12-foot alligator caught first day of hunting season

A Florida-based outfit pulled in a giant 12-foot, 360-pound alligator during the state’s first day of alligator hunting. Captain Tim Land of Land & Sea Charters in Pensacola, Fla., caught the giant gator with his crew in the Choctawhatchee Bay on Wednesday night – the day the season kicked off. Originally, Land said he was trying to nab a small alligator. "We were actually messing with a smaller alligator when we looked up to see this one out in the middle of the river," Land said. "Basically, I snatched the alligator with a Cobia rod. Snatched him, fought him for a little while, and then we threw the weighted treble hook like Willie throws it on 'Swamp People,' so we call it the Willie hook." Land and his crew brought the larger gator onto their boat where they shot it with a crossbow, the publication reported. Land said the alligator is at a local taxidermist where it will be full-body mounted. But Land’s not done for the season, which runs until Nov 1, he told the New Journal. ",,,MORE