I was bank fishing before and i saw a gator across the cove. Well about dark i was getting ready to leave and glanced up to see him not on the other side anymore, but about 20 yards away just coming to check me out. He paused stared at me for about 5 minutes and then turned and went back to his spot on the other side. No problem just don't bother them and they wont bother you.

They only attack jet skiers.

Lake Worth has signs up saying not to molest them. Seriously.

I've got a picture of a 8 + foot gator in the deer stand area of Rayburn. The locals say he's been there a while.

My buddy actually bumped him with his trolling motor. He was in the area all week.

CT

Nuts?? No, not at all. I just don't let the fear of something so remote control my life. Your kids are far more likely to be run over by a car at the school bus stop or to be involved in a car accident driving to see grandma than to ever even get close enough to touch an alligator in lake Lewisville. Let the kids enjoy themselves.

Just stay outta momma's nest and you will most likely by just fine. Heck we used to catch gators when we were kids just to mess with them and turn them loose. We never got bit or attacked and we were playing in there front yard, so to speak. Just be mindful of where you are swimming and your surroundings.

Gators in Lewsville and Ray Roberts??? Seriously? I beat the banks in some pretty remote areas on both with my 5 year old and have never seen one. I didn't know they were this far west.

Probably a good thing I never saw one, I would probably run like a school girl. Snakes don't bother me one bit but a gator...

After reading this I did a search on google and saw there was a 10' gator in Ray Hubbard a while back and the TPWD guy for the region said the area between Lavon and Hubbard is prime habitat for them. I need to stop buying rods and reels and start saving for a boat.

Huntsville State Park has plenty of Gators and a swimming area. Been that way for years without any incident I know of. Every once in a while the GW will remove a larger gator that they feel is getting to close to the swmming area.

Lake Conroe has them as well. They typically stay in the less frequented areas.

Swimming itself is actually way more dangerous than Gators. There are usually about 7 to 10 drownings on the Lake per year. No gator attacks that I am aware of. Of course I wouldn't suggest swimming in known gator areas. There is about a seven footer in the back of Peach Creek.

Im on Lake Lewisville alot. In the spring and summer, I work as a(BowFishing Guide)...We always put in a Tower Bay...Some nites on the water , we will see a few small gators... Some of them ,within 5 min. of the boat ramp...I spotted one large one a year ago, when the lake was up...Most of the time it is late , or very early am...They make no moves to come to the boat...Lewisville has lots of wildlife. Deer, Hogs, Turkey,Mink, you name it it has it...Which reminds me of party cove, I guess you could say thats "Wild Life to the Extreme"

And Charlie what cove is that so I know not to go there LOL

I live on Lake Fork and we have seen two alligators. My neighbor has taken pictures of several and my other neighbors have seen several. At Christmas, we went to a local alligator farm about 20 minutes from here. The guy told us that in almost every river, creek and lake in Texas, there is a good possiblity of an alligator being there, or was once there and moved to another river/creek. He said, and I quote, "I would never swim in a lake or river in Texas".

However he also said that in most lakes, such as Lake Fork, there is plenty of food for them so they really are no threat to us in a boat.

Just swim in the main lake.

Right . . . because everyone knows the roads are safe and wreck free, and there are never any pool drownings or fecal bacteria infections.

Over 40,000 Americans die every year in traffic accidents, and around 4000 drown. In contrast, there hasn't averaged even one death-by-alligator per year � it's been one about every four years.

This is a great example of skewed risk perception.


http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/huntwild/wild/species/alligator/safety/index.phtml
http://www.the-eggman.com/writings/death_stats.html
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/deaths.htm

once when i was a kid my elementary teacher took us down to a creek that flowed right by the school to observe nature for science class when all the sudden he sprinted into the creek and picked up this aligator by the back of the neck! the thing was 2 or three foot long and the creek was in the middle of a nice neighborhood in the middle of west fort worth! i also hear storys about them being in the creeks and rivers of lake worth and benbrook all the time but i have never seen one in person

As a rule they will not bother you unles:
1. Someone has been feeding them
2. If you have a dog in the water with you(ring the dinner bell)
3. They have a nest nearby and lil ones
I fished and saw at least 100 of them last week with some as close as a rod's length to me in the boat. The lil ones love to chase a topwater bait!! The big ones just look at you. I have some pics with my camera phone I will try and post.