Lake Shelby and Middle Lake Fishing plus a thank you!

I regrettably spent way too much time trying to fish these two locations and the only thing caught was a 10 inch largemouth bass in middle lake. I apparently was either using the wrong bait and lures, or was fishing at the wrong time. Maybe even a combination of both. Does anyone have any experience fishing these locations? I would love to know what I was doing wrong, being my first time ever fishing brackish water. As my vacation is over now, I am currently kicking myself in the rear due to not just getting a 7 day pass for the pier. I guess I was just being lazy. For the record- it was my first time in Gulf Shores, and the whole family has agreed unanimously, we WILL be comming back. i absolutely loved the area, the amount of locations easily accessed for fishing, and the layout of the roads. the campgrounds were righteous as well. The people I met on the pier were more than helpful and very courteous even when our lines would get tangled. I personally use braid for 70% of my applications, and never had a tangle that took over 40 seconds to fix. maybe I was just lucky, but it wasn't bad at all. So to all the people I came across whether it was anyone from this forum and anyone else who lives in Gulf Shores, I just wanted to extend a big thank you. I thoroughly enjoyed my 7 day stay, and if the good Lord is willing I will be back.