Revisiting Garfish In Texas Lakes

Someone named Julie sent me an email regarding a blogging I'd written about garfish encounters in Texas lakes. How Julie found my email address, I don't know. It must be on my blog somewhere. Why Julie didn't send her message as a blog comment, I also don't know.

The end of Julie's email had the following dire warning about her message...

This message may contain confidential and/or privileged information. This information is intended to be read only by the individual or entity to whom it is addressed. If you are not the intended recipient, you are on notice that
any review, disclosure, copying, distribution or use of the contents of this message is strictly prohibited. If you have received this message in error, please notify the sender immediately and delete or destroy any copy of this message.

Okay, one of my hobbies is being a scofflaw and a bad boy, so I'm gonna be a bad boy and copy Julie's nice message below. And below that a YouTube video of a garfish, so you non-Texans can see what we put up with when we go swimming in one of our garfish/water moccasin infested lakes. I put the link to the blogging to which Julie refers, in her message below....

Hello –

About a year ago, a coworker of mine (who was also exiled to Texas for a period of her life) told me about her first experience with a gar fish. She said it was so enormous it was hanging off the back of someone’s pickup truck. Thinking she was exaggerating, I looked up photos and was HORRIFIED that something like this exists! How is it that people aren’t talking about this fish all day long, every day? Shouldn’t it at least have a show dedicated to it on the Sci-Fi channel?

Anyway, I was revealing the existence of the gar fish to a friend and we came across your blog while looking at scary photos. A hilarious entry – thank you for helping me illustrate the horrors of Texas waters to my friend. (Though I have to say I did end up siding with the fish after watching the video - yikes.) I’m not much of a blog reader, but I am truly enjoying yours and will continue to check it out. Just thought I’d let you know, since you probably get nasty comments from weirdos all the time.

Thanks again, and keep writing!

Julie

Catching Gar Fish In Texas

There are a lot of disturbing things in the lakes of Texas. I've seen and swam with some of them.

I've been chased in Lake Grapevine by a Giant Turtle that at first I thought was a Water Moccasin.

I have seen Water Moccasin swimming in a lake.

The swim hole at Dinosaur Valley State Park has a sign warning potential swimmers to beware of potential Snapping Turtles. It was an inviting looking swim hole, but the Snapping Turtle warning stopped me from getting in the water.

The most disturbing thing I've seen in Texas water is the half alligator/half fish monster known as an Alligator Gar Fish aka Gator Gar Fish aka Gator Gar aka Gar Fish.

If I'm not mistaken Gar the Texan is named after Gar the Fish.

A few weeks after my first Gar Fish encounter I was at Lake Grapevine talking to these sunbathers and they told me the week before one of their boyfriends had stepped on the teeth of a Gar Fish right near where we were talking. That same day a pair of fishermen told me they'd seen 4 Water Moccasins swim out from under the dock. That was the same dock I escaped to when I was chased by the Giant Turtle. I assume the Giant Turtle was a Snapping Turtle, because it seemed to be snapping while it was chasing me.

If you've not heard of an Alligator Gar Fish or have not seen one, check out the video below and you'll see an example of the horror that lurks in lakes in Texas...