re: List of fatal alligator attacks in the US (by decade). Fun for all inside.

I met my best friend at UGA in 92. He is from Valdosta and he started inviting me to go fishing on the 400 acre cypress pond that his parents have a cabin on in Hamilton Co., Fl. I got to know his HS friends well over the years and was perplexed when they always wanted to take a ride over to the Withlachoochee river to dive off limestone cliffs into that black arse water. I asked if there were gators in that river and they all said yes but they didn't bother people.

I opted to remain an observer. I only swam in the clear springs close by where I could see the bottom. I bought a place on the pond in 02 and go down to fish about 10 times a year. Gators all over that pond. Watched Fl fish and game pull a 10 ft gator out of there one evening. Shine a flashlight over the surface in the evening and see them damn gators eyes all over the place. One day, while sharing a boat with one of his HS friends, this guy dropped his rod in about 5 ft deep water. He gets down to his underwear and hops in to the pond. Proceeds to "feel" around with his feet until he finds the rod. I would have left the rod as a sacrifice to the pond God.

Gators aren't very aggressive. It would probably swim off ASAP

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Gators aren't very aggressive. It would probably swim off ASAP

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As kids we would go swimming in the ponds on the golf course at night to fish out golf balls. Most of the ponds had at least one gator. We never had problems.

Of course there is no way I would do that these days.

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Thought there was a swimmer killed at Indian Creek back in the 80s. Pretty sure there was

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In woodworth? I've lived here all my life and never heard that

lot of females on that list.

3 biggest fears:

1. Alligators.

2. Crocodiles.

3. Brain Aneurysms.

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As kids we would go swimming in the ponds on the golf course at night to fish out golf balls. Most of the ponds had at least one gator. We never had problems

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and kids are much more likely to be attacked (mistaken for prey) because of their size. We swam where they had gators growing up.

Would never even think of doing that around salties or nile crocs

Meh, I've got a camp over by where some of those Swamp People guys "hunt". I've been swimming in pretty much every area they catch the gators, I've had them knock up on my boat, spotlighted their eyes at night, caught them with a fishing pole ect... Alligators don't scare me, just don't jump in their area at dusk or after dark, and don't frick with their eggs, and they'll pretty much leave you alone

Went swimming in Mississippi River when I was in third grade. Damn gator popped up 20 feet awat. I stayed out of the water that day after that.