I don’t hide the fact that the longnose gar is my favorite fish. Not necessarily to eat or catch but just in general out of all fish, they are my favorite. When it comes to catching them though, it can be a bit tricky because of their long slender snout or (gar). I’m going to share some tips I’ve learned over the years that has helped me catch some pretty decent ones.
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1. Hook Size and Type
The type of hook you use and size are going to play a massive role in having success catching Longnose. My wife is a master when it comes to pinning a Longnose with a circle hook right through the skinny part of the snout. Don’t ask me how she does it but my preferred method is with a #1 Trokar Wacky Rig Hook. No wait just hear me out! The small size of this hook and the fact that it has an open or J style point makes it so much easier to drive the hook through the bony snout.
One thing to keep in mind when using a small wire hook like this for big fish. You need to have good drag control. If your drag is just cranked all the way down you’re just going to bend your hook straight. Let the fish run and pull drag a bit and reel him back in between runs and the hook should hold up just fine.
2. Line and Leader
Honestly if your drag is used properly you shouldn’t have to worry too much about your line. I would recommend probably between 10 and 20lb mono. The real thing to worry about is your leader. Longnose gar will cut through regular fishing line like it’s nothing. A wire leader is almost a must have in my opinion. As you can see in the picture below, I tie my own leaders directly to the hook using a piece of stainless steel wire. I feel like this is a little more sleek than the normal clasp that leaders have plus it adds a ton of strength right at the fishes mouth where the most abrasion from the teeth will be.
3. Bait
The best bait for Longnose gar is literally any kind of cut bait. They are generally not picky eaters and can also be caught on worms or anything else you normally fish with but when I’m targeting them I stick to cut bait. Make sure you have plenty of hook point exposed, it doesn’t take a massive piece of bait to catch a massive fish.
4. Location
Location is pretty important in terms of the size fish you’re after. Longnose gar are the biggest species of gar second to the alligator gar and they need space to grow. Most of the time you’ll find the biggest ones in rivers rather than lakes. At least that’s the case in my experience. I live right on the Mississippi River and out of all the areas I’ve fished, the biggest gar have always come from the river.
5. Fighting a Longnose Gar
Fighting a Longnose is the same but a little different than other fish. One thing to note is they will leap from the water like a bass which might surprise you. Also it’s hard to estimate the fishes size until you see it. The reason for this is their long slender body. If the fish is coming towards you it isn’t going to feel very big because there’s not much water resistance but if it turns away or broadside into current it’s going to feel much heavier.
Just keep steady pressure and don’t let the fish have any slack line. Much like a bass it could throw the hook but more importantly it could get your line wrapped around its long toothy snout and could definitely pop the line. I’ve even had them cut through lighter weight steel wire leaders.
Let it run and pull drag if it wants to and just baby it back in when stops. Slow and steady.
6. Catch and Release
These are not invasive fish and do not pose any issue with other game fish population. If anything they help maintain a healthy ecosystem for all fish. They are predatory the same as bass and feed on roughly the same diet. Some places they are more prevalent so just be mindful of that if you are after a different species.
A lot of people will kill these fish by throwing them on the bank or breaking off their snouts which is ridiculous. Because of bad information being passed down it’s became common practice to do this.
These are amazing prehistoric fish. They are basically dinosaurs!!! They deserve the same respect as any other wild animal.
7. Can you eat Longnose Gar?
Yes absolutely! Gar has a similar flavor to any other freshwater fish but requires a little more work to get to the meat compared to other fish.
Firstly they have a suit of armor that require a decent pair of tin snips to get through.
“Check the video below to see how I clean a large Longnose gar.”
After that you need to trim the “red meat” off of the fillets because this has a very unpleasant gamey/fishy taste. The last step is optional and just kind of depends on the fish and its size. Gar meat has thick strands of connective tissue between the segments of meat that will make it tough or chewy after cooked. The easiest way to get around this is to pass the meat through a meat grinder and turn the ground meat into patties, balls, or even fish sticks. Like I said it definitely is a little more work if you plan on eating a longnose.
8. Poisonous Eggs
One last thing that needs to be noted if you plan on eating your catch. Longnose gar eggs (row) are toxic if consumed and can also contaminate the meat if exposed to it. It’s pretty easy to avoid contact with the eggs though. They are situated under the ribs and there’s nothing needed to be cut on the belly or under the ribs if you use the cleaning method in the above video.
