# Gators & duck hunting



## chambers270 (Dec 25, 2013)

There was a little discussion in another thread about this and it got me to wondering, has anyone ever been standing in the water in waders and saw an alligator? I hunt the river swamps a lot for deer, turkey and ducks but I have never actually been in the water and saw one. Now I have thought about this many times while wading through water in the dark, especially in spring when turkey hunting. 

Does anyone have a good story to tell?


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## BREAK'N WINGS (Dec 25, 2013)

I've seen some smaller ones Last year hunting a beaver pond.  Bought to walk in and my head lamp caught their eyes.  Didn't stope from hunting though. And I had my dog. I've read and heard they don't have enough energy to do anything much less catch something big during the winter months. Now during the late spring and early fall, that's a different story!


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## rnelson5 (Dec 25, 2013)

Yep. I see them on a fairly regular basis. Most of the time they will get gone  before you get near them.


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## The Horned Toad (Dec 25, 2013)

I tried Gator hunting last Sept and them jokers don't like you getting to close to them. I couldn't find one Gator that didn't try to run and get away from me.  I wouldn't pay them much attention after chasing them all over the river last fall.


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## little rascal (Dec 25, 2013)

*I ain't worried about no gators,*

but a couple ticked off large beavers while u standing in a flooded tree swamp will get your full attention!


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## chambers270 (Dec 25, 2013)

little rascal said:


> but a couple ticked off large beavers while u standing in a flooded tree swamp will get your full attention!



Now that is a fact, I had one come right up next to me in the dark and slap the water, it sure surprised the heck out of me.


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## pak (Dec 26, 2013)

We see gators pretty regularly where we hunt but they usually keep their distance, except for one this year during teal season.  It was slow and we hadn't seen many ducks and we were watching this gator that was about 35-40 yards away. Finally one teal flew by close enough to get a shot on him and my hunting buddy dropped him. The duck splashed down about 30 yards down from us and as my buddy was going to get the duck thise gator started towards the duck too, the gator beat him to the duck and started swimming off with the duck. Being that this was the only bird of the day he decided to chase down the gator and recover his duck, he ran towards the gator as best he could in waders and knee deep water and the gator let go of the duck and swam off.


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## rnelson5 (Dec 26, 2013)

pak said:


> We see gators pretty regularly where we hunt but they usually keep their distance, except for one this year during teal season.  It was slow and we hadn't seen many ducks and we were watching this gator that was about 35-40 yards away. Finally one teal flew by close enough to get a shot on him and my hunting buddy dropped him. The duck splashed down about 30 yards down from us and as my buddy was going to get the duck thise gator started towards the duck too, the gator beat him to the duck and started swimming off with the duck. Being that this was the only bird of the day he decided to chase down the gator and recover his duck, he ran towards the gator as best he could in waders and knee deep water and the gator let go of the duck and swam off.



I haven't ever been that hard up for a duck


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## Nicodemus (Dec 26, 2013)

The gator that gets you is the one you won`t ever see till its too late, if it wants you. I see em from time to time in the winter, and in the summer, they are rarely out of sight. If one ever gets me, it`ll probably be while I`m wade fishin`. My traditional swimmin` hole is too shallow and clear for one to slip up on me, although I have shared it with a gator or two before.


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## Silver Bullet (Dec 26, 2013)

I downed a woodie last year that hit the water stone cold dead.  I looked down to reload my gun and put my calls down to retrieve the bird.  When I picked my head up, that bird was gone.  I didn't think much of it.  There was a chance that the bird still had a little life to it and dove.  I continued to hunt and watch for the bird to resurface.  About a half hour later, a nine footer poked his head up around 50 yards from me.  He just hung out all morning until I went to retrieve my dekes.  He slowly sank back to the bottom.  That was the worst feeling in the world.

I had a horrible feeling as I waded New Snipe Tuesday.  The air started off warm in the morning and the water felt unseasonably warm.  It didn't help any that the pond was holding a little extra water from the recent rain and was a few inches deeper than the last time I hunted it.  Never saw any gators, but I'm sure glad when the temps started dropping and the sun popped out...


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## king killer delete (Dec 26, 2013)

*X2x2*



Nicodemus said:


> The gator that gets you is the one you won`t ever see till its too late, if it wants you. I see em from time to time in the winter, and in the summer, they are rarely out of sight. If one ever gets me, it`ll probably be while I`m wade fishin`. My traditional swimmin` hole is too shallow and clear for one to slip up on me, although I have shared it with a gator or two before.


Nic is right if he wants you when you see him it will be to late. Gators have stolen my downed birds. The main reason I do not run hunt test anymore is I do not have water to train in because of gators. When I moved from Hephzibah back to the coast that was the end of my dog training days.


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## ugaringneck (Dec 26, 2013)

saw one 2 mornings ago swimming through my decoys on seminole... about 9 ft.


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## Nicodemus (Dec 26, 2013)

November 20, 20011. It was not a warm day either.


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## T-N-T (Dec 26, 2013)

little rascal said:


> but a couple ticked off large beavers while u standing in a flooded tree swamp will get your full attention!



I have had the beavers swim to about 15 yards before.  They are my friends though.  If not for them, I wouldnt have a "beaver" pond to duck hunt in.  I think they know I like them.
I also have seen more than one gator in said hole.  It is rumored a big boy used to reside there back about 10 years ago.  For multiple years,  but then it went dry for a while.  I sure hope he does not ever come back.  Not ever.


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## rnelson5 (Dec 26, 2013)

Nic that looks like it would be easy pickings for him!!


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## little rascal (Dec 26, 2013)

*Oh no doubt,*



> They are my friends though. If not for them, I wouldnt have a "beaver" pond to duck hunt in. I think they know I like them.



 if it weren't for the Beavers, I wouldn't have had those sweet little potholes and flooded timber, and marshland to hunt walk-in puddlers on.

But the Southgang folk's, ya'll got it bad, Gators, Big skeeters, Cottonmouth, Rattlers, tidal mud, etc.. 
In  Western Central and Northwest Ga. and Bama we got no water, no duck's, all we have to worry about is skybusters.


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## steelshotslayer (Dec 26, 2013)

little rascal said:


> if it weren't for the Beavers, I wouldn't have had those sweet little potholes and flooded timber, and marshland to hunt walk-in puddlers on.
> 
> But the Southgang folk's, ya'll got it bad, Gators, *Big skeeters*, Cottonmouth, Rattlers, tidal mud, etc..
> In  Western Central and Northwest Ga. and Bama we got no water, no duck's, all we have to worry about is skybusters.



You can say that again we were in Thomasville during gator season man a screen door wouldn't do any good down there.  They are big enough to open it on their own and walk in.  I killed one got him in the freezer thinking about having him mounted


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## hotamighty (Dec 26, 2013)

I ran one off of a floating grass mat with the boat on a 25 degree morning 2 years ago in our hunting hole. Have had them get downed ducks on 2 other hunts. I stood by a tree in about 1 foot of water a few weeks ago and shot but I won't go much farther out than that, and won't take the dog out there either.


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## RiverBuck (Dec 27, 2013)

Had a big one growling at me a couple hours before daylight along the ogeechee in some flooded swamp.    Was glad I had a good light.    At the time I was in about waist deep water and had water in all directions for about 75 yds.   They are there and this was in early December after a few pretty cold mornings.


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## MudDucker (Dec 27, 2013)

chambers270 said:


> There was a little discussion in another thread about this and it got me to wondering, has anyone ever been standing in the water in waders and saw an alligator? I hunt the river swamps a lot for deer, turkey and ducks but I have never actually been in the water and saw one. Now I have thought about this many times while wading through water in the dark, especially in spring when turkey hunting.
> 
> Does anyone have a good story to tell?



Many, many, many times.  I have had them cruise by and I've had them get after a dog in the past.  I have even had one steal a dead duck from me in the past.  I had a buddy step on one wading into a swamp one morning.  I don't know who left the area quicker, him or the gator.


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