Spotted a Longnose Gar

At Humber Bay East yesterday!! That was a trip.

Landed a Perch in front of a mom and two small children, so that made my day. Seen a lot of tiny baitfish schooling and small Bluegills in the ponds.

Got my Meeps Aglia #1 (gold) snagged lakeside, freed it, then managed to completely destroy it by throwing it into the metal boardwalk fence. IDK. Found the thump of the blade really stirred up the fish that were in there. Getting them to bite though was another story.

Good day!!

Tight lines.

Yeah its strange but Gar are hard to catch on purpose every though sometimes they are right in front of you.

Interesting, good to know. I'll keep my eye out for more...

I have heard of people who fly fish for them using flys/ropes made to tangle in their teeth. But I think the main thing to use for them is live minnows. Look for floating sticks or branches on the water that's how I have spotted the ones I've seen surfacing. Their camofluage tend to look a lot like that.

Fishing Urban Ontario said:

I have heard of people who fly fish for them using flys/ropes made to tangle in their teeth. But I think the main thing to use for them is live minnows. Look for floating sticks or branches on the water that's how I have spotted the ones I've seen surfacing. Their camofluage tend to look a lot like that.

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I've caught them sight-fishing using original floating Rapalas twitched on the surface, in front of the gar. The bony, toothy beak makes it tough to get 100% hook-ups, but it works if you can see the fish. Just keep trying.
It also helps if you are in an area where the gar are travelling in big schools like we often get down here, as they can be a bit competitive when going after a lure. I've seen schools of gar numbering well over 100, I'd guess, in the St. Clair river.
When you do hook up, they will run and leap like crazy!
A lot of folks sneer at them, but they are fun and a challenge to target and catch successfully.

Good luck!

Simon

Hi im new on this forum
Gar come up to the surface to get air. But as soon as you toss something at them they get spooked so easily. Only way you will ever get a hook in its mouth is with live bait. A shad in the fall will work the best but when you feel that fish hit the bait dont set the hook right away. The key is to leave your spool open or your drag all the way loosened. What you want is the fish to really eat that bait and move it to the back of its mouth. Once you see your line coming out wait a bit let it take it out for a few seconds and then a hard sweeping hookset. A side sweeping hookset will get that dinosaur fish right in the corner of its mouth. As for tackle use 7ft MH F bait casting rod and a reel with some strong drag (14 lbs+ ) ..good luck

Welcome to the forums! I havent targeted gar but I hear live bait works as Lucid stated above - give them a chance to eat it before setting the hook.

I also heard of fly fishing for them with yarn which tangles in their teeth (similar to Salmon) but you will need to research what flies can be used for this.

I don't see why they wouldn't attack a floating Rapala especially if you work it slow enough. With Rapala's you can maximize your chances of catching anything too. (Bass, Pike, Trout, Salmon etc)

The thing with a floating rap is that they will more than likely spit the bait before you can get a proper hookset. Without nylon or live bait catching gar is extremely tough

Funny this topic re-appeared ,, I was going to ask how to target specifically because them as I have caught 2 this year accidentally out bass fishing The Trent 5 mins from my house and my friend has aswell (I've posted pics of),, all 3 times believe it or not on a "Senko" baby bass coloured , using a wacky weedless Gamakatsu hook , u need to set the hook deep because of the boney jaw I have found .. But believe it or not , I seen a damn giant (atleast 5 feet) swim past my boat in a certain area . And I keep tossing senkos at them because that's what has worked accidentally.. But I also heard dried/salted minnows under a bobber ? Or even small alive shiners? I've also heard White cheese cloth because of the teeth getting caught? I've tried floating original raps ... I'm gonna go out this weekend and try and catch another

They do fight like a prehistoric fish .. A lot of action . They torpedo themselves out of the air and it's an awesome sight to see because u think """"What the is that!!!??""""

I believe I've caught a few funny looking fish in the past .. But when ur about to grab a gar pike , u almost think twice about it. LOL!!!

Lucid said:

Hi im new on this forum
Gar come up to the surface to get air. But as soon as you toss something at them they get spooked so easily. Only way you will ever get a hook in its mouth is with live bait. A shad in the fall will work the best but when you feel that fish hit the bait dont set the hook right away. The key is to leave your spool open or your drag all the way loosened. What you want is the fish to really eat that bait and move it to the back of its mouth. Once you see your line coming out wait a bit let it take it out for a few seconds and then a hard sweeping hookset. A side sweeping hookset will get that dinosaur fish right in the corner of its mouth. As for tackle use 7ft MH F bait casting rod and a reel with some strong drag (14 lbs+ ) ..good luck

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Good advice! We caught our first gar this year using minnows. Lost about 5 for every 2 we caught! We used small trebles. They have to really take for a while and often the trebled line would wrap around the 'beak' like a grappling hook catching the fish rather than an actual hook set in their bony mouths. The big ones have a lot of power and they like to jump like crazy!