Congrats, I missed the SC draw for the second year. I haven’t missed a draw since they started. I did check GA and surprisingly my points carried. I apply for the very difficult to draw Zone 1 and 1a so didn’t expect to draw anyway. If I would have been less distracted I would have 7+ points in GA vs. the 2 or 3 now.

In SC Midland I passed on a 12’ right at the boat 15 minutes in. My trip was a lot like yours. I had a severe cold, truck had a flat on the way and safety key missing. Rented a car in Fayetteville at 11:55 pm when they close at 12. Taxi took us for a 45 minute “ride”. Couldn’t get a hotel to even sleep the 1 hour before Guide showed. After passing a possible 12’ ( I have a full head/neck mount from a prior 11’ in SC) to find a definite 12-13’ I never saw another one over 9’. I did bring a Buddy and wanted him to experience so second day went for anything 8’ or over. Had one slip by and another submerge in the shallows. My friend was worried about my truck(no need USAA lost it for a week) and didn’t want to wait on the last 9’ in crystal clear shallow water to emerge so we left.

To add to your advice:


Make sure your Partners committed

Sunglasses, hat, sunscreen, and good binocs if daytime hunting

If night time skip the bug juice and go for a swamp net hat deal. Trust me, I worked in Rural SC/GA for 2 years. The bugs don’t care about spray and will fly into every opening they find

Learn to judge gators using eye to snout and eye width including reflections

If you think of it more as a Fishing/Hunting group activity it’s more accurate than Hunting really

Even in rural areas book a hotel or lodging well in advance

I used a harpoon and knife vs. Fishing pole and/or Gun. Even if hooked with a pole or snatch line you’ll still want a noose or large line in him. Ask the Guide what his harpoon handle is and pick one up. They sometimes like a long heavy handle to reach that can be awkward to thrust/throw, etc.

Watch the tail and watch the tail-enough said

Open cuts near bacteria ridden gator hide is bad for business. They bleach and scrub before cleaning for a good reason.

Public lakes on weekends are a bad idea. I learned the hardway after my first hunt was a small canal without traffic at night. The second was Lake Marion which had a rep for large lizards. I wanted Santee Cooper (Middle Coastal) and picked Midlands as a second. I should have picked Southern Coastal. GA is a bit different in zones. SC only has 4 and the lakes were producing. The water being high had them so far back in the cypress trees we could hear them crashing and couldn’t get close. We were in a few inches of water in very tight spots and still couldn’t get close. There is a report issued on sizes taken from each region and I believe GA does the same.

If your in GA and like small game there are huge saddled colored Fox Squirrels the size of Groundhogs and a smaller variety that’s solid black with a White nose. Some area call them Cat Squirrels.


Most important, a Low Country Boil is definitely the go to food when ordering. If your coastal you can watch the shrimp boats come in to the restaurants.