Alabama fishing reports
318 reports for Alabama — what's biting, water temps, and where to focus.
Fall bass bite builds on Alabama waters as water cools
Gauge readings show the Coosa and Tallapoosa drainages in a comfortable fall range, with water at 67°F at three of the four stations reporting. Flow is low at two small-stream gauges (110 and 138 cfs) and moderate at the larger river gauge (8,400 cfs). Per B.A.S.S. News, the Bassmaster College Classic Cup on Wilson Lake saw Brody Robison win with 58 pounds, 4 ounces, after a rainy, windy second day that he predicted would spur the fish. MLF News also reported that a Phoenix BFL Regional on Lake Eufaula was won with 36 pounds, 4 ounces over two days, so the largemouth bite is producing solid weights across the state this fall.
Redfish and snook outlook for Mobile Bay as the fall mullet run builds
Water temperatures around Mobile Bay are comfortable for inshore fishing, with NOAA CO-OPS station 8735180 reading 76.5°F and station 8736897 reading 79.2°F as of the latest observations. That is a warm October baseline, and it keeps inshore predators feeding through the day instead of bunching up in the cooler early hours. Saltwater Sportsman notes that the fall mullet run is under way along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts, with fish of all sizes, from fingerlings to 3-pounders, pouring out of rivers, bays and estuaries from September well into November. Mullet moving out of Mobile Bay's rivers and marshes is the main food source for predators right now. Salt Strong (articles) adds a useful point for the whole Southeast. Water levels are high across much of the region, which floods shorelines, grass and creeks and gives fish a lot more territory to roam. That can make redfish harder to pin down, so expect them to spread out instead of sitting on the usual edges. Salt Strong also describes switching from plugs to soft plastic jerk lures when a promising, bait-filled spot produces nothing. Fishing the same water again with a changed presentation turned a slow morning into an inshore slam of redfish and snook for them.
Fall bass bite builds on Guntersville and Wheeler as water cools
Cooler water is pulling Largemouth Bass out of their summer haunts. USGS gauge 03582000 reads 63°F with 299 cfs of flow, a temperature that typically triggers the fall feed. Tactical Bassin (blog) points to shallow water this month, saying jigs, soft jerkbaits and topwater fished around hard structure like dock pilings, laydown trees and rocks are worth working, and notes that fish position in predictable ways in the fall. B.A.S.S. News reports that Alabama's Wilson Lake produced big limits at the College Classic Cup, where the winning three-day total was 58 pounds, 4 ounces. Brody Robison's second-round limit came on a rainy, windy day he had predicted might spur the fish.
Cooling water sets up fall bass and crappie on the Tennessee River lakes
Gauge 03582000 reads 62°F water with 306 cfs flowing this morning, a clear sign the fall transition is underway for Lake Guntersville and Wheeler country. Tactical Bassin points to shallow October bass, with jigs, soft jerkbaits and topwater working the subtle spots fish overlook. Wired 2 Fish reports crappie turning aggressive almost overnight once the first cool front arrives, a pattern worth carrying onto local water now.
Fall bass bite builds as Alabama waters cool
Gauge readings across the Tennessee and Coosa drainages show water temperature at 65°F on the three gauges that report it (USGS gauge 02338523, 02413210 and 02413205), a comfortable fall range for largemouth. B.A.S.S. News covered the Bassmaster College Classic Cup at Wilson Lake in Florence, Ala., where Brody Robison won with 58 pounds, 4 ounces. He credited rainy, windy conditions on Day 2 for a 21-10 limit, a reminder that bass feed opportunistically when weather turns. Tactical Bassin (blog) is pushing shallow jigs, soft jerkbaits and topwater for October bass.
Switch to soft plastics when redfish ignore the plugs
Water temperatures sit in the low to mid 70s across the Mobile Bay and Gulf stations, with NOAA CO-OPS station 8735180 reading 72.7°F and station 8736897 reading 74.8°F around midday. That is comfortable territory for inshore predators feeding up ahead of winter. Salt Strong reports a spot loaded with baitfish that produced nothing on plugs. The angler then switched to soft plastic jerk lures and fished the same water again, which turned into a quick inshore slam that included redfish and snook. The takeaway for this week is simple. When the bait is there and the bite is not, change the presentation before you change the spot.
Fall transition sets up a shallow-water window on the Tennessee River lakes
A gauge reading of 63°F water at USGS gauge 03582000, with 357 cfs flowing, puts the Alabama region squarely in the fall transition. Nearby, B.A.S.S. News reported that rainy, windy weather on Day 2 of the Bassmaster College Classic Cup at Wilson Lake in Florence produced the event's largest bag, a 21-pound, 10-ounce limit. Leader Brody Robison had predicted the day before that the weather would spur the fish. A second gauge, USGS 03575100, reads 163 cfs, a modest flow that points to settled, stable conditions.
Fall bass bite builds around Coosa and Tallapoosa tailwaters
Water temperature is holding at 65°F on three of the USGS gauges we track (02338523, 02413210 and 02413205), which is right in the range where fall bass start moving out of summer haunts. B.A.S.S. News coverage from Wilson Lake in Florence this weekend noted that rainy, windy weather on Day 2 of the College Classic Cup pushed fish to feed, with the leader landing the event's biggest bag at 21 pounds, 10 ounces. MLF News also has the Phoenix Bass Fishing League regional wrapping up at Lake Eufaula, so Alabama bass are getting plenty of pressure and attention this week.
Mobile Bay holds its warmth as fall mullet run reaches the Gulf
Mobile Bay's inshore water is running noticeably warmer than the open Gulf this week: NOAA CO-OPS station 8736897 logged 75.7°F early this morning, 3.6 degrees above the 72.1°F reading at Gulf-facing station 8735180. That split matches the normal fall pattern of protected bay water holding onto summer heat longer than open water. Saltwater Sportsman's latest coverage of the fall mullet run notes the migration is already running along the Gulf of Mexico, with mullet pouring out of rivers, bays and estuaries by the millions this time of year, the kind of bait movement that pulls predators toward passes and surf as it passes through.
Low, cooling flows set the stage for fall feeding on AL's rivers
USGS gauge readings across the Tennessee and Coosa River system show water settling into the mid-60s this week, with gauge 02338523 at 64°F and gauges 02413210 and 02413205 both holding at 66°F. Flow stays low on those three stations, running between roughly 7.65 and 23.2 cfs, while gauge 02339500 sits far higher near 919 cfs. That split points to calm, low tributary water feeding into fuller mainstem flow, a typical early-October signature as the region eases toward its fall pattern.
Fall mullet run reaches Alabama waters as Gulf temps start their slide
Our Mobile Bay-area stations logged water temperatures of 76.8°F and 75.7°F this afternoon, still solidly warm but easing toward the seasonal cool-down anglers watch for through the back half of fall. The timing lines up with the Gulf's annual mullet run, which Saltwater Sportsman notes typically begins in September and keeps rolling into November as millions of baitfish pour out of bays and estuaries along the Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic coast — exactly the kind of bait movement that pulls predators tight to beaches, passes and jetties this time of year. Tonight's new moon brings a stronger-than-average tidal exchange, which should help concentrate that baitfish push through the narrower cuts and channels anglers lean on along Mobile Bay and the nearby Gulf.
Fall cool-down taking hold on Alabama's Coosa system creeks
Tributary gauges feeding the Coosa system are running low and clear this week: sites 02338523, 02413210 and 02413205 show flows between 5 and 27 cfs with water temperatures holding in the upper 60s (66-69°F). The larger watershed gauge, 02339500, tells a different story at 1,730 cfs, a sizable gap that matters if you're choosing between a small creek arm and the main channel. Field & Stream's fall tactics coverage this week describes the regional pattern behind readings like these: as surface temps slide through the 60s, baitfish push into shallow water along banks and structure, opening feeding windows that track the cooling trend rather than the calendar.