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Angler Art Weston is a living legend in the fishing world and held 81 fishing world records at various points in his lifetime. He currently holds 44 IGFA fishing world records across 15 different species but his fishing records are primarily for alligator gar where he has just set another record.
Art Weston’s latest potential world record alligator gar should have never been landed. And I mean that in the sense that it’s virtually impossible he was able to reel the fish in.
Fishing with Captain Kirk Kirland, who he has landed other world records in the past like this 251-pounder on 80-pound fishing line, Weston landed a 153 pound, 7 ounce alligator gar while fishing with ULTRA light tackle. He was using just 2-pound test to land the 153+ pound world record alligator gar.
For the uninitiated, 2-pound test is fishing line so thin and light that an angler might use it to catch tiny trout or little panfish. ‘Test’ refers to the breaking strength of fishing line and 2-pound test would typically be able to withstand 2 pounds of force… This was a 153-pound, 7-ounce (pending world record) alligator gar!
Weston shared news of this pending world record alligator gar earlier this month on Facebook:
In the caption, he wrote that he was “sharing what was my most challenging catch of my life. Captain Kirk Kirkland and I landed the largest fresh water fish on ultra light tackle in IGFA history (and 6th largest if you include salt water species).”
Weston went on to say they”caught this 153 pound, 7 foot 3 inch Alligator Gar on just 2 pound test. It took nearly 4 hours to land, and we chased it for over 2 miles in Lake Livingston, Texas. Huge thanks to Kirk, as it was such a hard catch – we worked so hard to land her (almost lost her multiple times). A true 1% likelihood catch.”
4 hours, fighting a 153-pound fish, on 2-pound test. I can’t even wrap my mind around that.
Art Weston OWNS World Record Alligator Gar Fishing
While he listed ‘Lake Livingston’ as the location they were fishing, Lake Livingston in Texas adjoins Trinity River and as far as alligator gar fishing for world records goes, there’s no better place on earth than this spot. In fact, of all 22 line-class world records for alligator gar (men’s and women’s records), 18 of the 22 world records were caught on the Trinity River in Texas.
Many of Art Weston’s world record alligator gar catches were simply him breaking his own record. Out of the current 40 IGFA fishing world records for the alligator gar species, 11 are women’s fishing records, 12 are fly fishing records, and 4 are ‘smallfry’ kids fishing records.
Of all the Line Class World Records (Conventional Tackle) and the All Tackle World Record, Arthur Weston currently holds EVERY SINGLE ONE. He currently has 13 fishing world records for the alligator gar species alone. Unreal.
Sometimes though, when Arthur Weston and Kirk Kirkland are out on Lake Livingston and Trinity River fishing for alligator gar they catch other things… Case in point, this 200+ pound alligator snapping turtle they landed last Summer:
That is a true dinosaur.