I'm not going to let him outfish me, not today.
Whoa.
Shoot him.
[music playing]
NARRATOR: Dawn breaks over the bayous of southern Louisiana
on the third day of alligator season.
For the second day in a row, the Edgar family is helping
the Landrys fill their tags.
Because the Edgars' hunting territory is in the west zone,
their season doesn't open for another four days.
When Troy called, I said, your season's before mine.
I can spare some time.
I'm coming.
NARRATOR: And Daniel's agreed that
all the profits from what they catch will go to the Landrys'.
It's part of our culture, to do for each other
and help each other.
Fire it up.
NARRATOR: To make things interesting,
a friendly wager between the two competitive families
hangs in the balance.
DANIEL: First day, we didn't do very good.
Troy skinned us.
That rascal, he's a true great alligator fisherman.
But I'm not going to let him outfish me, not today.
They Edgar name's on the line.
I did some exercise last night, getting ready to--
getting ready to roll them in.
[laughs]
Dad is a strong man.
He's never been one to work out, but he's
been going to the swamp gym his whole life.
So I'm hoping that we're top fishermen.
I'm hoping that we got the biggest gators in the moat.
All right, let's go to work.
We've got alligators in the [inaudible]..
Let's go get it.
TROY: Let's go fill the boat.
You know the boys, they want to make
sure to catch more than Daniel and all, now
that they're here to help us.
And I'm going to do all I can to catch all I can.
NARRATOR: Each team heads out, wanting to outdo the other.
But that's easier said than done.
Still after coming in yesterday with less than half the gators
as Troy, the Edgars, Daniel, Joey, and 22-year-old Dorian
are eager to pull in big numbers today.
My name and my reputation is on the line.
I've got to catch these alligators.
I've got to make it happen.
JOEY: Look, some bubbles right here, dad.
He's right here.
When I was little, he would refer to us as dad.
And since his grandchildren have come along, he calls him Paul.
Paul, do you see them?
It's confusing.
It's confusing to people that don't know us, you know.
But we know what he's talking about.
Hold on.
Look, he's going this way.
NARRATOR: Joey and Daniel use the two
boats to try to corner the gator as they
throw their trail hooks.
Look, that's one.
Look how dirty the water.
Whoa.
NARRATOR: Joey's battling a monster
gator on his treble hook.
Be careful, Paul.
Be careful when you're shooting him.
Watch him.
It might be a good one, huh?
It's a big one.
Hold on.
Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait.
I got him. I got him.
Hold on.
I'll try to get another hook on him.
Hold on.
I don't see it.
He's going to unhook himself.
Whoa.
Just watch him, Paul.
We'll just let him--
Just don't give him any slack so we can unhook him.
Yeah.
NARRATOR: Keeping the line tight so the massive beast can't
escape, Joey tries to give Dorian
a clear shot at the quarter-sized kill
spot on its head.
It's a big one.
NARRATOR: It's all part of the youngest
Edgar's apprenticeship.
It's a big one.
Hold him.
He'll unhook it if he rolls.
Get ready. Get ready.
I'm ready.
Get ready.
If we check my blood pressure and my heart rate right now,
it'd probably be elevated.
But I'm proud to do her in.
One shot, one kill.
I'm very proud of it.
I just did what I was taught to do and stay cool, calm,
and collected, and I got it done.
That's what's up.
NARRATOR: Dorian and Joey bagged a 9 and 1/2
foot monster worth over $250.
Good job, Paul.
That's what it takes.
That's what I'm talking about.
This is a plus for us.
We're catching a big alligator, so coming
into Duffy's, we're going to walk with our heads
straight up walking in.
Done deal.
We're going to get some more like that.
NARRATOR: While the Edgars celebrate a huge catch,
across the lake, with only a single gator in their boat,
Troy and Guy are looking for a big score
at one of their hunting holes.
TROY: Oh, we got one back there.
Got [inaudible] Guy Landry.
GUY: What we got, bro?
TROY: I don't know.
Oh.
[laughs] That's a good alligator, buddy.
It's a good one.
Ooh.
GUY: Give him a shot.
Give him a shot, bro.
Right there. Perfect.
Hurry up.
Shoot him.
There you go.
Shoot him.
What the hell you waiting on.
Are you joking?
Shoot him, brother.
Shoot him.
What the hell?
Shoot him.
[gunshot]
[chuckles]
All right, little fella.
GUY: I'll take it.
I'll take it.
TROY: Yeah, a pretty good alligator.
I was hoping.
Wrong way, big boy.
You got to come this way.
NARRATOR: This massive 11-footer will bring in over $300
at the buyer.
Perfect.
Perfect. Perfect.
Good job.
Nice alligator.
We'll take him.
GUY: All right, I'm ready.
TROY: You ready, brother?
NARRATOR: At the Landrys' buyer, Troy, Guy, and the boys
are off loading their day's haul.
TROY: You know, it started out real slow this morning.
I'm talking about real slow.
We wanted help with a decent day, but let me tell you,
I didn't think we were going to have
nothing by the end of the day.
NARRATOR: Six gators from Troy and Guy
and three from Jacob and Chase makes a Landry total of nine.
Now it's down to the Edgars to see who takes
home family bragging rights.
DANIEL: I'm feeling pretty good.
Alligators piling up.
I'm feeling a whole lot better than I did yesterday.
TROY: 11.
Good catch.
Felt good.
We had more than the Landrys, and it was a really good day.
He showed me a thing or two.
Yeah.
Doing good.
[laughter]
NARRATOR: With the Landrys' victory yesterday,
and the Edgars coming out on top today,
each family stood their ground in the gentlemen's competition.
And in a two-day grand total, together they
were able to fill 57 of Troy's tags
and honor the code of the swamp.
At the end of the day, daddy did make the right call.
The satisfaction was there, that we helped our neighbor
through a tough time, and show that we're capable alligator
fishermen and capable men.
It was probably the right move to make.
Hopefully, things will change and we'll
start catching boatloads of gators
and bringing our numbers up, but I think
it was the right move to make.
Well, you all did good, man.
I know I can count on them and they know
they can count on the Landrys.
Good work, Daniel.
Appreciate the help you and your family did for us.
You all was a big help, you and your grandchildren.
Glad to do it, buddy.
Glad to do it.
Sure like we started out, you know them tags,
it would have taken us two or three days extra,
fishing around the lake.
To do that, you already saved us three or four days of work
by you all helping us out.
So I've got something for you.
I've got tags I'm going to give you.
I know you like to fish on the north
end of the bay over there.
He's a good man, and if someone needs help,
you have an obligation to help him.
It was good.
Appreciate it.