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how to pick a spot to hang bait for alligators

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    #16
    Just now seeing this. I have always just used Nylon Braided Rope. You can buy it in 500 foot spools for anywhere from $70-100. I usually use 25-35 foot of rope, kinda dependent on what the surroundings are like (if there trees in the water they could wrap around I'll use less line. For bait, I just buy the cheapest frozen chicken quarters I can find, dump those in a sealable 5 gallon bucket and dump 2 containers of chicken livers over them. I like to do it about 2 days before I plan on setting them out, and leave the bucket in the sun. Make sure you bring rubber gloves because it will stink, I usually try to remember hand sanitizer too. Also to cut down on handling it when it's rancid, we have started hooking the baits before hand and leaving a length of the line and baited hook in the bucket with the lid snapped on to rot.

    When looking for places to set lines, I typically catch my biggest gators on small, narrow and even sometime's pretty shallow ditches/canals, coming off of deeper channels. As stated before, looking for slides going over levy's, obviously the wider the better. I catch a lot of big ones on "sunning spot's" that I see along the back. Basically just looks like a bedding area for an animal, where all the grass will be laid down like someone had left a boat or piece of plywood on and all the grass is laid down flat. Any two bodies of water that intersect, put it on the corner. I try to hide the line as much as possible, don't let it hang beside the bait if 'its hanging from a pole, I'll run it as tightly along the pole as I can so that only the bait is hanging over the water. Unless, you have done it before, you probably won't understand the smell that I am talking about, but an alligator put's off a distinct odor and typically the bigger ones have an even stronger smell, so there's times when I am idling down a canal looking for somewhere to set one up and I can literally smell there's a bigger gator in that area. Most my biggest gator's I kill each year, I never actually see them until I actually have them on the line.

    Get the bait rank enough, get in an area where there are gators and you will catch them. Good luck and have fun, it really can be a lot of fun.

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      #17
      Thanks for everyone's help, tips. My hunt starts around sept. 8. Ill post how it goes. Spoke to a guy in the actual area, and from talking with him I should be able to get 3 gators without an issue, Avg size is 4-6ft, but he has seen bigger. Since I have a few weeks to hunt, Im going to try one get 8-9ft.

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        #18
        In for the kill.......

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          #19
          I've always used a chunk of chicken. Take your favorite cajun seasoning and dust it up real good. Pop it in the microwave and heat until it good a juicy. Hang on to the juice. Set your bait out and pour some juice on it. Pour the rest of the juice along the shoreline or on some object close to your hook setup. You should have a nice oily slick on the water. When the water moves it carries the sent for a good distance. Alligators travel with their nose just above the waterline and well hone in on your bait from a long distance.

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            #20
            Quick update. I got two gators so far, 6”2 and 6”10. Got one tag left. I set the baits a little higher trying fir bigger one so more like 2ft instead 1.5ft. This area has many 4-6ft gators.

            I’ll post picks after get other tag filled. I learned a lot, lost bait/line knocked down. Oh, and sticks, I think they like to wind up in limbs more than catfish.

            I also love my 4 prong garden rake. I can move weeds/Lillie’s and get the line easier when it’s hung and tangled.

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              #21




              Last gator was 7’4. All in all great trip. They are harder than deer to skin, IMO. Got about 60lbs if meat. Trying the self tanning for wall mount. Will work on Euro mounts later. Lots of work after you get them, lol.

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                #22
                That's awesome!! Congrats!

                I never even thought about Louisiana for drawn gator hunts. Gonna have to look into that.

                Sent from my SM-G930T using Tapatalk

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                  #23
                  You have to be a resident to draw there. I moved there a few years ago.

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