deerslayer88
Active Member
- Messages
- 971
Hey Guys,
It has been a while with law school, my MBA, being a single father, and hunting. This year I was able to cross species off my bucket list with my oldest boy.
The trip started last year when my hunting buddy from law school (lucky duck hunts all over), gave me a call and asked me how I felt about going alligator hunting in Louisiana. My immediate response was when and how much? He told me the details and the next thing I knew we had a gator trip booked.
Initially, we planned on taking our spouses on this trip. But a lot can change in almost one year's time. I ended up becoming single about 2 months before the trip was set to take place. My friend's wife started a business that was taking off so she couldn't make the trip (the only positive thing from Covid). So we were left with a decision to either cancel our spouse's portion of the trip or find alternatives to accompany us.
That's when we had a great idea lets take one of our kids with us! We researched the laws and made sure our kids could harvest a gator along with their dads. Our goals were to harvest a 7 foot plus gator for everyone and hope for a true hawg.
We spent the next few weeks ensuring flights were changed, watching the weather, and daydreaming about our upcoming trip.
About a week before our trip Hurricane Sally was approaching the gulf which cooled the area down a lot but she missed our hunting areas. We had to make some last-minute adjustments to our gear, but we were still in business.
I was given the first shot at any gator and had the option to pass over any smaller gators if I wanted to. By default, the first shot went to my son. This was discussed while we were still on the boat heading from camp to the hunting spots. Our sons still did not realize that they were actually going to be doing some hunting.
At first, we did not see much activity, the cold made the gators extremely lethargic. But we came across a 7-foot gator missing a back leg that had been fully healed over. After asking my son "buddy do you think that gator would make a great trophy," and him giving me an affirmative "yes dad!" I broke the news to him that he could go after that gator with me and shoot it or we could try for something bigger. He was set on that gator with the missing foot, which is the photo of use with the gator and the rifle. His first kill was like watching a master craftsman. He didn't flinch when he pulled the trigger putting the bullet right into the soft spot on the back of the gator's head. We took some photos, went back to camp, helped skin the gator, collect the meat, and ate lunch.
Next up was my friend's son, he got the 10-foot gator in the photos. This one was located via boat since the weather had caused the gators to mainly stay put. When the guide pulled it up he asked my friend if he or his son were taking this one. Without hesitation, my friend instructed his son that this is his gator. His son was also a natural and this gator didn't stand a chance.
Next up were me and my friend. I told him "between the hawg and the goofy gator I don't think we are going to top our son trophies." to which he responded, with a smile "yes but it's better this way." I couldn't have agreed more. Our gator hunts went without a hitch he got a gator that went 8 feet and I got one that went just under the 8-foot mark.
It has been a while with law school, my MBA, being a single father, and hunting. This year I was able to cross species off my bucket list with my oldest boy.
The trip started last year when my hunting buddy from law school (lucky duck hunts all over), gave me a call and asked me how I felt about going alligator hunting in Louisiana. My immediate response was when and how much? He told me the details and the next thing I knew we had a gator trip booked.
Initially, we planned on taking our spouses on this trip. But a lot can change in almost one year's time. I ended up becoming single about 2 months before the trip was set to take place. My friend's wife started a business that was taking off so she couldn't make the trip (the only positive thing from Covid). So we were left with a decision to either cancel our spouse's portion of the trip or find alternatives to accompany us.
That's when we had a great idea lets take one of our kids with us! We researched the laws and made sure our kids could harvest a gator along with their dads. Our goals were to harvest a 7 foot plus gator for everyone and hope for a true hawg.
We spent the next few weeks ensuring flights were changed, watching the weather, and daydreaming about our upcoming trip.
About a week before our trip Hurricane Sally was approaching the gulf which cooled the area down a lot but she missed our hunting areas. We had to make some last-minute adjustments to our gear, but we were still in business.
I was given the first shot at any gator and had the option to pass over any smaller gators if I wanted to. By default, the first shot went to my son. This was discussed while we were still on the boat heading from camp to the hunting spots. Our sons still did not realize that they were actually going to be doing some hunting.
At first, we did not see much activity, the cold made the gators extremely lethargic. But we came across a 7-foot gator missing a back leg that had been fully healed over. After asking my son "buddy do you think that gator would make a great trophy," and him giving me an affirmative "yes dad!" I broke the news to him that he could go after that gator with me and shoot it or we could try for something bigger. He was set on that gator with the missing foot, which is the photo of use with the gator and the rifle. His first kill was like watching a master craftsman. He didn't flinch when he pulled the trigger putting the bullet right into the soft spot on the back of the gator's head. We took some photos, went back to camp, helped skin the gator, collect the meat, and ate lunch.
Next up was my friend's son, he got the 10-foot gator in the photos. This one was located via boat since the weather had caused the gators to mainly stay put. When the guide pulled it up he asked my friend if he or his son were taking this one. Without hesitation, my friend instructed his son that this is his gator. His son was also a natural and this gator didn't stand a chance.
Next up were me and my friend. I told him "between the hawg and the goofy gator I don't think we are going to top our son trophies." to which he responded, with a smile "yes but it's better this way." I couldn't have agreed more. Our gator hunts went without a hitch he got a gator that went 8 feet and I got one that went just under the 8-foot mark.
