gar in the huron

[newguy]

a buddy of mine told me he saw several gar near kent lake under the canoe camp bridge. does anybody know if this is true, if so are they alligator or longnose, and can we fish for em or are they protected. if you can fish for them how. seems like it would be hard to get a hook through that snout

[YPSIFLY]

Unless I'm mistaken, all the gar in this state if not this area, are longnose.

I have only seen one gar landed and that was on a red inline spinner, at a dam near Ypsilanti.

I have also heard of them being caught on tiny floating Rapala's and shiners.

Frayed red yarn without a hook is supposed to work too. The deal is that they have tons of little jagged teeth that get caught in the yarn and this is more effective than a hook through the beak.

I don't have my booklet with me, but I don't think there is any closed season on them. I think the state record came from a lake just west of Kent Lake.

[Ruler]

Gar are a blast to catch, but are also probably the slimiest and worst smelling fish I've ever caught. Pretty colors though. I caught a couple dozen one time a few years back in the Consumer's Power hot ponds. Can't do that anymore though; they blocked em off. :mad: :mad: :(

They're generally considered a trash fish and I don't believe there's a closed season on em. I don't know anybody who would try to eat em, as they've got more bones than meat from what I've heard.

If you use plugs on em, make sure they're ones that you don't mind getting torn up! I have 2 that feel like sandpaper from the gar hitting em. Hardly ever hooked em though because of that beak they have.

I found that a little red & white or black & white daredevil works pretty good. I've heard about the frayed yarn hooked on, but have never tried it. Seems like it would work though, as they're the toothiest fish I've caught so far and all their teeth point backwards.

Be sure to use wire leader and whatever you do, TAKE A PAIR OF NEEDLENOSE PLIERS!!!!!! Trust me on this one- I know from experience that getting them off without them is a painful experience. (Literally!)

Good luck if you go after em!

[djkimmel]

There aren't any alligator gar in Michigan. There are at least two kinds of gar native to Michigan, the spotted gar and long nose.

See: http://www.michigan.gov/cgi/0,1607,7-158-12540_13817_13819-30538--,00.html

for more information about fish species in Michigan.

I've caught them on jerkbaits like Smithwick Rogues, Rapalas, and Bomber Long As. If you can get a lure crossways in the corner of their mouth or bring the line through their mouth on the opposite side of the lure, you'll get them in sometimes. I've tried an old loop rig a couple times too and it's awkward, but does work. You hang a lure in the middle of the loop and the gar swims through the loop and pulls it tight.

Gar are rough fish in Michigan - no seasons, no limits. I've seen them in most lakes in Michigan including nice, clear, clean ones like Higgins.

[YPSIFLY]

I have seen a drawing of a guy using a hoop rig for gar in an old book. Always wanted to try it.

Did you make the rig or can you buy them pre-maid?

[ManillaKilla]

You can also use sucker minnows to take gar. The best way to catch them is with a bow and arrow.

[jaid]

A friend of mine caught a 27" longnose on a crankbait out of Gourdneck lake a month or so ago. It had one set of trebles barely hooked in the corner of its mouth, and the other set hooked near its eye. It was bleeding like a stuck pig as soon as it got in the boat, and the blood smelled so strong of iron we could smell it 2 weeks later. The blood has seemingly permanently stained the aluminum.

If you want a good shot at catching them, head out to sugarloaf lake. On the back lake we saw no less than 10 in a matter of 15 minutes. The channel that connects the front/back lake is loaded full of spotted gar. We saw 10 or so of those just on the way through the channel. The spotted gar are pretty neat looking. At night they just cruise around 1-2' below the surface.

I think the state record for a longnose is ~11lbs. I cant imagine how big that guy must have been, the 27"r my friend caught wasnt much over 2lbs, if that.

[djkimmel]

I made my own hoop using real stiff mono, but it definitely needed refinement, but it's not something I do a lot.

I've had fun on Saginaw Bay in the many big, shallow backwaters with lots of gar up the six or seven pounds.

A friend and I found some monster longnose gar on Lake Hamilton in Hot Springs AR last spring that I was hooking on a jerkbait with Mustad Triple Grip trebles. These gar were darn near as big around as my leg and some over 4 feet long. The really big ones could tow my bass boat for a short ways. We got one catch, including the strike, all on movie film. It was pretty fun.

[ManillaKilla]

aren't those alligator gar??? those get to be huge.

[YPSIFLY]

Thanks djkimmel,

I have an old 10' flat bottom, maybe I can throw together a hoop rig and have one pull me around Kent. lol



I have caught a few 'gator gar in Louissianna on minnows under bobber, while fishing bayous. They weren't big but they would roll in your line and really make a mess of things.

I saw one on a wall somewhere near Bourbon Street that was at least six feet long!

[Duke]

When I was youger we used to chase gar quite a bit, both with spear at night, and hook and line. We quickly gave up on casting lures and did the frayed nylon rope tied to some dead bait. This worked great if you really want to get your hands on one of these slimy smelly things. The biggest one we landed was 54" (including a foot of beak or so- scary SOBs!) and 13 lbs I think. Had one on for long time that was much bigger and yes it did tow our canoe around like crazy! Buy the way they were awesome fighters- the big ones would run and jump not unlike the mighty musky!! Spotted gar are a little more pike like in appearance and 30" is real big for one of them.

[djkimmel]

Without talking to Arkansas fish biologists, I'm not sure of the exact species of big gar we were catching in Lake Hamilton other than that they definitely weren't alligator gar. I've seen them caught on trot lines and swimming in shallow bays on some of the southern fisheries I've been to like the Arkansas River. They are distinctive from other gars and can get monstrous. I watched one on a set line part of a morning trying to get free a few years ago. It was over 5 feet long!

The gar we were catching were bigger than any other non-alligators I've ever seen, but they looked like longnose and that's what some locals told me they were. I didn't know any gar other than alligators got that big, but they were gators. If I ever get back down there, I'll have to ask.

[Duke]

Longnose do get that big, even up here! I have seen 2 that were honestly b/w 5-6'. One that we never could land because he was too big and broke our line, and another while spearing that when after stuck, he took off leaving behind some serious rope burns on my brother's hands before pulling free! Scary big. Have seen thousands of others (they like to school and surface you have probably seen) but none like those 2.

[jkola404]

We have caught them on a ball of cotton tied onto the fishing line.

[Foxy Carp]

This summer there were some gar swimming around in our marina, out in spring lake. I tried some lures but even after bumping the fish right in the nose, I got no action. I guess shiners are supposed to work good.

[feed jake]

I've seen gar on numerous occasions out at Kent Lake this past season bass fishing. The biggest was only about 30 inches and really skinny.

[Loomis]

I got one out of the PM this year salmon fishing. I think it is a spotted gar. The pic is in my photo's, I can't post it in the thread yet(always have problems). I didn't measure it, but i think it was over 3'.

[Water Wolves]

Pic of a 6'9" 169 lb Alligator Gar caught in an overflowing ditch on the property of the Lousiana State Penitentiary in Angola. According to the website, this would have qualified as the second biggest AG ever taken in Louisiana but, it was lassoed, not caught with a hook and line, thus it wasn't an "official" catch.
Thought you might be interested..............

http://www.meacfans.com/ubb/image_uploads/1035879803.jpg


No word if the prisoners enjoyed it for dinner that night.

WW
:D :D :D

[The Whale]

Look at the gut on that gar ! I told them prisoners to stay away from that ditch !


Whale :D :eek: :D