Harris County brothers catch 705-pound alligator Big Al on Lake Harding
Two brothers from Harris County have caught what is believed to be the largest alligator harvested from Lake Harding.
It’s known as Big Al — and Cody Quirk and Charles Quirk say it measured 12-foot-6 and 705 pounds. The state record for longest harvested gator is considered 14-foot-1, out of Lake Walter F. George in 2019, according to a CNN report.
Cody and Charles shared their gator story Wednesday with the Ledger-Enquirer.
Cody, a 32-year-old entrepreneur, has been seeing Big Al on that part of the Chattahoochee River for 14-15 years. It took him seven years of applying to finally receive the Georgia Department of Natural Resources tag to hunt Big Al when alligator season opened Aug. 15.
Four days later, Cody hooked Big Al, but the gator got away. Then, with one week left in the season, the motor on Cody’s boat was burned out, so he borrowed the 17½-foot boat owned by Chas Hawthorne, the husband of his wife’s cousin.
Charles, a 37-year-old anesthetist at St. Francis Hospital and a more experienced gator hunter, joined Cody for his last chance to catch Big Al before the season ended.
Sunday evening, their seven-hour pursuit began as they spotted Big Al and hooked him with their fishing poles. The gator lodged himself under logs, so they pulled off and ran the river for a while to give Big Al time to relax and surface again.
“He was always under cover, whether it was trees hanging over or under logs,” Cody said. “It makes it really hard to get a hook into him without losing the hook or catching debris in the water.”
Three hours later, they spotted Big Al’s eyes reflecting the light from their halogen lamps.
Charles got a hook in him, then Cody right behind. They also used a hand line, which is a paracord (a stronger line) with a treble hook (one shank with three hooks).
“He broke our lines numerous times before we were able to get him up to the surface,” Cody said. “Once we hooked into him, he pulled us probably over 300 yards up river with the water moving from power generation from West Point Dam.”
The most nerve-wracking part, Cody said, was when one of their hooks was stuck in a log, and he went shoulder-deep in the water to free it.
“When we had him next to the boat, he tried biting us a few times,” Cody said. “But we’re very cautious.”
No injuries. Just soreness.
Finally, they used a harpoon to get Big Al in the boat after Cody killed the gator with a pistol following a 45-minute struggle.
Patience and perseverance paid off.
“I wouldn’t have been able to do it without the help of my brother, for sure,” Cody said. “Thankfully, he’s as stubborn as I am.”
Charles returned the compliment.
“It’s nice to do something like that with my brother,” Charles said. “… It’s awesome to spend a lot of time together.”
When the gator returns from the taxidermist, Cody plans to share the meat with family and friends and display the body at a local business for folks to see it before Big Al ends up mounted in his home.
They aren’t aware of any evidence that Big Al had killed or injured any person or pet, but Cody is grateful to prevent a future incident.
“I’d rather eradicate him this way,” he said, “versus somebody harmed.”
Big Al was estimated to be 50-70 years old. A nuisance trap had been set for three years to catch him, Charles said.
“When a gator gets that big,” Charles said, “it becomes a little bit of a threat. … Most people on the lake are pretty happy that this is one headache they might not have to worry about.”
Cody expressed appreciation of their father, Charlie Quirk, for teaching them conservation and hunting and to use all of the animals they harvest. And he credits their wives, Jeana Quirk and Charlotte Quirk, for their support and “allowing us this much time to pursue this gator. Many sleepless nights of waking them up coming home late.”
This story was originally published September 30, 2021 at 5:00 AM.
