by Wayne Nichols
Everything is happening now in the hunting community! Virtually everything is in season. A big thing this time of year is public gator season and it’s in full swing! Thousands of local and out-of-state hunters applied months ago for 2 tags in the state’s alligator lottery which usually issues over 5000 tags throughout the state. This year if you didn’t get drawn, you still had a great chance of getting tags. The FWC announced earlier that an ADDITIONAL 1900 ALLIGATOR TAGS would be available this season for hunters…That’s right an extra 1900 tags! That brings me to another point, alligators in Florida are about out of control. Personally, I think the public season should run much longer than it does, for years it’s been from 8/15-11/1, basically 2.5 months. Seems like every week nowadays you turn on the news and hear about someone getting attacked, bitten, a close encounter or a pet got snatched. There is footage of nuisance trappers on the news constantly…it never ends, but that’s another article.
Meanwhile you have your 2 tags, what’s next? Well you have several options. Most locals know where they wanna go and enough friends to get the job done. For out-of-state hunters it can be the complete opposite, that’s where we come in. Local knowledge is key on any hunting adventure, but especially important on gator hunting. It’s usually much cheaper and easier to hire a local guide and go with them to use your tags. Gear includes boats, bangstick, heavy duty rods/reels, crossbow w/ special gator arrows/attachments, harpoons, lights….the list can get quite long and expensive. Local guides already have everything you’ll need and in most cases they’ll even have tags available if needed. Prices range from $400/night to $4000 for 2 Gators. Some guides have huge trophy fees and some like us have none. Cheaper hunts don’t mean it’s not worth it, expensive hunts don’t necessarily mean it’s better either; get references.
We usually start hunting about an hour after dark and run ‘til daylight if needed. After harvesting your gators, we take them to a local processor with you and walk you through the steps of taking care of your meat/hide, or you can take them if you want to skin them yourself and/or have your own taxidermist in mind. When you go on public hunts you need to plan on several nights of hunting. We see 100’s of gators every night, but only a handful of big guys and they’re not dumb. Patience is the main key in successfully harvesting a big gator on public lands, and a little bit of luck. One key I’ve found for big gators is hunting smaller areas that most people overlook. On small lakes you might only see 5-10 gators a night, but they don’t get pressured and can be much easier to get on. Big lakes etc you’ll see hundreds, but mostly mid-sized and big ones are usually elusive. Again, local knowledge is key and most people don’t mind sharing information on where to go. We’re getting back after it y’all- stay safe out there and remember to take a kid outdoors!
If you have any questions about hunting down here, need information on booking a hunt or would like to know more about what we offer, give me a call anytime at 863-990-7650. I’m heading back in the woods now y’all stay safe and remember to take a kid hunting or fishing anytime you get a chance!
