By: Des Moines Register (blogs.desmoinesregister.com/dmr/index.php/2010/02/27/day-2-tons-of-people-lots-to-do/)

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources began the day with a shortlist of the best hunting, fishing and outdoor trips in the state. They included a few usual suspects, such as Okoboji and Honey Creek Resort, but the DNR folks also recommended a few spots that aren’t likely on most Iowans’ radar:

– Briggs Woods County Park, near Webster City. “This is something you have to do once in your life. You’ll forget you’re in Iowa,” said Kevin Baskins, spokesman for the DNR. “The fishing is incredible.”

Baskins said there is a larger channel catfish population density on the Boone River in that park than anywhere else in Iowa.

– White Rock Conservancy, near Coon Rapids. “It’s under the darkest sky in Iowa,” Baskins said. There are fewer than 10 yard lights on the Conservancy’s 4,300 acres.