Get that gator

Hunting an alligator is a thrill like no other

No matter how much experience a hunter has, killing an alligator is vastly different from anything else. And that’s one reason most folks who draw a gator tag hire a guide.

Gator hunting takes a different set of skills, and a different set of tools, than most hunters own. And because drawing a gator tag generally takes a few years, most hunters aren’t willing to invest in the specialized equipment that it takes to successfully kill a gator.

Guides, on the other hand, don’t mind investing in the equipment, because they can make money while helping other hunters fill their tags. And guides like Cole Poplin of Renegade Bowfishing already have the right type of boat, the lights, and the experience of boating at night to make a fairly seamless transition to hunting gators.

Get legal

The first thing you need to even go gator hunting is a tag. The SCDNR holds a lottery every year, beginning in the spring, and awards a certain number of tags each year. Only one person in your party must have a gator tag and everyone onboard is allowed to help, as long as they all have a basic hunting license. Non-residents must also pay a $200 non-resident alligator fee.

Once you’re legal, all it takes is finding a gator you’d like to harvest, then do the dirty work. This is where it really pays to hire a guide.

Because Poplin guides for bowfishing trips and bowfishes himself throughout the year, he has the advantage of keeping tabs on gators at the Santee Cooper lakes. By the time alligator season rolls around, he knows where to find plenty of these beasts. Tell him what size gator you’re looking for, and he knows the best spots to look for them.

“They are pretty territorial,” said Poplin. “If you see a 12-footer in an area one night, chances are good you’ll see him in that general area every night you look for him, as long as you don’t pressure him too much and push him out of there.”

Some gators prefer to spend most of their time in small coves, some in swampier areas, and some like to stay where a big collection of flooded trees is present. With his airboat armed with high-quality floodlights all around it, as well as high-intensity, handheld spotlights, he can go wherever the gators are, and find them with a little bit of patience.

“You always have to keep your eyes open, because it’s not uncommon to see one out in the open, while you’re headed to a secluded area you’ve seen that one in the past. And sometimes, you’ll see one you’ve never seen before in a place you least expect it,” he said.

The gear 

Poplin does the majority of his gator hunting at night, so his big floodlights come in handy. He also carries handheld spotlights, harpoons, rod-and-reel combos, a pneumatic arrow gun, buoys, and a bangstick. 

A typical night of gator hunting will go something like this, if all goes well:

“We’ll launch the boat just before dark, then we’ll run to an area of the lake that we’ve seen gators in the size our tag-holder is wanting to harvest. 

“Once in position, we’d have one of the hunters shoot an arrow into the gator’s body with the air gun. The arrow will have a buoy attached with a rope. So once we’ve got an arrow in the gator, we can easily keep track of him by watching the buoy,” Poplin said.

After that, the goal is to get the gator beside the boat, then hit it in just the right spot with the bangstick. 

“We’ll follow the buoy, and when we get a chance, we’ll use one of the heavy-duty rods to cast a weighted GatorTaker treble hook across the gator, then reel it back enough to snag the gator. This gives us two lines in its body now, so that will help bring the gator beside the boat,” he said.

Sometimes one or both lines slip out during the fight. And some gators may require three, four or even more lines to get it under control.

Be flexible

“And we may end up shooting another arrow into the gator. We’ve got a plan for how every hunt should go, but once you get one line in that gator, things happen quickly, and you’ve got to be able to adjust your plan. The gators usually don’t make it easy, so you’ve just got to be quick on your feet, and flexible with your plans,” he said. “Maybe we harpoon it, maybe we shoot another arrow in it, maybe we put another GatorTaker in it. It just all depends on the situation.”

At some point, Poplin said the gator will have enough lines in it that everyone onboard can team up to get the beast’s head in range of the bangstick, which is basically a long pole with a loaded cartridge at one end. To fire the cartridge, the hunter must hit the gator in the soft spot of its head hard enough to activate the load.

“You have to hit it harder than most people think,” said William Ard, Poplin’s bowfishing teammate who also guides with him on gator hunts. “Sometimes we have to reload and do it again.”

That often means the gator makes a run, requiring another line in the gator, or at least more muscle to bring it back to the side of the boat.

Load it up

Once the gator is dispatched, it’s time for another level of work.

“At that point, we tape the gator’s mouth closed with electrical tape, apply the tag to the gator, then load it onto the boat. Then we head back to the landing,” said Ard.

Many deer processors will also handle gators, and most hunters take their gator to be processed once the hunt is over.

Last year, Ard and Poplin had a 100-percent success rate, and their clients had some pretty lofty goals. They harvested numerous gators longer than 11 feet, with a handful topping the 12-foot mark. 

“We’ll do our best to help you achieve your goal. Sometimes during the night, the hunter will change his goal based on what we’re seeing. Some initially wanting an 8 footer will change to wanting a 10 footer, and on slow nights, a hunter starting off with a goal of a 10 footer might lower his goal to 8 feet. And others stick with their goal no matter what. Either way, we’re here to help you reach your goal,” Poplin said.

“If you’ve never gator hunted, it’s truly the experience of a lifetime, and it’s unlike any other animal you can hunt in the Carolinas,” said Ard.

Follow Ard and Poplin throughout this gator season at Renegade Bowfishing LLC on Facebook, and book your trip at renegadebowfishing.com, or call them at 803-968-4130. 

Size doesn’t (always) matter

South Carolina’s regulations state a gator must be at least 4 feet long to be harvested, and while the state has some truly huge ones, not all hunters are looking for big gators. 

It all comes down to what each hunter is looking for. If you’re looking for the biggest one out there, go for it. But if you’re wanting to have something made out of your gator hide, bigger isn’t better. That’s because the older a gator is, the more beat up its hide will be. Scars, cuts, bruises are all unsightly whether made into a belt, a wallet, a purse, etc.

For Poplin, as long as its legal, he said all gators are worthy, no matter the size.

“It’s not particularly easy to kill a gator of any size, and almost every hunt has a level of excitement that surpasses a hunt for any other animal. The experience of the hunt matters more than the size of the animal for most hunters,” he said.

“In South Carolina, we’ve got some true trophy-sized gators that I’d put up against those in any other state. So the option is definitely there for a giant,” he said. “But it’s not always about the size for every hunter.”