Bettendorf, IA...potential move.

[Xxtavixx]

Hello all,

Anyone familiar with this part of IA? The wife and I are talking about a move there to be closer to her family. Were currently in Jacksonville FL.

I know the weather there from a few visits and I know its a way smaller town. So lets get to the heart of it. Hunting.

Deer season seems short. Hows land access? Do you have to lease or can you buddy up with some farmers or is there really enough public land?

Id be giving up feral hogs for better deer. But I like year round hunting. Any good hunting outside deer season?

 

[Scottyboy]

My sister in law lived in the quad cities (east moline) and enjoyed her time there. She spent most of the time on the river, fishing was great!

Cannot speak to the hunting being a NR, but I know that part of the state is definitely on my radar for next year when I will have enough points to draw my tag.

Seasons (gun season) here are generally much shorter than down south or on the east coast (for white tail), you will also see a much lower bag limit than what you might be used too. Don’t let that sway you though, archery seasons run septemberish-decemberish in Minnesota, it’s a short drive of Iowa’s seasons don’t satisfy your needs. For Iowa, look at archery as the season runs over the rut whereas muzzleloader/slug is post rut. You cannot go wrong either way.

I’m sure land access is tough with all the attention Iowa gets, but there is a good bit of public and depending on where you land, I might be able to throw a few names at you to give a call in the quad cities area

 

[toadmeister]

I live about 75 miles north of the Quad Cities, NE Iowa where it gets hilly and Bucks grow big.

Lots of farms along the river have good hunting but I don’t know of much public land there around the Quad Cities.

What are you looking at for employment?


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[Bramk]

Lived there for 4 years. Couldn't force me to go back. Hunting is good about an hour north but I sure wouldn't go there for a week out of the year. The quad cities are very dirty as a whole.. especially Rock island and Davenport. We had a 15 year old boy down the street shoot his 17 year old girlfriend because she was pregnant. We lived in Davenport, called it Davenpit.



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[Xxtavixx]

Yikes. Their crime rate is quite a bit lower as a whole than Jax is, with much higher rated schools.

Im currently in finance. Born in jax, wife is from the quad cities.

I was concerned that leases are ridiculously expensive bc of how much attention IA gets.

 

[SoDaky]

Never lived anywhere near but if you move,you have Illinois near.State's a mess but there still is VERY good deer hunting nearby.Access tough though but doable via lease.Hunted a lot NE of there in Illinois.

 

[Johnson27]

I've lived in the QC since 1974. Great place to raise a family. It has it's +/- just like every where else.
IA QC
higher home prices
lower property taxes
graduated income tax
better run government

IL QC
lower home prices
higher property taxes
graduated income tax coming soon
government by who you know (cronyism, nepotism, + any other kind of corruption you can think of)

Within 1 hr of the QC, public hunting access is limited in both states. I'm one of the lucky ones with families that own farm/hunting land in both states. Getting access to private ground can be done, but it will take some work.
Both DNR websites have public hunting atlas. These would be a great place to start.

PM me if you have any questions.

 

[Gearqueer]

I Lived in the Illinois side of the QC for ten years up until recently. I had to move to Chicago for work. I’d stick to the IA side (Scott Co or Bettendorf) if I had to do it all over. IL is a mess politically and fiscally and is getting worse.

Hunting wise: assuming you’re a bow hunter you will have the opportunity to kill Pope &Young Whitetails every year, public or not. There are multiple areas to hunt public around the area but you’re better off working towards a private lease.

I don’t know anything about FL hunting, but I know I loved hunting and living around the QC. There are areas of Scott County, Rock Island County and Mercer county where booners are taken every year. Join an archery club nearby and get to know some dudes. The Milan Rifle Club is a gem also.

 

[Johnson27]

If you're a bow hunter, check out Davenport Valley Archery Club. They both indoor and outdoor ranges. R & R Sports for archery/hunting supplies.

 

[Xxtavixx]

Thanks for the tips. Im really a rifle hunter but open to bow. Truth is you dont get a a good blood trail in a swamp so I dont use the bow for anything but fun target shooting, and Im not good enough to take a shot much past 20-25 yards confidently

 

[jmart33]

Lived there for 4 years. Couldn't force me to go back. Hunting is good about an hour north but I sure wouldn't go there for a week out of the year. The quad cities are very dirty as a whole.. especially Rock island and Davenport. We had a 15 year old boy down the street shoot his 17 year old girlfriend because she was pregnant. We lived in Davenport, called it Davenpit.



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Lived there for 4 years. Couldn't force me to go back. Hunting is good about an hour north but I sure wouldn't go there for a week out of the year. The quad cities are very dirty as a whole.. especially Rock island and Davenport. We had a 15 year old boy down the street shoot his 17 year old girlfriend because she was pregnant. We lived in Davenport, called it Davenpit.



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[jmart33]

Lived there for 4 years. Couldn't force me to go back. Hunting is good about an hour north but I sure wouldn't go there for a week out of the year. The quad cities are very dirty as a whole.. especially Rock island and Davenport. We had a 15 year old boy down the street shoot his 17 year old girlfriend because she was pregnant. We lived in Davenport, called it Davenpit.



Sent from my iPhone using Tapata

Lived there for 4 years. Couldn't force me to go back. Hunting is good about an hour north but I sure wouldn't go there for a week out of the year. The quad cities are very dirty as a whole.. especially Rock island and Davenport. We had a 15 year old boy down the street shoot his 17 year old girlfriend because she was pregnant. We lived in Davenport, called it Davenpit.



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Any insight into the VRBO market?

 

[bdg848]

Hello, I live in Bettendorf. You said you are a rifle hunter but I'm going to assume you know we are shotgun or straight wall cartridge only, right?

All the public land, except for one or two spots, is in Clinton County or Muscatine County 35-50 minutes to the north and west respectively.

Firearms deer season on public land around here is packed...like, just sleep in your truck at the parking lot the night before if you want to get to your spot before billy bob steals it. You can still kill deer though. Archery is a lot less busy but if you lease land or get in good with a land owner then you're fine but remember everybody and their cousin is trying to score private land access. There are also urban archery hunts with unlimited doe tags at about $15 each in Davenport and Bettendorf. That's pretty fun. There is "okay" pheasant hunting. Rabbits, squirrels of course. I hunt Turkey in the spring. I fish and kayak in the summer. The only thing to hunt year round is coyotes.

As for violent crime, as long as you aren't a thug and don't hang out with thugs, you will be fine but there are shootings multiple times per week in Davenport. Bettendorf is better but not necessarily immune. Davenport has about 10 homicides per year...all scumbags killing other scumbags and then going to prison for it....win win if you ask me. Property crime? Keep your stuff locked up. Right now, people can't seem to comprehend why they cant leave their car unlocked, running, in their drive way. They are shocked when they come outside and its gone. That's basically it. The rest is petty thefts. I've lived here for four years and it's not that bad for a metro area of 400,000.

There is enough to keep me busy in town with shopping etc, and then hiking, fishing, kayaking or even urban archery hunting in the larger parks. A short drive puts me on public hunting land out in the country.

I like it here pretty well. If I move, it will be out west when I retire. P.M. me if you have other questions.

 

[Xxtavixx]

Hello, I live in Bettendorf. You said you are a rifle hunter but I'm going to assume you know we are shotgun or straight wall cartridge only, right?

All the public land, except for one or two spots, is in Clinton County or Muscatine County 35-50 minutes to the north and west respectively.

Firearms deer season on public land around here is packed...like, just sleep in your truck at the parking lot the night before if you want to get to your spot before billy bob steals it. You can still kill deer though. Archery is a lot less busy but if you lease land or get in good with a land owner then you're fine but remember everybody and their cousin is trying to score private land access. There are also urban archery hunts with unlimited doe tags at about $15 each in Davenport and Bettendorf. That's pretty fun. There is "okay" pheasant hunting. Rabbits, squirrels of course. I hunt Turkey in the spring. I fish and kayak in the summer. The only thing to hunt year round is coyotes.

As for violent crime, as long as you aren't a thug and don't hang out with thugs, you will be fine but there are shootings multiple times per week in Davenport. Bettendorf is better but not necessarily immune. Davenport has about 10 homicides per year...all scumbags killing other scumbags and then going to prison for it....win win if you ask me. Property crime? Keep your stuff locked up. Right now, people can't seem to comprehend why they cant leave their car unlocked, running, in their drive way. They are shocked when they come outside and its gone. That's basically it. The rest is petty thefts. I've lived here for four years and it's not that bad for a metro area of 400,000.

There is enough to keep me busy in town with shopping etc, and then hiking, fishing, kayaking or even urban archery hunting in the larger parks. A short drive puts me on public hunting land out in the country.

I like it here pretty well. If I move, it will be out west when I retire. P.M. me if you have other questions.

Thanks! Yea, i knew it was a straight wall state - i had a 45-70 at the time of posting. I sold it after some long talks with the wife where we decided that moving to the quad cities sounds good on paper, but its overall not the life move she thinks it is.

Im sure it will come up again as she waxes and wanes on how much she misses her family. Too bad I cannot convince her family and my family to move out west or somewhere like SC or NC even. Its either jacksonville FL or quad cities with my family or hers.

 

[caesAR15]

Hello, I live in Bettendorf. You said you are a rifle hunter but I'm going to assume you know we are shotgun or straight wall cartridge only, right?

All the public land, except for one or two spots, is in Clinton County or Muscatine County 35-50 minutes to the north and west respectively.

Firearms deer season on public land around here is packed...like, just sleep in your truck at the parking lot the night before if you want to get to your spot before billy bob steals it. You can still kill deer though. Archery is a lot less busy but if you lease land or get in good with a land owner then you're fine but remember everybody and their cousin is trying to score private land access. There are also urban archery hunts with unlimited doe tags at about $15 each in Davenport and Bettendorf. That's pretty fun. There is "okay" pheasant hunting. Rabbits, squirrels of course. I hunt Turkey in the spring. I fish and kayak in the summer. The only thing to hunt year round is coyotes.

As for violent crime, as long as you aren't a thug and don't hang out with thugs, you will be fine but there are shootings multiple times per week in Davenport. Bettendorf is better but not necessarily immune. Davenport has about 10 homicides per year...all scumbags killing other scumbags and then going to prison for it....win win if you ask me. Property crime? Keep your stuff locked up. Right now, people can't seem to comprehend why they cant leave their car unlocked, running, in their drive way. They are shocked when they come outside and its gone. That's basically it. The rest is petty thefts. I've lived here for four years and it's not that bad for a metro area of 400,000.

There is enough to keep me busy in town with shopping etc, and then hiking, fishing, kayaking or even urban archery hunting in the larger parks. A short drive puts me on public hunting land out in the country.

I like it here pretty well. If I move, it will be out west when I retire. P.M. me if you have other questions.

@xX45Xx Another Bettendorf resident here (@bdg848 I'll be dropping you a PM shortly, we should link up)

Overall I'd say this is a pretty fair assessment. I think you'd like it here OP. Public access in Iowa is pitifully low. We're 47th in the nation as far as the percentage of acres of public ground vs. private (2.8% public). But I wouldn't let that stop you. What do you do for work? Once you and the wife get in and start building a network I'd be surprised if you couldn't find access to some private. Who knows, if she's got family up here you may already be able to leverage their connections pretty easily. Just gotta put some feelers out.

For what it's worth, I'd stick to the Iowa side. Illinois is a disaster politically and only getting worse. Sorry, not sorry IL guys...

I grew up here thinking I'd leave someday. But over the years I've come to love Iowa, especially now that I've got a family of my own. There's nothing flashy about it, but it's got the stuff that matters -- good schools, taxes that aren't outrageous, and in my case (and yours apparently) family nearby. Cherry on top is good deer hunting and the fact that in 12 hours or less drive I can be in a western state hunting big game, or northern Minnesota/Wisconsin fishing. Extra, extra bonus, we don't have hurricanes

Feel free to PM me if I can be of any help at all.

 

[Xxtavixx]

@xX45Xx Another Bettendorf resident here (@bdg848 I'll be dropping you a PM shortly, we should link up)

Overall I'd say this is a pretty fair assessment. I think you'd like it here OP. Public access in Iowa is pitifully low. We're 47th in the nation as far as the percentage of acres of public ground vs. private (2.8% public). But I wouldn't let that stop you. What do you do for work? Once you and the wife get in and start building a network I'd be surprised if you couldn't find access to some private. Who knows, if she's got family up here you may already be able to leverage their connections pretty easily. Just gotta put some feelers out.

For what it's worth, I'd stick to the Iowa side. Illinois is a disaster politically and only getting worse. Sorry, not sorry IL guys...

I grew up here thinking I'd leave someday. But over the years I've come to love Iowa, especially now that I've got a family of my own. There's nothing flashy about it, but it's got the stuff that matters -- good schools, taxes that aren't outrageous, and in my case (and yours apparently) family nearby. Cherry on top is good deer hunting and the fact that in 12 hours or less drive I can be in a western state hunting big game, or northern Minnesota/Wisconsin fishing. Extra, extra bonus, we don't have hurricanes

Feel free to PM me if I can be of any help at all.

You nailed it, it would have been getting me closer to western hunting more than anything. I couldnt do IL, either. The school system in Iowa is great, and so are most of the people.

You may not have hurricanes, but I dont plow my drive. Youve prob spent more time plowing your drive in the last 5 years than i have in hurricanes in my life.

Although the panic buying gets old...so old

 

[bdg848]

No hurricanes ....but whatever a "derecho" is knocked our power out for a week lol