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Old 07-29-09, 12:42 PM   #1
sac
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Default Anyone catch Gar on purpose?

Ok so I've caught a few Gars on a worm and a crankbait. I wasn't targeting them, but it sure was fun reeling them in. I've been seeing Gars swimming lately and want to target them. My question is what does everyone use when they are targeting these awesome looking fish? Is there a "go-to" bait for Gar?
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Old 07-29-09, 12:50 PM   #2
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The biggest treble hook you can find (within reason) a bullet weight (depending on how deep they are) and some heavy braid on a stout rod. You can also add a trailer hook for the same reason you would a spinnerbait. I would also dress the trailer hook, just in case one wants to snap at it!

Cast over by them, and when it gets neat them, jerk hard and snag 'em!
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Old 07-29-09, 12:51 PM   #3
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Ok so I've caught a few Gars on a worm and a crankbait. I wasn't targeting them, but it sure was fun reeling them in. I've been seeing Gars swimming lately and want to target them. My question is what does everyone use when they are targeting these awesome looking fish? Is there a "go-to" bait for Gar?



Works every time...

Or try something like this: http://www.ncangler.com/forums/f7/ro...gar-12467.html
Shred a section of nylon rope, tie a "head" on it, fish like a spinnerbait. Their teeth will get entangled in the bird's nest of rope, so there's no hooks on it at all.
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Old 07-29-09, 01:09 PM   #4
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LOL ^ Done that one before....just not gar.

Do Gar like raw Steak? LOL
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Old 07-29-09, 01:14 PM   #5
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We used to go to Hovey Lake (the last oxbow lake left on the Ohio in Indiana) when the floods would go back down and snag gar trapped in the sloughs. Man, it was fun (for us at least, not the gar heh). We'd go home exhausted from fighting 10-15 lb baddies all day, as well as the occasional carp and buffalo.

My attitude regarding the gar has changed a lot since I was a teenager though. Personally, I can't stand watching people bowhunt them...that is just cruel, wanton waste. They are a natural fish in the southern US, and to feel it's okay to kill them because they are ugly is ridiculous. They're not dangerous to humans whatsoever. Yeah, they eat a lot of baitfish, but so what? So do bass, and we've got fishermen being so preachy about catch and release of bass it's downright hypocritical.

Okay...off my soapbox now.

Oh, btw...back to original question...we used bare treble hooks tied about 2-3 feet above a heavy sinker.
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Old 07-29-09, 01:25 PM   #6
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We had a camp on the Gulf Coast and when the bass weren't on the bite, we went with 1/4" white nylon rope. We cut it in about 6" length and ran a couple of hooks off of the lead hook. When they bite the rope, it loops around the base of the teeth and allows a better hook up. We could troll around and find them floating and present the rope with lite twiches. I'm digging the old Onieda Eagle bows. Been a long time since I saw one.
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Old 07-29-09, 01:32 PM   #7
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I think I'm going to troll for some Gar Sat while I putt around the Lake. Thanks everyone, so Nylon rope is the way to go huh?
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Old 07-29-09, 01:44 PM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by nofearengineer View Post
We used to go to Hovey Lake (the last oxbow lake left on the Ohio in Indiana) when the floods would go back down and snag gar trapped in the sloughs. Man, it was fun (for us at least, not the gar heh). We'd go home exhausted from fighting 10-15 lb baddies all day, as well as the occasional carp and buffalo.

My attitude regarding the gar has changed a lot since I was a teenager though. Personally, I can't stand watching people bowhunt them...that is just cruel, wanton waste. They are a natural fish in the southern US, and to feel it's okay to kill them because they are ugly is ridiculous. They're not dangerous to humans whatsoever. Yeah, they eat a lot of baitfish, but so what? So do bass, and we've got fishermen being so preachy about catch and release of bass it's downright hypocritical.

Okay...off my soapbox now.

Oh, btw...back to original question...we used bare treble hooks tied about 2-3 feet above a heavy sinker.
I kill a gar when ever I catch them in a pond. They ARE natural fish and do not pose the threat to humans whatsoever like you said. But in a small pond, they're not natural. In Florida gar are river and lake fish. NOT man made pond fish, they eat the bass, and food for the bass, and are considered pest in ponds around here. I've fished a pond a year and a half back where some one has over stocked the pond with gar, the few bass I do catch are not in good shape at all, skinny and sickly. When ever I did catch a gar I would throw on the bank to die. When I last fished the pond the bass where making a come back, larger, fatter, and in over all better health.

So if you catch them in big lake (Toho and Okee of example) yes, by all means let them go! But in small pounds and lakes, please don't let them do, eat them (if you like 'em ) or let them sit in the wood for a good long time!
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Old 07-29-09, 01:45 PM   #9
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you need to come on down to texas and we'll bow hunt some of these!!
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Old 07-29-09, 01:52 PM   #10
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another monster gar hunted in TX




kinda scary that these swims in the same lakes we fish
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Old 07-29-09, 01:52 PM   #11
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you need to come on down to texas and we'll bow hunt some of these!!
That's what I'm talking about! That thing is insane!......oh and you mean up to Texas right?
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Old 07-29-09, 01:59 PM   #12
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That's what I'm talking about! That thing is insane!......oh and you mean up to Texas right?
up,over,to the left.....it dont matter how ya get here,lol

yea bowhunting gar is pretty well known UP here.....ive never seen em that big personally.....you have to travel through muddy channels to hunt the big ones.....on average i see 3ft to 5ft gars....which is still pretty impressive to me!!...but those above are just plain giagantic!!
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Old 07-29-09, 02:10 PM   #13
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The only shot that I have at catching or hunting a gar would be either at Sea World or one of the Aquariums. I am pretty sure that would not go well for me.
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Old 07-29-09, 02:20 PM   #14
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The only shot that I have at catching or hunting a gar would be either at Sea World or one of the Aquariums. I am pretty sure that would not go well for me.
"Pretty sure" does not mean "absolutely definite." Please determine the truth.


Oh, don't forget your video camera.
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Old 07-29-09, 02:20 PM   #15
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The only shot that I have at catching or hunting a gar would be either at Sea World or one of the Aquariums. I am pretty sure that would not go well for me.
You have Bass Pro Shops over there don't you
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Old 07-29-09, 03:54 PM   #16
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You have Bass Pro Shops over there don't you

Not within 100 miles

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"Pretty sure" does not mean "absolutely definite." Please determine the truth.



Oh, don't forget your video camera.
Okay, the absolute truth involves if I get caught doing it. A night time ninja mission to Sea World for Gar might make the national news. Heck, I could be famous. Maybe I should wear a bassfishin.com hat for my arrest.
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Old 07-29-09, 04:13 PM   #17
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you need to come on down to texas and we'll bow hunt some of these!!
Yep...they grow big'uns up in my neck of the woods too......I think bow fishing is the preferred method but lots have been caught on rod n reel....not sure how this big ol boy was taken but it was caught on a lake near by so I thought i'd share it.
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Old 07-29-09, 05:34 PM   #18
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Yep...they grow big'uns up in my neck of the woods too......I think bow fishing is the preferred method but lots have been caught on rod n reel....not sure how this big ol boy was taken but it was caught on a lake near by so I thought i'd share it.

actually i read an article about a year ago on that same GAR...it wasnt caught in oklahoma...it was caught in Texas on Sam Rayburn lake....i guess some tx and oklahoma rivalry.....i just remember seeing that picture on the left from the article.....heres another one with the other picture on it...talking ho it was caught in tx.

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgu...a%3DN%26um%3D1
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Old 07-29-09, 10:56 PM   #19
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I dont' know if this has been mentioned yet, but rope lures work awesome! Take about a 6 or 8 inch piece of rope, unwind the rope so the end is fraided. Take about a 1/0 hook and tire the rope on the the shank of the hook like you would tie a fly on to a hook. Put a small bit of superglue on the line so the knot stays. The hook isn't really what catches the gar. When a gar bites the rope lure its teeth and mouth will get tangled up in the fraided rope, and the more it roles the better. Its very hard to hook a gar with a hook since it's mouth is so narrow and hard. A rope lure is fairly light, so a spinning rod works the best. A rope lure actually swims awesome in the water, its like a giant hair jig. The rope end flairs out, and it has a big swimming motion as it falls really slow. There is an article in IN-fisherman about the rope lure, definetly worth trying to tie! Good fishin
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Old 07-30-09, 12:15 AM   #20
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It has to be a s-l-o-o-o-o-o-w day of fishing for me to start fiddling with gar.

Gar will faithfully devour a live minnow, or a dead one dangled in front of them. I find I have to let them swallow the hook to catch them, due to their very bony mouth; hence, the bait.

I tried eating gar once. It was a major chore cleaning it -- you need butcher scissors to make it through the skin. It was chewy, a bit the consistency of warm water lobster, and flavored not too bad. I'll never do it again, though -- f-a-a-a-a-r too much trouble! If I'm going to eat firm-fleshed fish I'll go after Southern Puffers and clean them so they're not poisonous, as I know how to do.
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Old 07-30-09, 02:54 PM   #21
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LOL ^ Done that one before....just not gar.

Do Gar like raw Steak? LOL
T bone with the fat..

I caught my largest musky ever on some here in Michigan.

Threw it out with a big bobber and left it strung out kind of like a wounded fish.. I was fishing with other poles and expected nothing, but we got it in..

Tried since then kind of as a "worked once" scenario and its never worked again.
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Old 07-30-09, 03:17 PM   #22
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My attitude regarding the gar has changed a lot since I was a teenager though. Personally, I can't stand watching people bowhunt them...that is just cruel, wanton waste.
Ditto the above.

Gar are a really cool and beautiful fish. I like to catch them on a fly rod. They will bite a trout nymph like a gold ribbed hare's ear or a prince nymph or something like that. I wade the river and sight fish for them. They weigh from a couple of pounds to 10 lbs and jump like a tarpon, at least the spotted gar we have around here do. I'm not familiar with the aligator gar that some have shown pics of. If you're interested let me know and I'll give you more information on flyfishing for them. In fact, sight fishing for gar or carp with a fly rod is about the funnest fishing there is to me.
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Old 07-31-09, 12:25 AM   #23
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use a shad rap....they attack them hardcore
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Old 07-31-09, 03:44 PM   #24
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Ditto the above.

Gar are a really cool and beautiful fish. I like to catch them on a fly rod. They will bite a trout nymph like a gold ribbed hare's ear or a prince nymph or something like that. I wade the river and sight fish for them. They weigh from a couple of pounds to 10 lbs and jump like a tarpon, at least the spotted gar we have around here do. I'm not familiar with the aligator gar that some have shown pics of. If you're interested let me know and I'll give you more information on flyfishing for them. In fact, sight fishing for gar or carp with a fly rod is about the funnest fishing there is to me.
Ya, I've caught them on a fly too! Was using a UL spinning reel with 6lb mon fishing for bream, popping bug with a fly on the back, the gar hit the fly, was jumping like a chicken with it's head cut off! It was fun though!
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Old 08-02-09, 12:37 AM   #25
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roadrunners work in the river for some reason if you pass it right in front of their face they cant refuse it
thats only when you can see them though
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