The WOOA Reports: Bow-Hunting Alligator Gar

Hunt Date: May 5, 2015

The Wide Open Outdoor Adventures television crew made an awesome bow fishing show on the San Miguel River. Choke Canyon reservoir flooded, and water came up the tributaries and brought in big alligator gar, buffalo carp and traditional carp.

My good friend Buck Medley – – "Texas Tarzan" – – and I set our sights on some alligator gar. We put in his specially equipped riverboat with platforms on it to target these amazing creatures.

We waded across the creek and hunted from the shore. We did fairly well getting smaller gar and carp.

There were also alligators in the water with us.

We wanted some serious Monster Gars so we put in the lightweight boat powered by Trolling Motors and began to ease up the creek.

We could hear water boiling as these Gar came up and gulped for air. We could see 8 foot alligators in the water, too.

The gar were monsters – –

they were big – –

They're amazing creatures! They have both lungs and gills, and radioactive fossil-dating suggests that these animals existed over 100 million years ago.

Their scales are essentially armor, and it required special bow-hunting equipment and special broadhead arrow tips to pierce their heavy, heavy scales. Special thanks to Fred at The Bow Shop in San Antonio for getting us equipped for this hunt.

My main camera-man, Tony D, was to my side, and we videoed the entire experience of targeting alligator gar and carp in the San Miguel river.

I got a shot off in chocolate milk water after a big Gar had rolled; it was a blind shot, but I knew the direction he was swimming.

Didn't take long for him to try to take the bow out of my hand!

He was pulling the boat down the river and up under the trees. Buck got ready and drew his recurve bow, and he got a second arrow in him. We tag-teamed this monster. We landed an amazing 6-foot alligator gar – – he's now in the cooler at Double Nickel Taxidermy. He will be an amazing trophy.