I took my kayak out on Bluff Lake in the Noxubee Wildlife Refuge yesterday.  It was a beautiful, clear, and windless day.  Temperatures have been down 5 degrees from last weeks highs as well; an all around perfect kayak opportunity.

Just as I was lifting the kayak off the top of the Jeep I noticed a creature I’ve been waiting to see.  With a huge log-like body, long tail, and gapping mouth it was Alligator mississippiensis. The problem was this 8 foot predator was hovering 40 feet off the boat launch.

The other boaters with their high-sided aluminum and fiberglass watercraft weren’t paying the dinosaur much attention.  I was going to be a little bit closer to the action in my sit-on-top kayak.

As I slid my kayak into the lake it was obvious the Alligator’s head sat higher in the water than the top of my bow.  This put all sorts of lovely images of the gator’s mouth chomping on the bow of my kayak in my head.  Or maybe he would just swim along side and give me a playful bump; sending me into the drink with him.

All of this is just irrational fear though and perfectly normal, in fact healthy, when a human being comes in close contact with an animal that could make a meal of him.

There have been no incidence of an alligator attacking a person in the Noxubee Refuge.  No one attempts to feed them, so they maintain their fear of us.  In fact, the commotion of me putting my kayak in and banging my paddle against its roto-molded hull a few times sent the gator on a path straight out of the area.

Spotting an Alligator in the Noxubee Refuge is really a treat.  They are extremely rare this far from the coast.  There are many people who drive for hours just for the chance to see and photograph the gators.  This was my first glimpse, and it was extra special because it was such a close encounter.

Moments like this make me want to invest in better photo equipment.  Digital zoom just doesn’t do this guy justice.

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