Ad blocker detected: Our website is made possible by displaying online advertisements to our visitors. Please consider supporting us by disabling your ad blocker on our website.
Paddled John Sargeant's to Trout Creek today and saw one big ol' gator. At least I thought so until about a quarter mile later I saw it's friggin' BIG brother!!!! This beast was 11' if he was an inch.
Earlier in the day I had about an 8 footer come out of the grass straight at me. Didn't veer left nor right. Stayed right on top of the water. Friggin' idiots floating down on weekends probably feedin' the monsters. Gator turned only after I slapped my canoe paddle flat on the surface of the water with the gator about a yard away. Shock wave through the water and the sound is all I can think of the turned him/her.
Unnerving to say the least.
GIL
"Only the half-mad are wholly alive." ~~~ Edward Abbey
My sister and I was paddling a local creek last weekend and a loud "thunk" hit her boat. We thought she ran into a log when all of a sudden a 5-6 foot water moccasin appeared on the other side of her boat.
There certainly are some biguns' up there..
My wife refuses to go with me...She says she saw enough of them to last a lifetime the last trip she was on.
So did ya fish?
Senior Exalted Pro Staff Member of the Paddle-Fishing.com Kayak & Canoe Anglers Club
I guess it's another reason why I like the saltwater game: Fewer mosquitos, an alligator is rare and snakes just don't cross your path that often either.
I got hit for the second time in a week by a jellyfish today (insert screaming face "smiley guy" here). Still the most intense pain in my opinion.
Gil,
I think you should have roped it and gone for a ride.
I paddled Sargeant's to Trout creek a few weeks ago with the girlfriend--hadn't been on the river in a few years--the water level is way up and nicely flooded back into the swamps on the sides---absolutley beautiful paddle. Saw 2 large Florida Brown Water snakes, many gators, turtles, birds, and all the usual suspects out there--great time.
I also will relate another snake story from this week. I'll preface this by saying that I'm very knowledgeable about all reptiles and know how to handle them and situations with them. I was fishing Upper Tampa Bay park this week and was in a small side bay in about 6 inches of water. I had my leg dangling over the side of the kayak slowly moving myself along with my foot when all of a sudden I looked down to see that a 4 1/2 foot Eastern Water Moccasin was climbing onto my paddle. Realizing immediately what it was i thought "no dude, you can't come up here" and calmly picked the paddle up and slid him off into the water. He tried to come back but i picked him up with the end of the paddle and sort of flipped him back into the water. He realized that i wasn't an oyster bar and calmly started swimming to a mangrove island spooking somesnook with some big shoulders along the way. I tried to get my camera out in time to get a shot but he was in the trees by then. I can certainly see why people would think that these snakes are aggressive--but he simply thought i was floating debris or an oyster barand was trying to climb onto dry land. I didn't catch any fish that day but it was an awesome experience. No reason to kill those things--stay away from them and (usually) they'll stay away from you.
This beast was 11' if he was an inch. 
