A duo fishing in Texas earlier this month got the greatest surprise of their lives. They caught a massive alligator gar, which could break the world record.
Record-Breaking Alligator Gar in Texas
Capt. Kirk Kirkland and Art Weston successfully caught and released a huge 283-pound alligator gar using a 6-pound test. In order to be officially recognized as a world record, Weston's gar must first receive official approval from the International Game Fish Association (IGFA).
Kirkland and Weston took the fish at Sam Rayburn Reservoir, which lies northeast of Houston. Weston planned to catch another world-record fish on his expedition with Capt. Kirkland. The Kentucky angler has already broken 53 IGFA records, 23 still standing today. Eight were taken from Texas rivers and are alligator gar line-class records.
When Weston reserved Kirkland for a week of fishing, his goal was to break the existing 12-pound-test record. On Weston's first day aboard Kirkland's vessel, the Garship Enterprise, they succeeded in doing that. The 169-pound fish they caught should surpass the 129 pounds, 13 ounces IGFA record.
Theoretically, in possession of that record, Weston sized down to a 6-pound test. Weston's carp bait was ingested by yet another enormous gator gar when Kirkland led them to a location with a sandy bottom and few snags. He let the fish run as much as possible while battling it for nearly three hours.
However, it took him around 45 minutes to pull the enormous gar near enough to the boat for it to land. This method, which involved Kirkland tying the fish to control it, was much more challenging.
He immediately managed to wrap one rope around the fish. But when Kirkland's hands burned from the rope, it plunged and made another run.
They managed to catch the fish after a grueling 10-minute struggle and with the help of many ropes. They weighed the gar, which was 8 feet, 4 inches long with a 48-inch girth, using a sizable tripod and a verified scale, which displayed 283 pounds.
The current 6-pound test record of 123 pounds, 9 ounces will be easily replaced if that weight is recognized and validated by the IGFA. It should also replace the current all-tackle world record for the species, which is more significant. Bill Valverde, an angler, set the record in 1951 when he caught a 279-pound fish from Rio Grande.
According to Texas Parks and Wildlife, the heaviest gar ever captured in Texas weighed more than 300 pounds; however, the fish was ineligible for an IGFA record since it was caught on a trotline.
'Gargantuan' Alligator Gar in Texas
On July 18, John Harrington caught a "GAR-gantuan" alligator gar from the Trinity River. The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) confirmed the successful catch and release of the massive prehistoric fish.
The TPWD posted a photo of Harrington holding the monstrous fish. The "incredible catch" earned Harrington the Outstanding Angler Award from the TPWD, which is given out for a catch that doesn't meet the requirements for other award categories but still deserves recognition.
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