Alligator Hunting Baits

ScottP76 said:

Apologies if I put this in the wrong sub forum

My week long Gator season starts at 1201am. I'll start early tomorrow morning. Probably the worst part is getting these baits ready. I prefer to use beef lung because it floats. In FL we aren't allowed to use hooks with our baits (unless a nuisance trapper) so if using a bait we have to use these plugs as it won't kill the gator in case it gets off the line.

In a few hours in this Florida heat they start smelling ripe! I'll buy a cheap foam cooler and keep them on ice so I can use them a few times. The wife's sleeping before her work shift or she probably be pretty upset I'm doing it inside lol. I've scouted a few good size gators, the goal is 12' plus. I just want a big bull and I would be happy helping others tag out.

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M1A1ABRAMS said:

Good luck. Sounds like a lot of fun.

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Lee7588 said:

That is the same bait we use. Which part of FL are you? I'm in central Florida the best places I found are smaller lakes mostly private to find big gators

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ScottP76 said:

I'm in Central Fl also. The wife and I have Polk County tags this year. The lakes I scouted or talked to my nuisance buddies about are pretty small where Ive seen bigger ones.

I had Pierce previous years and we tried like hell to catch a giant that use to be there. All the way to Oct 30 and the last day a 9 footer beat him to the bait. I got the tags again last year but the vegetation was so bad on one side I didn't want to get the boat stuck. Even with a surface drive I didn't want to push through it. I tried to get Hancock tags but I guess silver lining I didn't since they close the ramp due to flooding.

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johnwm said:

Sounds like a hoot; good luck and hopefully you update here after your successful hunt!

I'm curious; if the bait has no hooks in it, do you simply set up a blind and wait for a chance to snipe the gator when it appears? Or is this a "Swamp People" kind of deal, where the gator swallows the bait and then you pull it up and shoot it at boatside?

Is there any gator hunting that is done like croc hunting in Africa? They find crocs basking in the sun, and then do a stalk to get within range for the shot. Most of the PH's there consider the croc to be the single toughest shot in African hunting; gotta hit that tiny brain perfectly, or else the croc will manage to thrash its way into the water before dying and will almost certainly be lost.

Pardon the silly questions; we don't have a lot of gators up here in Manitoba!

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