I have been busy all summer and haven't made fishing a priority this year. I'm moving close to a small lake I haven't fished since I was a kid, Hickory Grove in Story County. Once I'm done with my move, I'll try to get out there and post a report. It was drained and re-stocked a few years back, so I expect the fishing should be good but might not be many large fish.
I've been hearing that the cats were hot on the Iowa River from Iowa Falls to Tama, but the water is high right now.
Pine Lake at Eldora has been a very consistent producer for me over the years. Fish in the rip rap below the Upper Pine Lake dam, and in the creek that flows between Upper Pine and Lower Pine. The bite can be streaky - you'll get fish after fish for a few minutes, then nothing for an hour, and then it'll get hot again. Big crappies can be found in the brush at the big bend in the creek. Be prepared to lose a jig or two in the brush. Use shallow running crank baits like a Wee R or Crickhopper, or top water like a Torpedo, for bass around the moss and weeds in the creek. In the rip rap below the upper dam, use a small Road Runner or small Beetle Spin for bluegills and bass. Dunking worms into the holes in the rip rap works surprisingly well but you'll catch 10 little ones for every eating size bluegill. There are decent cats in the creek too. Paddle a kayak up the creek from the lower lake to float back down with cat bait or a glob of nightcrawler on the bottom. I've not had good luck very often fishing the upper lake. Sometimes guys hit crappies on the flat about 100 feet out, just north of the boat dock. On the lower lake you can hit all species around the dam in the shallow water between the boat dock and the dam. The little bait stealing bluegills can get annoying though.
