# Battle on the trinity



## Cwillis89

Bow fishing tournament on the Trinity river, if you have a facebook and are interested please click on the link below and join the event.. 
For those of you that don't have a facebook the registration will be help at the highway 59 boat ramp on the trinity river in Shepard, TX. Registration will be from 5-6am tournament will be from 7am-7pm and the weigh in will be from 8-9pm.
Entry fee will be $100 a boat for a 3 man team.
2 spots will be paid out evenly from the pot.
1.) heaviest gator gar sack (maximum of 3)
2.) most fish weighed in (can weigh in any fish that's legal to take with a bow)
This will be a trailered event, after registration you can go launch anywhere you want as long as it is on the trinity river.
Thanks guys!!

http://www.facebook.com/events/1910006962559658/


----------



## BobBobber

I recall much sentiment about preserving the gator gar. The legal limit is one per angler. Now, I see a 3-limit bag for weigh in for bow fishing tournament, so I would hope that each angler will retire their bow when they have killed their gator gar.

Isn't there something basically wrong with a bow fishing tournament for gator gar?


Tournament frenzy aside, should anglers harvest that many gator gars? Bow fishing also is permanent kill, whereas hook and line fishing leaves an option to return the fish alive. Also, I would hope that no guides should be allowed to shoot and add their gar to the bag limit.


----------



## Troy992

*GatorGar in the Trinity river*

Last time I was on the Trinity River night fishing I saw a ton of GatorGar.


----------



## BobBobber

Troy992 said:


> Last time I was on the Trinity River night fishing I saw a ton of GatorGar.


Next door neighbor's 5 year old son is fascinated with gator gar. He has learned to I.D. them in books and loves fishing videos on YouTube with gator gar. In which general area do you see them? PM me if you don't want everybody to know. I want to take the boy, so he can see them live. Thanks!


----------



## texas two guns

Bob, they are all up and down the Trinity from the bay (and in the bay) all the way up to near Dallas. Your best bet is to get on when it is coming up from a rain. Just drift down until you see one surfacing. Tie up in that spot and wait. It will surface again in the general area, possibly right near the boat. You have to be quite, once they know you are there they will quit coming up. Could be a needle nose too, so you have to hunt for them. Do this and you will see that bowfishing for these fish are not as easy as some think.


----------



## texas two guns

Now back to your first post. Yes you can take only one a day.
However, and speaking loosely and since you brought up a boat limit, what if
you are fishing for red fish or trout, do you stop at your limit? Does the captain not
put any fish in the boat? 

I only ask because of what you mention. The limit is stated at 3 per boat, because the tournament probably allows a 4 man team, but it's typically only 3 men in a boat. 
Sometimes it's 2 men, but they would be foolish to weigh in 2 gar with a 3 gar limit (legally that's all they can shoot). The stated limit is to keep things fair because most river boats won't safely handle 4 men and gear. Also, it is very unusual for a tournament team to be guided, it has happened, but unusual. If that happens then they would be held to the guide/boat bag limit.


----------



## SharkBait >*)\\\><(

but how many gar get thrown back in the water with arrow holes in them i think is his point.

you and i both know each boat with kill dozens and "release" them illegally till they get the ones they want.


----------



## BobBobber

SharkBait >*)\\\><( said:


> but how many gar get thrown back in the water with arrow holes in them i think is his point.
> 
> you and i both know each boat with kill dozens and "release" them illegally till they get the ones they want.


 Thanks, Sharkbait, you understood! Is it a tournament or a slaughter?


----------



## texas two guns

I disagree. I'm not saying it doesn't ever happen, but most guys know, before they let the arrow fly, if it's a good one or not. Most smart guys know we are being watched and do our best to obey the law. That's not to say there aren't' some idiots around, but we are trying weed them out and educate them.


----------



## SeaOx 230C

If you don't believe shoot and release happens very often visit the Trinity River below the dam when the flow is right. Come late afternoon time the bow fishing rigs will start to show up. They will fish for a bit then when it starts to get dark the lights come on the bows come out.

The next morning there will be many dead needle nose gar, alligator gar, buffalo, carp, etc... on every bank. 

All will have a hole in them.

It's not a one off, it's not "that guy". I have fished below that dam many years and I have witnessed it many times from many different boats. 

I'm not arguing legality, or morality.

I am arguing reality.

Be honest.

Most bow fisherman do not keep what they shoot and utilize it by consuming the fish or giving it to some one that will. They simply do not and we all know that.

I think what a lot of bow fisherman don't understand is that most folks have no problem with bow fishing in and of itself. 

What they have a problem with is not utilizing what you kill in legitimate way. You know consume it, mount it, give it to some one who will.


----------



## texas two guns

Unfortunately, SeaOx, you are right. There are still idiot or slob bowfishermen that dump their nights kill. We still get guys dumping at boat ramps. It makes us just as sick and mad as it does the next guy. We don't condone it and we go after who ever did it as best we can.

However, the jist of this thread was about Alligator Gar. The limit for them is one per day. The species you listed are unlimited. So while there are a still a few SLOB bowfishermen that will dump their alligator gar and even shoot and release more than one, I still stand behind my statement. I don't think the majority of alligator gar fishermen are shooting and releasing.


----------



## SeaOx 230C

Very true Texas Two, I did not mean to sound like all bow fisherman do those things. There are good guys that do the right thing and there are those that just won't whether rod n reel or a bow.

I know their are some that enjoy the challenge and eat what they kill or give it to some one that will. I like me some gar of any species, buffalos are good but the fine bones are a pain unless pressure cooked and canned.


----------



## BobBobber

I think that a "tournament" encouraging 3 heaviest alligator gars for weigh-in is the problem. That encourages dumping lighter weight ones to keep on sorting out until the three heavy ones are ready for the weigh-in.

How about eliminating alligator gars from the competition? Or eliminating the weight competition? Any method that would discourage sorting and discarding would help.

Maybe issue three tags per boat. Each alligator gar shot must be tagged immediately after shooting.

Whatever the solution, I believe something could be done. The TPWD has imposed a daily limit of one alligator gar per angler for a reason.


----------



## texas two guns

The issuance of 1 gator gar per day rule is what encourages the "sorting/culling". It was not necessary. It's also been proven Bob that tournament fishing for alligator gar is not harming anything. Also, it's rare that a team will being in a full stringer of alligator gar. Take a look at this study.

http://seafwa.org/html/journals/pdf/02 Bennett et al 8-14.pdf


----------



## BobBobber

texas two guns said:


> The issuance of 1 gator gar per day rule is what encourages the "sorting/culling". It was not necessary. It's also been proven Bob that tournament fishing for alligator gar is not harming anything. Also, it's rare that a team will being in a full stringer of alligator gar. Take a look at this study.
> 
> http://seafwa.org/html/journals/pdf/02 Bennett et al 8-14.pdf


The study also showed that merely 9-percent of tournament bow anglers returned the survey. Reasons for that were speculated in the report, but a 9% response rate is not statistically significant to make valid conclusions.

Therefore for us to maintain a running debate on the issue has little merit. We have all expressed our opinions on the issue, so I suggest we move on.


----------



## texas two guns

You forgot this "In addition, we conducted an online survey of Texas Bowfishing Association members in 2012 and received 82 returned surveys, resulting in a 46% response rate."

You really had to dig to pull something out of all that, that was in your favor didn't you?


----------



## BobBobber

texas two guns said:


> You really had to dig to pull something out of all that, that was in your favor didn't you?


All I did was read the report (and quote from it) that you provided the link for.

I repeat my closing line in my last post:

*"Therefore for us to maintain a running debate on the issue has little merit. We have all expressed our opinions on the issue, so I suggest we move on."*


----------



## texas two guns

Moving on sir. Tight lines and good fishing.


----------



## Ficking

Trinity river, miss it so much! Amazing memories with amazing people!


----------



## HookIt

Will this take place next year?


----------

