General Gulf Shores/Perdido Key Fishing Questions

Hello All! I'm looking for some pointers on fishing the Perdido Key area with my two boys (ages 5 and 9). We plan to take a day and head to the Gulf Shores pier, fish from the shore in Perdido Key, and maybe doing a charter for a few hours. Here are my questions...any pointers would be GREATLY appreciated as I am a novice!

Pier Fishing:
- If we catch anything, where do we store the caught fish? Do we clean it ourselves?

Shore Fishing:
- I know we can rent fishing poles from a place near the condo. Is it worth it? Do they supply any bait? What about fishing licenses, etc.

Charter Fishing:
- I wouldn't mind taking the boys on a charter but all of the online prices seem pretty steep. Do they have walk-on rates? If so, what is the average amount for a walk-on? How long do these trips last? What is the difference between, "inshore", "offshore", "bottom fishing", and "trolling"?

Thanks in advance!

pier fishing:
you are on your own as for fish storage and cleaning. a wheeled cooler is handy.

i'm sure the locals can answer your other questions better than me.

Pier: yes you have to clean fish,there are nice cleaning stations on the pier with water hoses. Storage would be in a cooler or a freezer at condo or hotel. If using a cooler ,not more than a day after catch and be sure its in freezer bags.

Shore: license is $10 out of state pier,$6 in state, from shore you need a state saltwater $21 in state ,out of states varies. Rental rods usually are not that good except for smaller fish . And most places that have rods have bait.

Charters: they can get expensive . Inshore is bay or canal fishing ,offshore is anything south of land ,you can also have nearshore ,eyesight of land.bottom is just that bottom species of fish ,snapper,grouper and many others. Trolling is dragging a lure or bait while boat runs at slow speeds this will get kings,wahoo,dolphin and a few others.

Trolling offshore is for big game fish. It's like the Hurl-a-whirl. In the right/ wrong conditions. It is a cool way to see some really big fish but mostly it is just for fun. We go inshore down in Texas and fish for reds and speckled trout. Its a lot of fun and the kids loved it. The girl and wife hurled on the trolling trip, I did the next time even with the patch. Never hurled on the inshore. Could walk back to shore anyway.
Take your catch to a resturant that will cook it for you right then. Some places do that. It don't get any better than that.

Surf fishing from the beach is a great option, especially with kids. If they get bored, they can swim & play in the sand
And if you have your own medium spinning tackle already, you are all set.
Some FRESH shrimp (not frozen), a 1/4 oz Carolina rig with a #4 hook and you can potentially fill the cooler with whiting, and maybe get a pompano or redfish.

There is Head boats you can go out on for as little as $60 each at Zekes, harbor marine or reel surprise charter

I'm going to chime in on the charter fishing. Right now is a bad time to go on an offshore charter. Snapper season is closed, triggerfish is closed, amberjack is closed. The only thing really open is grouper, as of July 1st, but it is kind of hard to target grouper. I suppose you could get on a headboat and crank in beeliners and white snapper, but that is really kind of lackluster and a lot of work for a few fish. I have a friend who has an inshore boat and he is catching lots of king mackerel and Spanish mackerel trolling right now. His name is Captain Ringo and he has a nice boat and is reasonable. He gets about $400 for a four-hour trip (that includes four people, not a per-person rate. $400 for everyone.) Ringo's phone number is (251) 504-5867. He goes out of his way to catch fish. He also targets bull reds and drum on Dixey Bar. Give him a call!

I would always opt for the pier. The helpfulness of the regulars is worth a lot. You will learn from everyone else w/o spending a fortune. Medium freshwater tackle with a proper drag set is all you will need. I've always caught plenty of fish from the pier. I use an average size cooler w/ice to keep the catch cold and clean and wash them right on the pier. Drinks, snacks/sandwiches, rental gear, bait and restrooms areavailable on the pier and your trip won't get cancelled due to rough weather. Help in netting or cleaning is usually available from other fisherman around you as the Gulf State pier is the friendliest around. I've been doing it this way for 40 years and wouldn't trade my friendships good experiences for ainything. I'd at least try it first before booking a charter. Have fun!
fshntime

THANK YOU ALL!

We can't wait to go and this information is VERY helpful. I hate wasting time (mine or anyone else's) and I definately hate wasting money! I love that we'll be able to get some help from the local pro's as I sure as heck don't know what I'm doing when it comes to this kind of fishing. We do a good amount of trout fishing but that is a whole different experience.

I have two more questions - one about licensing and one about equipment. I know that we can pick up whatever licensing we need at the Gulf Shores pier but that will only cover us for Alabama. Since we're staying in Perdido Key, what do we do for licensing in Florida? Where can we pick that up? As far as rods/reels, should we rent or just get our own? What kind of equipment would work well but not break the bank?

Thanks again!

I'd second trying out the pier and surf first. As a landlocked midwesterner, I've done dozens of charters, a few head boats, and fish from the surf for a week each year. The most fun I have had is on the pier. If no pier available, I love walking the beach casting for fish even though I've never been incredibly successful.

If you want to catch big game fish and don't mind dropping a good chunk of money, an offshore charter is fun...but it can be a long long long day if you get sick and/or dont manage to catch much. Two years ago on a 5 day trip we spent an entire day near the bahamas without one hookup. Other days we caught mahi til we couldnt feel our arms. Another day I was sick before leaving harbor on 3-5ft seas...you know its bad when the captain ends up on his rear trying to battle the waves.