gator holding breath

[wagonburner]

hooked over a 11 footer Saturday morning in Georgia and the race was on he went down deep we just kept tension on the line and we even got a second line in it but could not budge it after 1 hour and 35 minutes got impatient and tried to hook a hand line in it and of course we managed to pull both hooks out of it was wondering how long they can stay under. have brought around 10 gators to the boat in the last three years never had one stay under longer than 35 minutes none of these were over 8 foot though . just wondering if any one had a rough time .

[jpatz18]

wiki answer says...

On average, 30 - 60 minutes at best.

However, there was a case of an alligator surviving submerged in near-freezing water for over 8 hours.

Read more: http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_long_can_an_alligator_hold_its_breath#ixzz1XR8WV9s1


Ive had one for about an 1 1/2 just depends on how much they want to live.

[admin]

We had a 10' 6" in a phosphate pit stay submerged for at least 50 minutes. Part of that time he was dragging us around and then he settled down in one spot and would not move. We had two rods on him and could not budge him so we hooked him with a heavy weighted 14/0 on a rope and all three of us pulled him up. On his way up he went to rolling, boy did we have a mess when we got him in the boat.

Last week we got a big gator on that we could not get up with two rods, we got out the rope and 14/0 hook pulled him up off the bottom. We battled him for an hour before hitting him with the bang stick and found we had a 12' gator. The rope and 14/0 is an important item, we do not go out without it.

[eradigator]

My friends and I struggled with this question for the first few years we hunted, which always caused us to rush the process and break off our lines. Finally, we snagged a 13' gator in the Chattahootchee river and we decided to wait him out. After 1 hour and 40 or so minutes, he came up for air. I would have never guessed they could stay under that long, but they can, so just be patient. When he came up, I shot with my bow and missed and he went down for another 30 minutes. Each time he went under he stayed a shorter amount of time. I think the problem for most people, or at least us, was knowing whether the gator was still on the line or whether he tangled you up in a tree. Fortunately, this gator kept walking around on the bottom so we knew he was there and alive.

[admin]

Before trying to put pressure on the gator you need consider the area and get multiple lines on big gators. We have often times had two rods and rope with snatch on gators 10ft or bigger before getting a harpoon in them. If you can keep him moving without getting in cover he will come up sooner. But remember this is not a race, take your time consider your options.