Record-breaking alligator pulled from Lake Eufaula, AL weighs in at 920 pounds

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The massive alligator caught by Scott Evans, of Center Point, and his friends, Jeff and Justin Gregg, on Aug. 14 has officially weighed in at 920 pounds.

The gator was weighed today at Dixon Lumber Co. in Eufaula.

“We knew it was big,” Evans said. “We took some measurements of its girth, base and around its tail” after it was in the boat.

“It is pretty amazing when you think about it,” he added.

gator-lake-eufaulajpg-7e5e02f20cd98a55Evans’ gator is expected to be a Lake Eufaula record breaker for its 13-foot 6-inch size.

Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Wildlife Biologist Richard Tharp told AL.com today, though, that he’s still not received any official paperwork on the gator so a determination can’t yet be made.

The gator is expected to produce 250 pounds of meat.

“It won’t go to waste,” Evans said. He’s collected some new recipes, and he’s planning a big Labor Day cookout.

Evans said he’s received lots of attention after the news broke of his catch. Now, he trying to have his gator put on display at an outdoor store. He’s received an email back from Cabela’s who asked him to send back some photos of the beast.

Jefferson County resident Scott Evans says, for him, alligator hunting is about the camaraderie with friends.

Having a few buddies along for the ride is a necessity, though, when faced with hunting and pulling in a massive and potentially dangerous creature.

“It’s a team effort,” Evans said, adding that unlike most hunting and fishing in Alabama, gator hunting can’t really be done alone.

It took six men, including two Alabama conservation officers, to pull in and secure the 13-foot 6-inch gator, weighing approximately 900 pounds. Evans’ group snagged the big gator almost immediately after starting their hunt Friday night, the opening day for gator hunting at Lake Eufaula.

The alligator is believed to be the Lake Eufaula record, which goes by length not weight.

In fact, Evans’ gator is believed to be the second heaviest alligator ever killed during a regulated hunt in Alabama, just behind last year’s world record 15-foot 9 inch gator, which weighed in at 1,011.5 pounds. About 115 pounds of that, though, was a deer in the gator’s belly.

“It was surreal,” Evans said, of his catch. “We weren’t expecting anything that big.”

Evans has gone gator hunting for the last five years. Last year, it took him and his buddies three nights to secure one, a 9-footer in the Delta.

But, what happened Friday night was unexpected for everyone in the boat.

“It didn’t last very long,” Evans said of the first night’s hunt.

Evans said he and his group, which included his friend, Jeff Gregg; Jeff’s son, Justin; and a guide, launched their boat at around 10 p.m. Within 30 minutes, they had spotted what they thought was a large gator and had attempted to snag it.

The slippery gator got out of the first hook, and Evans’ group pursued it for another 75 yards or so before they had him hooked a second time.

“That is when the work began,” Evans said. “We are still sore (four days later). It was hard enough to get the head and shoulders in the boat.”

Jeff Gregg said words can’t describe the experience. “It’s like a dream,” he said.

It was his son Justin’s first-time gator hunting. Gregg said Justin is still on “cloud 9.”

Both Evans and Gregg said it’s an experience they both won’t forget. It gave them a new respect for the alligator, which was believed to be at least 60 years old.

“It is humbling,” Gregg said. “Before we dispatched (the gator), it’s running through your mind, ‘should we just take a picture and let it go?’ It looks like you are looking at a dinosaur.”

Evans said he plans to have the gator fully mounted, and maybe one day displayed at an outdoor store.

Source: AL.com

 

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