caught in Florida

[briarpatch]

My son and his friend caught this saturday night in the Indian River.

[BBF]

What lure did they use ?

[briarpatch]

Could not find a forum for gators or Florida hunting.  The gator was taken in brackish water, so I went to the salt water forum. Hope they dont mind. 44 mag bang stick was used to confince him to get into the boat.

[BBF]

Yep, those 44's do a lot of convincing for a lot of things.

[hillbill]

is a gator that big good to eat or just getum for the skin?i been watchin the new show about swamp people catchin gators and it looks like a lot of fun!

[Jane308]

Loved living in FLorida! Cept'n when people kept running me off the road on my motorcycle. I was always scared I'd crash on my way to Cocoa Beach and end up gator food. Nice gator!

Had a great gator story, a friend from Michigan was coming to visit Florida, he and I hunted before when we were younger up north. I told him I was going to take him gator hunting. And began to explain to him the canoe ride at night, with flashlights and raw chicken on a long pole. You dangle the chicken in the water and when he goes to jump up after it, he jumps up and into your boat and you hit it with a baseball bat. I never corrected him, until he called back a week later and told me how stupid he felt for believing me, especially after he told everyone how to hunt gators.  Love it.

Keep them pics coming! Love gators!
(and if you start a forum or request one, I second you on it)

[briarpatch]

Jane308, this gator was caught not far from cocoa. It was taken under the 405 NASA causeway. Yes they are good eat, even this big. The cheeks, which a lot of people think is the best meat, would weight about 10lb each.

[Zulu]

WOW!
Please explain how you caught it.
Zulu

[briarpatch]

Most hunters use a heavy rod, fishing pole with 100lb test line and a weighted treble hook. (sounds funny, a hunter with a fishing rod).
At night you go into an area that is allowed on your license,that you know will have some big gators and from a boat look for their eyes.
If you make a good cast just over a gator you will hook him and the fun begins. The idea is to bring about 300lb or more of thrashing, biting,fight mad gator close enough to the boat to hit him with a bang stick just behind the head in the neck to take the fight out of him.
If you watch swamp people on tv it is about the same except they can set limb lines and use a 22. We use a bang stick and cant set lines.  

[Zulu]

Most hunters use a heavy rod, fishing pole with 100lb test line and a weighted treble hook. (sounds funny, a hunter with a fishing rod).
At night you go into an area that is allowed on your license,that you know will have some big gators and from a boat look for their eyes.
If you make a good cast just over a gator you will hook him and the fun begins. The idea is to bring about 300lb or more of thrashing, biting,fight mad gator close enough to the boat to hit him with a bang stick just behind the head in the neck to take the fight out of him.
If you watch swamp people on tv it is about the same except they can set limb lines and use a 22. We use a bang stick and cant set lines.  

Awesome!  You're snagging it!!
What do you do with the heads?  The hide?
Zulu

[briarpatch]

The hides will be used for the leather seats and such on a Harley D. The meat will be consumed as: battered and fried, gator jerky, gator sausage etc. The plans for the heads are to remove the flesh and have a skull mount. The price to have the heads done by a taxidermist is about 800 bucks each. If I understood the quote I heard. 

[Zulu]

The hides will be used for the leather seats and such on a Harley D. The meat will be consumed as: battered and fried, gator jerky, gator sausage etc. The plans for the heads are to remove the flesh and have a skull mount. The price to have the heads done by a taxidermist is about 800 bucks each. If I understood the quote I heard. 

$800!
If you boil the meat off the heads doesn't the skull fall apart on a gator head?
It seems like I've heard that before.
Zulu

[hillbill]

gator sausage, now thats got my interest. do yu mix with pork? can yu make gator brats?id guess a little gator, a little pig and sum spice and yu got sum awesum bfast sausage.

[Oldshooter]

They are good eating but dont eat the fat it's nasty. the tail meat is the best especially on the smaller ones.

nice gator!