Fishgator - Kayak Fishing Blog

Fly Tying Material from Hunted Animals

One of the things I’ve had trouble finding information on through the internet is how to properly take fly tying materials from animals you’ve hunted and harvested, including deer, turkey, and pheasant.

That is, how to cure a deer skin, properly care for turkey feathers, and harvest material for flies fom a hunted pheasant (tails, etc.).

So, to that end, I will be actively looking for that information on the internet, and I would be most pleased if you could post any information you might have on that below.

Holiday Gifts for Kayakers and Fishermen

Just in time for the holidays, no matter what denomination you or your target species are, come’s the Fishgator Holiday Gift Guide for Fishermen and Kayakers!

Every day until the end of the year, I’ll highlight a great gift or two for the kayaker/fisher person in your life.

So stay tuned! First post comes this evening!

Fishgator Video on Youtube

Again, since it’s in the news these days, imagine seeing this monster while you’re swimming. And it’s possible you might, if you live in the fishgator/alligator gar’s natural range. Video below.

What is a Fishgator?

Been noticing a lot of traffic of late looking for “fishgator” in the search engines. In part, it’s due to an alligator gar caught in Tempe, Arizona recently:

Alligator Gar Caught in Kiwanis Lake
Looking alarmingly like a cross between an alligator and a fish, the aggressive garfish has a long snout and several sharp teeth that are rather visible. It is also not native to Arizona, causing authorities some alarm.
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So those of you that want to know what one is, here’s the wikipedia information:

Alligator gar are found in the southeastern United States: Arizona, Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Alabama, Tennessee, Kentucky, Arkansas, Missouri, Florida, Maryland, and in Paris, Illinois in the Twin Lakes area. They have also been known occasionally to come as far north as central Kansas, off the Republican River and up into Clarks Creek. They inhabit sluggish pools and backwaters or large rivers, bayous, and lakes. They are rarely found in brackish or saltwater, but are more adaptable to the latter than are other gars. In February 2007, a 1.5-foot alligator gar was found roaming far in the city of Jakarta, Indonesia, when the city was hit by a major flood (see External Links below). In January 2008, a 3-kg gator gar was found by fishermen in Bera, Pahang (East Coast State of Malaysia), when it was caught entangled in a fishing net. July 28th, 2008 an Alligator Gar was caught at Kiwanis Lake in Tempe, AZ by father and son Joe Chavez Sr. and Jr. of South Phoenix.

Feeding

The alligator gar is an aggressive, solitary fish that lives in fresh water bodies in the southeastern U.S. It is carnivorous. However, it is not ordinarily aggressive towards humans. Alligator Gar feeds by lurking amongst reeds and other underwater plant life, waiting for food to pass by. Though subsisting mostly on fish, the alligator gar will also eat waterfowl.

Alligator gar have also been known to attack humans in some very rare cases

Breeding

Though the alligator gar prefers slow-moving waters, it appears to need running water in order to spawn.

That from Wikipedia.

It would be a heck of a battle in a kayak, let me tell you. In Western New York, I certainly don’t have the wherewithal to fish for them. Going to ask my buddy from Big Bass Country if he’s ever bumped into one.

Bake Fish in a Whole New Way

Looking for a new way to bake fish? What about a healthy way?

This is my latest discovery for baking fish. It’s called a Romertopf Clay Fish Baker, and per the Eclectic Grocer, it’s a healthy way to bake fish without adding any additional fatty cooking liquids.

Just soak the clay baker for 10 minutes, put in your fish and other ingredients, and bake away.

Here’s a couple of recipes.

In the meantime, I would suspect bass would be a great species to make this way, with thyme, chives, onions and tomatoes. Guess I better go catch a few to find out.