Alligator Rams, Flips Kayaker On NC River: Watch Video

NORTH CAROLINA — A North Carolina man leisurely paddling a secluded stretch of the Waccamaw River experienced the shock of a lifetime when an alligator charged his kayak and tipped him over into the brackish water over the weekend.

“I thought I heard a fish jump to my left—turned out not to be a fish,” kayaker Peter Joyce told WECT. “About three feet from the kayak I made out the head of the gator and that was it, I had no time to react.”

The incident, which was caught entirely on a video, occurred near Lake Waccamaw, west of Wilmington Sunday, Joyce said.

"While paddling the upper Waccamaw in N.C. I received a warm welcome from the wildlife," Joyce said on the YouTube video post.

In the video, Joyce was quietly paddling the blackwater river when the alligator charged him from about 20 feet away from the left.

"My mind was playing catch-up at that point,” Joyce told the station. “Basically, when I made out the head of the gator towards the front end of the kayak it was kind of just a state of shock."

After the kayak tipped over, Joyce was able to rightside his kayak by grabbing onto limbs hanging over the water and grab his paddle.

Joyce said that while he's spotted alligators before while kayaking, it was the first time he experienced aggression, which he said believes was because it's alligator mating season.

Watch the video of the incident here: