20 miles north. That first night, we sat around the Airbnb’s kitchen table sipping beers and scrolling through their scouting videos. Three bulls stood out: a beat-up 6×6 they called Bondo, a heavy 5×5, and a narrower 7×7. We decided to hit the canyon at dawn.

Day one was no joke. Richie, my guide, led me up the mountain before light, climbing a couple thousand feet. The air was a bit thinner than in Minnesota, but Richie kept a steady pace. Two spotters, Cameron and Ryan, worked the opposite canyon rim. It felt like I had the dream team for this once-in-a-lifetime elk hunt. We eased onto a rock ledge about 400 yards above a bench where five bulls were feeding: Bondo, the 5×5, a thin 6×6, a young 5×5, and a spike. No 7×7. This was the first time I was faced with taking a bull elk, but Richie talked me through it. “The 5×5’s got 30 inches of mass per side, swords in the 20s, probably 9 or 10 years old. Scores at least 330. Solid first bull.”

I went prone on the ledge, dialing my Gunwerks Nexus in 7 PRC to 387 yards. Richie double-checked: “386 yards.” Right as I lined up, the bull bedded down. Great. I’d waited out a mule deer for five hours once, so I knew the drill. Lying on snow with a 20° northwest wind kicking up, I started shivering after an hour. Richie saw it. “You good? We can back off, build a fire, or shoot him bedded. There’s a branch over some of his vitals. Can you slip a round under it?”

I’d put in time at Gunwerks’ Long-Range University: a hands-on, no-BS school that focuses on real-world shooting conditions, not just benchrest skills. They train you to read wind, manage stress, and make clean, ethical shots in exactly the situations that hunters face in the field. I knew my rifle, my dope, and my limits. “I got it,” I said. I checked the yardage, my level, controlled my breathing, and squeezed. The bull collapsed. “You smoked him!” Richie said. When he tried to get up, a second round finished it.

Reaching the bull was an experience I won’t forget. I’ve taken plenty of deer over the years, but this 360″ elk was in a league of its own—sheer mass, thick beams, and antlers that looked heavy even from a distance. Standing over him, the scale of the hunt hit me. We built a small fire, took photos, and soaked in the moment. Then came the hard part. The canyon was steep and treacherous, slick with snow and loose shale. I took a spill on the descent, and every step down was a test of footing and balance with meat on our backs. It took over three hours to reach the canyon floor and get the bull out, but it was worth every bit of effort. Back at camp, we celebrated the way hunters do—cold beers and a good story to tell.

We caped the bull that night and packed the meat in coolers, though it was cold enough outside to keep everything fresh. I hung around a few days, spotting for the other hunter’s bull, glassing canyons, and enjoying the Nevada backcountry. No pressure, just good times behind the glass. When I left, I strapped the antlers to my truck, crammed the coolers in, and drove 24 hours straight home, still buzzing. Back in Minnesota, I vacuum-sealed the meat, enough for months of meals, and dropped the rack with a taxidermist for a shoulder mount.

This hunt was as good as it gets. The outfitter knew every inch of that country, had bulls dialed in, and gave me options. For a guy who’s now won two WTA sweepstakes, I’ll tell you straight: these hunts are real and the sweepstakes are worth it. Nevada’s elk country and that crew of “paid killers” gave me a bull and a story I’ll be telling for years.

Don’t miss your chance to enter to win this world-class elk hunt in Nevada. The entries are limited…only 1,750 total entries, giving you very good odds of winning this elk valued at $72,000!

Enter the Nevada Elk Sweepstakes