# DIY snatch hooking alligators in Georgia?



## stamello (Jul 25, 2016)

I've got 3 priority points for a GA alligator tag, but no money for a guide. I live near the TN state line near Chattanooga, so we'd be driving/camping to wherever we end up hunting, which means I don't have a way to scout anything before we get there. My dad and brother and I would like to try this together using mostly equipment we already have, which is: 
- 14 foot aluminum fishing boat boat with a 7.5 hp motor. With three of us it tops out at 10mph, so we're not moving anywhere fast. It has a troller and depth finder too, and I have 12v white lights, batteries, etc.
- bass/catfish poles (we can buy heavy line/snatch hooks). We've fished for our entire lives, so we're comfortable with the equipment, casting, etc.
- 38SP pistol. 
- borrowed 30 lb recurve. I'm not great with a bow, so I'd need a close shot. We'd need to get the right points, etc.
- lots of rope, wire, etc. I'm up for making anything if some of this equipment can be made. 
 Questions:
1. Are we stupid to even think about doing this with the equipment we've got?
2. Is snatch hooking a decent way to start working an alligator in Georgia, or are we just going to be frustrated?
3. With the slow boat we've got, and an inability to scout beforehand (since we live 5 hrs from alligator country), we basically need someplace that has alligators within a mile of a boat ramp. Any tips on zones/areas I should be looking at- right now I only have maps. I'm not looking for a monster gator - just a successful hunt. Savannah River?  It looks like there are boat ramps all the way from 95 up to Burton's ferry - is that an area with a decent quantity of alligators?
4. Is there another effective way to get a heavy line into an alligator besides a bow? 
5. Any other thoughts/tips/advice?
Thanks


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## stamello (Jul 26, 2016)

anyone?


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## florida boy (Jul 26, 2016)

The snatch hook is a good way to start the situation but you need to build a dart pole and rig up 2 separate "darts " on 30-60 foot rops with floats to get in the gator once you get in range . Get the first dart in him anywhere you can and the second up near his head to control him .I use 65 lb powerpro braid on a heavy spinning reel . The firearm is not necessarily needed to dispatch the gator but if you dont have experience handing them then just be careful and shoot him in the soft spot behind the skull or in the ear .A 22 rifle is much safer IMO . Be careful because the bullet can easily ricochet if it his skull.


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## shdw633 (Jul 26, 2016)

florida boy said:


> Be careful because the bullet can easily ricochet if it his skull.



Had that happen 2 years ago; however, we thought it penetrated because the gator went limp.  Unfortunately we found out after he was in the boat that the bullet just bounced off his skull and only knocked him out.  Got real fun when he decided to wake up!!!!


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## j_seph (Jul 26, 2016)

florida boy said:


> The snatch hook is a good way to start the situation but you need to build a dart pole and rig up 2 separate "darts " on 30-60 foot rops with floats to get in the gator once you get in range . Get the first dart in him anywhere you can and the second up near his head to control him .I use 65 lb powerpro braid on a heavy spinning reel . The firearm is not necessarily needed to dispatch the gator but if you dont have experience handing them then just be careful and shoot him in the soft spot behind the skull or in the ear .*A 22 rifle is much safer IMO* . Be careful because the bullet can easily ricochet if it his skull.


*LEGAL METHODS:* Hunters may use hand-held ropes or snares, snatch  hooks, harpoons, gigs or arrows with a restraining line attached. Legal  alligators must be dispatched immediately upon capture by using a * handgun or bangstick,* or by severing the spinal cord with a sharp  implement.


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## Toddmann (Jul 26, 2016)

My advice is for u to get one more priority point and start putting some money away now for next gator season.  You are coming along way and you have no experience.  Bad combination.  Going with a guide on your 1st hunt will allow you to learn and put the odds in your favor.  Harvesting a gator can be expensive and hard but it gets harder and more expensive after you harvest one if you don't know how to butcher and preserve the hide and skull on your own. Good luck.


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## florida boy (Jul 26, 2016)

j_seph said:


> *LEGAL METHODS:* Hunters may use hand-held ropes or snares, snatch  hooks, harpoons, gigs or arrows with a restraining line attached. Legal  alligators must be dispatched immediately upon capture by using a * handgun or bangstick,* or by severing the spinal cord with a sharp  implement.



I gotcha . Have never hunted them in Ga . We always just severe their spine with a pocketknife .


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## florida boy (Jul 26, 2016)

I have seen bone fragments on a few occasions draw blood on someone in the boat on a misplaced shot with the bangstick. After i dug a piece out of my cheek if someone just has to see it used we make sure the gator is still under the surface . I have 38 wadcutters loaded in the casing backwards with a weak powdercharge  . This doesnt discharge alot of gas to mess up meat .


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## cowhornedspike (Jul 26, 2016)

Weighted treble hook on heavy rod with power pro braid should get you attached to a gator as long as you can cast and have open water...very tough to do with this method in heavy vegetation.  

Once hooked, it takes 20-30 minutes to wear a big one out to the point that you can get him close enough to get a harpoon in him and then you should be good with the heavy line and bouy on the harpoon.  

At that point we generally use a bang stick to kill him but have used a pistol a couple of times.  Tape his mouth real good and then take a chisel and hammer to sever his spine just behind the skull before putting him in the boat.


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## groundhawg (Jul 26, 2016)

Toddmann said:


> My advice is for u to get one more priority point and start putting some money away now for next gator season.  You are coming along way and you have no experience.  Bad combination.  Going with a guide on your 1st hunt will allow you to learn and put the odds in your favor.  Harvesting a gator can be expensive and hard but it gets harder and more expensive after you harvest one if you don't know how to butcher and preserve the hide and skull on your own. Good luck.



This is the best advise you have received so far.  Not trying to be short or sound mean but you have waited at least 3 year to get your points and to add time and funds now for your first hunt will likely end without success.  Even listing that you had "white lights" mean less chances of getting an alligator.  After the several seasons we have had in Georgia and with the folks "scouting" before the season starts most 'gators and very light shy.  At least plan on using green or red lights.


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## hillbilly waterfowler (Aug 1, 2016)

*Get a guide first time at least*

A buddy and I went for the first time last year and we, after many hours of argument from my buddy, hired a guide.  Without a shadow of a doubt, had we not hired a guide, we would have come home with a tag sandwich.  My buddy had to eat a little bit of crow on that one.  The guide, if you get a good one, will provide everything.  I had so much fun that when I draw another tag, I plan on using the same guide again.


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## Phillip Thurmond (Aug 1, 2016)

If you have a boat you can hunt.  I've done a couple of trips and caught 3 gators so far.  never been without getting one.  It's not rocket science.  I'll be glad to give you more tips


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## rapid fire (Aug 1, 2016)

If you get drawn get with me and we will work something out


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## Phillip Thurmond (Aug 1, 2016)

You need, Spot light with white or prefer Red.  You need something to catch them with.  We use a Bait caster reel with 100LBS spider wire and a big treble hook.  We cast to them and snag them.  Then we tire them just like a fish and get them close to the boat and then harpoon them with a Gig attached to a rope and a float.  Once you get that in them it's a matter of time.   When you get them to the boat shoot them in the head between the eyes with a pistol.  We use 9mm.  It's over.  Then the fun stops and the work begins.  The key is going to a place with Gators.  We go to zone 2.  There are lots of them but most are small. You have to look a lot before you take one.  
We actually have caught two with the pole and once we got them to the boat we took the hook out and let them go.  It was as much fun as shooting them without all the work.  They were smaller than we originally thought and we just unhooked them and let them go.


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