gator huntin'....
05-29-2005, 05:31 PM
#1
Typical Buck
Thread Starter
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: florida
Posts: 972
gator huntin'....
I'm planning on trying to get a gator hunt this year and was just wonderin' if any of y'all have ever taken a gator with a bow (crossbow)? I'd be able to use a bang stick but my nephew reaaaaaaaally wants to make it a bow only kill.
Is there any advice that y'all can give to make it more successful?
actually any gator huntin' advice would be greatly appreciated...i've caught lil ones with my hands but i've never gone after a big ol boy like we're plannin' on...i'm kinda really nervous about it.
thanks in advance.
Is there any advice that y'all can give to make it more successful?
actually any gator huntin' advice would be greatly appreciated...i've caught lil ones with my hands but i've never gone after a big ol boy like we're plannin' on...i'm kinda really nervous about it.
thanks in advance.
05-29-2005, 05:36 PM
#2
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: Leesburg Fl
Posts: 3,245
RE: gator huntin'....
i've never been personally but i know a couple of people who have. be sure to use a powerful bow with quality broadheads that will definately penetrate and not break. be sure it's dead before you bring it into the boat. are ya'll going guided? but anyhow enjoy yourself and be safe.
p.s. where are ya'll going?
p.s. where are ya'll going?
05-30-2005, 06:15 PM
#3
Typical Buck
Thread Starter
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: florida
Posts: 972
RE: gator huntin'....
we'll be huntin' somewhere on the st.johns...probably south of Brevard County....i'll be going with my nephew who is the state trapper for Brevard....one of them.
he knows what he's doing and where to go but i'm just a lil nervous that his wild and reckless redneck side will come out and he'll expect me to do something that most others wouldn't....i know i'm probably being paranoid but that's just me.
he's come home with stories of bringing "almost dead" gators in the boat....one reason i'm kinda scared.
what type of broadheads should i use...with deer and turkey i use muzzys.
he knows what he's doing and where to go but i'm just a lil nervous that his wild and reckless redneck side will come out and he'll expect me to do something that most others wouldn't....i know i'm probably being paranoid but that's just me.
he's come home with stories of bringing "almost dead" gators in the boat....one reason i'm kinda scared.
what type of broadheads should i use...with deer and turkey i use muzzys.
05-30-2005, 06:33 PM
#4
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: Leesburg Fl
Posts: 3,245
RE: gator huntin'....
i don't really know about that. i think muzzy or some company actually makes a gator gettor head. i'm not sure but i'm pretty sure. it just all depends. if all else fails the muzzys should work. as long as you're shooting where you're supposed to you should be fine.
i've heard some interesting stories about not quite dead gators also. be ready for a second or third shot. makes sure you have plenty of good quality arrows.
i've heard some interesting stories about not quite dead gators also. be ready for a second or third shot. makes sure you have plenty of good quality arrows.
05-30-2005, 10:06 PM
#5
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Louisville Kentucky USA
Posts: 1,207
RE: gator huntin'....
OK, I've never been but have read about it. Apparently, you have to shoot them at the base of the skull to kill them. They need to be baited and hooked to bring them up to the boat to accomplish this. You can then dispatch them with whatever weapon is legal. Shooting gators that aren't tethered to some type of retreval line would result in many lost or wounded gators. Here is a summary from another site on their hunting trip.
"Second Night/Morning hunt: On this hunt we had my friend, Dennis, who had just flown in from Texas, exclusively for this hunt. Since we couldn’t get close to the gators the night before we switched tactics and started baiting selected gators using rancid meat affixed to a 7/8’s inch wooden dowel (by regulation it must be just short of two inches) tied to 40 feet of braided twine to which is further tied into 60 lb monofilament spooled on a Penn Senator 4/0 reel (and rod). The idea is that the gator swallows the bait and the dowel gets “caught” in the stomach and you pull the gator up to the boat while a partner is standing by ready with a harpoon. For this year, the bait of choice was rancid chicken and we found it to work just as well as the rancid hog lungs we normally use. The first couple of gators that took the bait headed for the thick aquatic vegetation. After clearing a hole in the vegetation we would gently pull the gators up to the boat, but invariably they would hit the bottom of the boat and then take off pulling the boat around a bit. One gator was small and the other was around 8 foot, but after a bit of tug-of-war it came up head first, opened its mouth and we watched the bait pull out. 0 for 2.
The next gator was a nice one and it headed into the thick vegetation so we again had to scoop the vegetation away to make a clearing in order to see it’s size. It eventually headed to deeper water (tactic of larger gators), which made it easier to control and handle. Seeing it was at least an 8 footer Dennis made a nice harpoon shoot in the neck and it started taking line. We then lightly pulled it back toward the boat and Dennis secured a second harpoon in the neck area. Bringing it up to the boat again we maneuvered and submerged the head with a paddle and Dennis made a good shot with the 44 magnum bang stick to the back of the head. About this time an FWC airboat with two FWC officers came up to our boat (must have been watching us with night vision gear?) and waited for us to bring the gator into our boat and affix the gator tag. In response to the officers statement that the gator needed to be dead before it was brought aboard our boat, Dennis did a corneal reaction test (he’s a VET), which indicated it was dead. With the gator on board the officers then asked to see our permits and IDs. They were both polite and professional and after they checked us over we talked a bit about gators and the lake. At one point I checked to see what the sex was of the gator and found it to be a male. The two officers got a good laugh from that as I apparently aroused the deceased gator and they got to see what a male gator sports when it’s time to make little gators. I then got a bit of friendly hammering in the middle of Orange Lake from the two officers on account of my prowess at gator sex determination. I suppose it was kinda funny. After a couple of pictures they left and we went back to hunting.
Our next attempt resulted in a small 5 footer taking the bait and eventually releasing the bait. The next gator appeared to be a good gator, but skittish. We placed the bait and backed away leaving line out as we backed up. An hour later he picked up the bait and swam across the lake (at this point ~ 200 yards wide). We then started pulling in line and he became quite active and did quite a lot of pulling the boat and trying to swim off. He finally settled down and hung on the bottom and we gently lifted him up. Knowing this was a large gator, Eric jammed the harpoon behind the neck at the first chance and all hell broke loose [we later noted that the three inch harpoon shaft (5/16” diameter) had a serious bend to it as it had penetrated through of one of the very hard raised scales found all over their backs]. After pulling the boat around and rolling a few times we pulled him closer again and Eric secured a second harpoon in the neck. Pulling him back to the boat and submerging his head the 44 mag bang stick did its job again and we had our second gator (2 a.m.). We then took some pictures, drove to the gator processor and dropped off the gators in their cooler, and ended up home by 5:30 a.m. "
"Second Night/Morning hunt: On this hunt we had my friend, Dennis, who had just flown in from Texas, exclusively for this hunt. Since we couldn’t get close to the gators the night before we switched tactics and started baiting selected gators using rancid meat affixed to a 7/8’s inch wooden dowel (by regulation it must be just short of two inches) tied to 40 feet of braided twine to which is further tied into 60 lb monofilament spooled on a Penn Senator 4/0 reel (and rod). The idea is that the gator swallows the bait and the dowel gets “caught” in the stomach and you pull the gator up to the boat while a partner is standing by ready with a harpoon. For this year, the bait of choice was rancid chicken and we found it to work just as well as the rancid hog lungs we normally use. The first couple of gators that took the bait headed for the thick aquatic vegetation. After clearing a hole in the vegetation we would gently pull the gators up to the boat, but invariably they would hit the bottom of the boat and then take off pulling the boat around a bit. One gator was small and the other was around 8 foot, but after a bit of tug-of-war it came up head first, opened its mouth and we watched the bait pull out. 0 for 2.
The next gator was a nice one and it headed into the thick vegetation so we again had to scoop the vegetation away to make a clearing in order to see it’s size. It eventually headed to deeper water (tactic of larger gators), which made it easier to control and handle. Seeing it was at least an 8 footer Dennis made a nice harpoon shoot in the neck and it started taking line. We then lightly pulled it back toward the boat and Dennis secured a second harpoon in the neck area. Bringing it up to the boat again we maneuvered and submerged the head with a paddle and Dennis made a good shot with the 44 magnum bang stick to the back of the head. About this time an FWC airboat with two FWC officers came up to our boat (must have been watching us with night vision gear?) and waited for us to bring the gator into our boat and affix the gator tag. In response to the officers statement that the gator needed to be dead before it was brought aboard our boat, Dennis did a corneal reaction test (he’s a VET), which indicated it was dead. With the gator on board the officers then asked to see our permits and IDs. They were both polite and professional and after they checked us over we talked a bit about gators and the lake. At one point I checked to see what the sex was of the gator and found it to be a male. The two officers got a good laugh from that as I apparently aroused the deceased gator and they got to see what a male gator sports when it’s time to make little gators. I then got a bit of friendly hammering in the middle of Orange Lake from the two officers on account of my prowess at gator sex determination. I suppose it was kinda funny. After a couple of pictures they left and we went back to hunting.
Our next attempt resulted in a small 5 footer taking the bait and eventually releasing the bait. The next gator appeared to be a good gator, but skittish. We placed the bait and backed away leaving line out as we backed up. An hour later he picked up the bait and swam across the lake (at this point ~ 200 yards wide). We then started pulling in line and he became quite active and did quite a lot of pulling the boat and trying to swim off. He finally settled down and hung on the bottom and we gently lifted him up. Knowing this was a large gator, Eric jammed the harpoon behind the neck at the first chance and all hell broke loose [we later noted that the three inch harpoon shaft (5/16” diameter) had a serious bend to it as it had penetrated through of one of the very hard raised scales found all over their backs]. After pulling the boat around and rolling a few times we pulled him closer again and Eric secured a second harpoon in the neck. Pulling him back to the boat and submerging his head the 44 mag bang stick did its job again and we had our second gator (2 a.m.). We then took some pictures, drove to the gator processor and dropped off the gators in their cooler, and ended up home by 5:30 a.m. "
05-31-2005, 09:23 AM
#7
Join Date: May 2005
Location:
Posts: 47
RE: gator huntin'....
Pardon my ignorance, having never left the cozy sanctuary of my northwoods hunting (MN) 
Do people eat alligators? I actually wasnt even aware that you could hunt them - is this a new thing?
If you dont eat them, what is the purpose of hunting them? Please enlighten me!
Do people eat alligators? I actually wasnt even aware that you could hunt them - is this a new thing?
If you dont eat them, what is the purpose of hunting them? Please enlighten me!
05-31-2005, 10:35 AM
#8
Join Date: May 2005
Location: Ft. Myers Florida
Posts: 255
RE: gator huntin'....
ORIGINAL: needabow
Do people eat alligators? I actually wasnt even aware that you could hunt them - is this a new thing?
Do people eat alligators? I actually wasnt even aware that you could hunt them - is this a new thing?
I have eaten it all of my life. Most people only eat the tail, however I have found almost the entire gator to be good with the exception of the ribs. The jaw meat is actually about the best meat on the gator. If you ever get an opportunity you should try it! Gator hunting is legal and has been in FL. but it is a draw system to get tags!
