I’m mainly a saltwater guy but I frequently kayak fish at Sparkleberry Swamp and N. Lake Marion and was wondering on what works to catch gar? I see them everywhere so there has to be some way of catching them right?
“When men yield up the privilege of thinking, the last shadow of liberty quits the horizon.” - Thomas Paine
To catch gars use minnows under a float. I went to packs landing Sunday in the swamp and ion the river and seen a lot of them breaking water while I was fishing for shellcrackers.
We fished for them years ago, just for fun. They fight really well on light line. Get a small, 2 finger wide, bream or perch, alive or dead, doesn’t matter. Use a small snap on cork about 1" to 1 1/2" in diameter. Fish the bream about 6" to 8" under the cork. When the gar grabs the bream let your reel free spool. The gar will run very fast for maybe 20 yards. Then it will stop and the cork will come to the surface. It can’t eat the bream until it gets the tension from the cork released. Sometimes you can see the gar’s bill breaking the surface when it is actually eating the bream. When the cork goes under again gather up any slack line and set the hook hard. Be prepared for an aerial display as the gar will sometimes jump 3’ out of the water. Also, good luck unhooking the toothy rascal. We have also caught some pretty big largemouth while fishing for gars. They just hit hard and don’t run as fast as the gars.
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Originally posted by wooddogTo catch gars use minnows under a float. I went to packs landing Sunday in the swamp and ion the river and seen a lot of them breaking water while I was fishing for shellcrackers.
Is there any ideal type of hook to use or will anything work?
“When men yield up the privilege of thinking, the last shadow of liberty quits the horizon.” - Thomas Paine
I second the bream comment. But the 'ol frayed rope trick never fails. They can’t resist it.
My 10 year old likes to sight fish for Gar in the Santee River. I rig a small hook on a 24" long 25 pound test leader, attached to her 8 pound test main line. A small piece of cut bait ( bream ) casted in front of the Gar, and reeled back to where the fish spots it, works well. Give the Gar 15 seconds or so to work the bait into it’s mouth after it grabs the bait before setting the hook.
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Originally posted by SpoonmasterWe fished for them years ago, just for fun. They fight really well on light line. Get a small, 2 finger wide, bream or perch, alive or dead, doesn’t matter. Use a small snap on cork about 1" to 1 1/2" in diameter. Fish the bream about 6" to 8" under the cork. When the gar grabs the bream let your reel free spool. The gar will run very fast for maybe 20 yards. Then it will stop and the cork will come to the surface. It can’t eat the bream until it gets the tension from the cork released. Sometimes you can see the gar’s bill breaking the surface when it is actually eating the bream. When the cork goes under again gather up any slack line and set the hook hard. Be prepared for an aerial display as the gar will sometimes jump 3’ out of the water. Also, good luck unhooking the toothy rascal. We have also caught some pretty big largemouth while fishing for gars. They just hit hard and don’t run as fast as the gars.
^^^ This is how we used to get our ‘freshwater billfishing’ done. What a blast! White perch seem to work well, and it’s not hard to catch a handful of them. I’d recommend running a treble hook through the side of the fish just beneath the dorsal fin.
Try velcro!