Family is phsyched about hunting a gator. We got our letter for zone 1. I would really appreciate some advice on where I can find gators in zone 1. It was not my first choice area and we are really not familiar with that area so any help would be most appreciated.
Also If you could all chime in on what method you use to secure the gator before dispatch that would also be appreciated. I was planning maybe a few heavy rods and reels with strong braded line and a large trebble hook. Its my first time ever doing this so any help would be great.
Hopefully ill get a tag as well. this is my second yr running applying. I have went with a friend who has successfully drawn twice. We got gators both times. once on a snag rig and once with a bowfishin rig. I know people who swear by both
thanks been watching video on youtube , wonderfull information there. where can I find Alligators , is there any area that is known to have a lot of them?
2012 DLV 198 Carolina Skiff
Humingbird 998 Side scan and GPS
GPS trolling motor
My Cherokee indian name is asuvsgi nahna adadudi or Fishes on Credit
We’ve been hunting gators since the first year they had tags. We always use a snag rig. The first couple years you could get one using a spear or a bow but the gators are getting smarter and it’s harder and harder to get close enough to get them using either the bow or a spear. With the snag rig, you can get them if you can see them just about. I snagged one really far away last year. Plus it’s like a combination of fishing and hunting. Once you snag one, the fight is on and it’s a blast. I have several snag rigs on the boat. Two with 50lb power pro and one with 150lb power pro. The first two are used for the first cast when they’re far awy. One is a bcakup for when you get snagged. Once we fight them for a while they like to sit on the bottom. That’s when we start tossing the 150lb rig over them trying to snag them so we can convince them to come on up and say hi. First year all we had was one snag rig and the 11’4" gator stayed on the bottom for over an hour two different times. It took four hours to get him boatside. Now when they decide to rest on the bottom, we have a surprise for them and can yank them up with that 150lb rig.
Wow Pawayne, that was a lot of useful information there. thank you so much for your insight. Not living in zone 1 and not usually looking for gators, i could really use some useful info on where to look. I mean just general place to start. Being from out of town I dont want to put in 20 miles from the nearest gator. Any general information would be super great.
2012 DLV 198 Carolina Skiff
Humingbird 998 Side scan and GPS
GPS trolling motor
My Cherokee indian name is asuvsgi nahna adadudi or Fishes on Credit
pawayne- did you buy your snag rigs or make them?
We make our snag rigs. We buy the hooks, I forget what size, but BIG trebles (maybe 12/0?). We used to pour lead around them, made a mold so the lead was around the center. We started just tying a weight to the bottom in the center which gives you a wider gap. The poured ones, the lead fills a little of the gap. We just use around a 1oz bank sinker tied tightly to the bottom center of the treble hook. It actually works better since it kinda keeps the tail end of the treble hanging down and gives us a better hookup rate. The rod with the 150lb power pro that we use to try and snag them off the bottom with, we found we had to up the weight to 3 or 4oz. We found that those gators will go to the center of the river where the current is strong and sit on the bottom and we had a hard time calculating how far up to throw and would drift over them a lot. At times they were parked on the bottom in over 20’ of water.
[quote]Originally posted by genehunter
Wow Pawayne, that was a lot of useful information there. thank you so much for your insight. Not living in zone 1 and not usually looking for gators, i could really use some useful info on where to look. I mean just general place to start. Being from out of town I dont want to put in 20 miles from the nearest gator. Any general information would be super great.
Can’t help you with Zone 1. I hunt Zone 2 or my favorite, Zone 4. My favorite because that’s where I do most of my fishing. I can tell you that the gators will congregate in the fall in an area that has a lot of Mullet. There are like feeding spots for them. Ditch mouths, Rice field drains, etc. Outgoing tide they go there to eat the Mullet.
I’ll be down in zone 1 for the first time this year. Have a friend that got drawn for southern. Wayne, my snag rig is 25 yds of 200 lb. braid top-shot over 65 lb. (My cobia rod). That way I can still cast long, and can lay on the power when I get over them. I have a couple of huge snag hooks on para-cord for those stubborn lizards. I’m gonna plan a trip to scout sometime in the next few weeks…Ken
21’ Hydra-Sports Yamaha F200
16’ G3 Yamaha F50
quote:
Originally posted by slickdeckI’ll be down in zone 1 for the first time this year. Have a friend that got drawn for southern. Wayne, my snag rig is 25 yds of 200 lb. braid top-shot over 65 lb. (My cobia rod). That way I can still cast long, and can lay on the power when I get over them. I have a couple of huge snag hooks on para-cord for those stubborn lizards. I’m gonna plan a trip to scout sometime in the next few weeks…Ken
21’ Hydra-Sports Yamaha F200
16’ G3 Yamaha F50
Yea, I didn’t mention the para cord hand line we use when they’re next to the boat. I usually get the biggest, dumbest Redneck to throw that one over them and watch when they start their rolling. [:0] I make sure to tell them NOT to wrap that one around their hand prior to throwing over em. Hate to have my man wrapped up with the gator and trying to figure out which one to shoot. 
pawayne,
Thanks for all the info. Do you mind posting some pictures of your snag rigs?
quote:
Originally posted by hankpawayne,
Thanks for all the info. Do you mind posting some pictures of your snag rigs?
I’ll try to remember to get some pics. No promises as I’m old and have a bad memory.
I’ll add to what I’ve already posted to help you see how we finish the hunt. Once we have the gator boatside, usually with two snag hooks in him, we throw a very large treble over him as close to the head as possible. This huge treble is attached to a strong cord, (para-cord as Ken calls his). There is a large foam float attached to the end of this in case he goes crazy and gets loose from us. We want to be able to lift his head up so we can then jab a spear into the side of his neck. The spear head comes off of the spear and we have a para-cord attched to the head of the spear. Again, there is a large float on the end of this also, just in case. Once that spear head is in him, he is going no where. That’s when we lift his head up for the kill shot. A lot of mistakes have been made at this point. You have to hit the head in the soft spot at the base of the skull. I’ve had solid metal 45 cal bullets bounce off their head at a distance of 2’. Believe me, it only knocks them out long enough for you to get them in the boat. Ask me how I know. That’s why you need to also cut their spine after wrapping their mouth closed with tape and prior to bringing them aboard. Last year the guys at work came in telling me how they saw a group of guys standing around their boat at the gas station with a live gator crawling around in their boat. Unfortunately none of them took any video.
Of course you can skip some of these steps with smaller gators, but you won’t get away with skipping any of these steps if you get a gator 10’ and above. They’re two very different animals.
If you have a chance, it is a good idea to go to one of the seminars that are given by pros explaining all this and usually accompanied by some equipment demos. Gator Gitter Dennis, a buddy of ours does a few of these each season and they’re very information.
I got my denial letter yesterday for two years runnin. this sport must be getting to popular.
honestly its all math and a little luck, consider the zones you requested and your points.
2012 DLV 198 Carolina Skiff
Humingbird 998 Side scan and GPS
GPS trolling motor
My Cherokee indian name is asuvsgi nahna adadudi or Fishes on Credit