# Lake Seminole Success!



## Tomboy Boots (Aug 16, 2015)

What an Awesome way to end our 2015 alligator season!  Story to follow


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## peanutman04 (Aug 16, 2015)

Good gracious! Nice un! Congrats!


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## yankeeredneck2015 (Aug 16, 2015)

12fter


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## mrs. hornet22 (Aug 16, 2015)

Wow. Wow. Wow. Congratulations. You go girl.


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## Etoncathunter (Aug 16, 2015)

Well done.


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## hillbilly waterfowler (Aug 16, 2015)

Dinosaur!!!  Congrats.


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## DSGB (Aug 16, 2015)

Awesome! Looking forward to the story!


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## tkyklr1 (Aug 16, 2015)

Nice gator Congrats!


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## mattech (Aug 16, 2015)

Very nice, Congrats on a beast


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## Tomboy Boots (Aug 17, 2015)

Forgive me for taking so long to give you some details... but we were slap worn out by the time we got this gator to the processor!  

We had more fun than anyone could imagine!!! What an awesome adrenaline rush! It takes a team effort from everyone to get the job done... Thank you to my nephew Aidan, my friend Judge, and my fiance Tim Sandford, for sharing this awesome adventure with me! 

After much riding and looking I finally spotted a gator that we knew was what we were after. We got on him and stuck with him for over 90 minutes before my nephew finally got the first hook in him with a snatch rope. We then got a harpoon in him and he was cruising around pulling two buoys behind him  When we finally had him securely caught I shot him multiple times with a pistol  but he didn't go down easy... at one point he lunged up at us, mouth wide open and I thought for a minute he was coming in the boat   When the time came to get him in the boat we couldn't do anything with him no matter how hard we tried. As all of this unfolded we had gained an audience from another gator hunting crew of 3 in another boat, and they offered to assist us. We were quick to accept the offer  Even with one of them on our boat and the other two trying to help from their boat, it was still all we could do to get our gator in the boat! What an awesome hunt   He measured 12' 7" and weighed over 500 lbs.


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## mattech (Aug 17, 2015)

Very nice, I think I passed y'all about the about the time y'all killed it. I remember two boats in a cove and the pontoon had some dang crazy bright lights on the front. Y'all were yelling someothing about getting a frog? Lol

Did the dnt on the airboat check y'all too?


Congrats again.


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## Tomboy Boots (Aug 17, 2015)

mattech said:


> Very nice, I think I passed y'all about the about the time y'all killed it. I remember two boats in a cove and the pontoon had some dang crazy bright lights on the front. Y'all were yelling someothing about getting a frog? Lol
> 
> Did the dnt on the airboat check y'all too?
> 
> ...



I don't remember a pontoon boat with crazy lights... but there were 3 men in a smaller boat that helped us get him loaded right at sunset. One of them was named Brent. We weren't in a cove though. This is a picture of the guys that helped us out and we sure did appreciate the help too 

DNR didn't check us but if they had maybe they could have helped load the gator


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## mattech (Aug 17, 2015)

Maybe it wasn't you. Lol one of your pictures has a pontoon behind you. I thought y'all were a team.


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## blood on the ground (Aug 17, 2015)

Outstanding ! Congratulations!


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## Tomboy Boots (Aug 17, 2015)

mattech said:


> Maybe it wasn't you. Lol one of your pictures has a pontoon behind you. I thought y'all were a team.



No, that picture was when we had just put the boat back in and were headed back out on the lake Saturday afternoon. They passed us shortly after the picture was taken. We got our gator almost 3 hours later


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## Tomboy Boots (Aug 17, 2015)

mrs. hornet22 said:


> Wow. Wow. Wow. Congratulations. You go girl.



Thank you Mandy! You need to put in for a tag and save up some points... remember, when you grow up I want you to be like me   Seriously, it would be so much fun to go gator hunting with you... you are always so positive 



peanutman04 said:


> Good gracious! Nice un! Congrats!





yankeeredneck2015 said:


> 12fter





Etoncathunter said:


> Well done.





hillbilly waterfowler said:


> Dinosaur!!!  Congrats.





DSGB said:


> Awesome! Looking forward to the story!





tkyklr1 said:


> Nice gator Congrats!





mattech said:


> Very nice, Congrats on a beast





blood on the ground said:


> Outstanding ! Congratulations!



Thanks to everyone! For the next couple of years I will have to try to go with my son while I save up some more points. Maybe in 2018 I will draw another tag


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## Nicodemus (Aug 18, 2015)

Debbie, my congratulations again on an even better gator than your first one. I know that was fun and glad no one was hurt in that fight. Great pictures and story, next best thing to being there. Hate that I had to miss this one with ya`ll too. I`m mighty proud for you on another really fine accomplishment and kill. Ya`ll done good and it had to feel good to be back on our home lake.  

Next time you get drawn, maybe we can try for that old bull up above the slough.


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## ghost8026 (Aug 18, 2015)

Congrats on another fine gator


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## Tomboy Boots (Aug 18, 2015)

Nicodemus said:


> Debbie, my congratulations again on an even better gator than your first one. I know that was fun and glad no one was hurt in that fight. Great pictures and story, next best thing to being there. Hate that I had to miss this one with ya`ll too. I`m mighty proud for you on another really fine accomplishment and kill. Ya`ll done good and it had to feel good to be back on our home lake.
> 
> Next time you get drawn, maybe we can try for that old bull up above the slough.



Thank you Nick  I sure did miss having you with us. It still amazes me that all you can see of a gator this big is his head above the water like you see in the picture... and when all is said and done it turns into a big giant dinosaur    I plan on someone in the family having a tag again next year... this gator hunting is just too much fun!


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## DSGB (Aug 18, 2015)

Congrats and thanks for sharing the story! I agree that it doesn't get much more exciting than fighting one of them big ol' lizards. Getting them in the boat can be a challenge. That was mighty nice of them other fellas to give y'all a hand.


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## Tomboy Boots (Aug 18, 2015)

DSGB said:


> Congrats and thanks for sharing the story! I agree that it doesn't get much more exciting than fighting one of them big ol' lizards. Getting them in the boat can be a challenge. That was mighty nice of them other fellas to give y'all a hand.



It was definitely very nice of them to give us a hand and we sure did appreciate it... I think we were all relieved when they asked if we needed some help  I don't think they realized just how much help we needed until they actually tried to help and it still took all we could do to ever get him in the boat  I wish the processor had a scale that would weigh a big gator... the truck scales were very obviously not accurate after 3 different weights and showing that Tim and I together only made 220 lbs. difference while sitting in the truck when it was weighed. I know we weigh more than 110 lbs. each  The truck scales are calibrated to weigh big trucks, not big gators.


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## vrooom (Aug 18, 2015)

Very nice.  A couple of questions of I might. 
What area of the lake did he come from?
How did you get the initial line in him? You mentioned snatch rope.  Was this a treble hook on a hand line?  Or was it the treble hook on the reel and rod he's holding in the pic?  Was the gator on the surface or submerged on the bottom when first snatched?   Thanks!!


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## Tomboy Boots (Aug 18, 2015)

vrooom said:


> Very nice.  A couple of questions of I might.
> What area of the lake did he come from?
> How did you get the initial line in him? You mentioned snatch rope.  Was this a treble hook on a hand line?  Or was it the treble hook on the reel and rod he's holding in the pic?  Was the gator on the surface or submerged on the bottom when first snatched?   Thanks!!



I don't know the lake well enough to explain what area but it was out on the main lake. The first hook we got in him was a 14/0 weighted treble hook on a 50' snatch rope with buoy attached (G&B Gator Gear sells the 50' snatch ropes with buoy for $12 and the 14/0 weighted hooks for $11). We didn't get a hook in this gator with the rod/reel but in 2013 we got the first hook in using a rod and reel. It is best if the gator has surfaced so you have a clear target whether using the rod/reel or snatch rope. If you are just dragging the bottom there are many things to get those hooks caught on besides a gator and a hook that size with 150 lb. braided line is hard to get loose and expensive to cut the line. He had just submerged when my nephew got the snatch hook in him so we knew he was still there.


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## Nugefan (Aug 18, 2015)

congrats young lady ...


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## j_seph (Aug 18, 2015)

Yens done turned that Glitter boat into a Gator boat!
Congrats girl


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## DSGB (Aug 18, 2015)

Tomboy Boots said:


> It was definitely very nice of them to give us a hand and we sure did appreciate it... I think we were all relieved when they asked if we needed some help  I don't think they realized just how much help we needed until they actually tried to help and it still took all we could do to ever get him in the boat  I wish the processor had a scale that would weigh a big gator... the truck scales were very obviously not accurate after 3 different weights and showing that Tim and I together only made 220 lbs. difference while sitting in the truck when it was weighed. I know we weigh more than 110 lbs. each  The truck scales are calibrated to weigh big trucks, not big gators.



We had to weigh ours the same way last year. According to the scales at the dump, our gator weighed almost right at 700 lbs, but I doubt it was that heavy based on other weights I've seen for gators about the same size. It was a challenge for the _two_ of us to load it in the boat.


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## HOGDOG76 (Aug 18, 2015)

Great gator, congrats Tomboy boots!


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## nate2800 (Aug 19, 2015)

Congrats on a monstah!!!!!!!! Good job!!!


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## Hooked On Quack (Aug 19, 2015)

Attagal Deb, congratz to all of ya'll on a great team effort !!


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## shdw633 (Aug 19, 2015)

That is a true beast!!!  That kind of gator will seriously wear you out!!  Nice job and congratulations on such a fine trophy!!


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## Tomboy Boots (Aug 19, 2015)

Nicodemus said:


> Debbie, my congratulations again on an even better gator than your first one. I know that was fun and glad no one was hurt in that fight. Great pictures and story, next best thing to being there. Hate that I had to miss this one with ya`ll too. I`m mighty proud for you on another really fine accomplishment and kill. Ya`ll done good and it had to feel good to be back on our home lake.
> 
> Next time you get drawn, maybe we can try for that old bull up above the slough.



Thank you Nick! I sure would have loved to have you there with us. My son will have a tag next year so get ready to go gator hunting  



ghost8026 said:


> Congrats on another fine gator





DSGB said:


> Congrats and thanks for sharing the story! I agree that it doesn't get much more exciting than fighting one of them big ol' lizards. Getting them in the boat can be a challenge. That was mighty nice of them other fellas to give y'all a hand.





Nugefan said:


> congrats young lady ...





j_seph said:


> Yens done turned that Glitter boat into a Gator boat!
> Congrats girl



Yes we did! 



HOGDOG76 said:


> Great gator, congrats Tomboy boots!





nate2800 said:


> Congrats on a monstah!!!!!!!! Good job!!!





Hooked On Quack said:


> Attagal Deb, congratz to all of ya'll on a great team effort !!





shdw633 said:


> That is a true beast!!!  That kind of gator will seriously wear you out!!  Nice job and congratulations on such a fine trophy!!



Thanks to everyone for the kind words  shdw633, I am still worn out, every muscle in my body is aching and it's been four days. It was worth every bit of it!


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## Hunter-Steve (Aug 31, 2015)

WOW.. That was a big one. Glad you got him safe and with no incidents. I know you will be looking forward to the next one. This one will be hard to top.


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## Dep6 (Sep 14, 2015)

Congratulations on taking a dinosaur!!


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## arrendale8105 (Sep 29, 2015)

Awesome gator! Congrats to you as well!


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