gulf shores area fishing

I am coming down to the gulf shores area end of july. I have never visited the area previously. Therefore while I do have experience saltwater fishing from st.pete up to st.joe bay florida. I do not know the coast of alabama very well and therefore do not know what to expect when it comes to fishing in the area. My basic plan of attack for the trip is to utilize piers and fishing from the beach. Yet I would highly appreciate any tips on particular areas than can be more productive than others. Also I would love to know how the fishing has been recently and what I can expect the fishing to generally be like in late july in the area. From water temp charts I am little concerned the water temps maybe to hot by the time I arrive. I personally would love to try to catch a shark or two from the beach. Along with possibly catch fair number of spaniards,a bull red or two, pomp or even maybe a king. I have never caught a king and would love to hook to my first one. Well be gentle while I do have several years experience from prior trips Yet I am still a greenhorn concerning salty fishing compared to freshwater. :bang

First off, WELCOME "upwind" :cool:
Hoping your stay is a pleasant (and productive) one.

The best trick is learning to extend your general freshwater fishing knowledge and your experiences in FL to our waters.
These forum archives are a good source to search through to answer many of your questions (check the reports from last July ;-)
Also check out the 'lay of the land' with Google Maps to familiarize yourself with the geography and placenames.

Your goals sounds quite 'doable' to me, but you'll likely have to put in a few miles and some time (maybe nights) to land the sharks.
Most of what is on your list can be caught from the GSPPier at that time.

Hope this helps!

Well, you are correct to be worried about water temperatures in late July. That water gets hot! This is the time of year that we see alewives and other baitfish spiraling around in the water dying as they are starved for oxygen. You can catch a king off the pier this time of year, but you have to fish very early and sometimes in the evening. A chop on the water helps immensely. On those days when it is slick calm, it is hard to get a king bite. You will find no shortage of sharks at the pier, but remember that you cannot legally land one on the pier or from any beach in Gulf Shores or Orange Beach. You can land sharks from the beach at Fort Morgan. There is a good chance you might hook a bull red or tarpon from the pier in late July. Spanish will probably be few and far between, as will pompano. Again, fish very early in the morning and hope for a breeze. You might have some luck with the speckled trout fishing at night under the lights when the water cools off. Good luck!

Upwind, the absolute best thing you can do is to hire Pier#r for a day, or half day. He is an experienced and very effective shore guide, and if you research the posts on this site, you will find that he is held in high esteem by ALL the members of this forum. Good luck when you come down--we'll look forward to meeting you on the pier.

I have already begun my pretrip investigation of the area using google earth to locate passes, jetty's, etc etc etc. I appreciate the info shared and hope to have a decent trip.

Upwind, Haywire is absolutely right on hiring Pier#r to get grounded quickly be fore striking out on your own.
Although there are no guarantees in fishing, my money is always on David to beat the odds. Best money you will spend on your trip!

http://www.gulfshoresfishing.com/Pier-and-Surf-Fishing-Guide.htm

I have taken the advice under consideration and have seen the legendary guide:) a PM. On a seperate note I am looking at upgrading my gear. Up until this point I have always used my freshwater gear tweaked for saltwater use. Which has produced decent results BUT I have also learned from experience that once I start playing with fish that weigh well over any freshwater species that I regurarly encounter no matter how good the line etc the rod/pole just cannot handle the added stress from the real big boys. Therefore looking to actually buy a two dedicated salty rod and reel set ups using a economical approach. Currently looking to have surf set up and a shorter pier (bait casting spinning set up) what advice would anyone have on this issue. I am looking at teaming up a 12 foot offshore angler plus rod with either a offshore angler inshore extreme reel or a penn fierce reel. What are the thoughts on that set up? I will accept all info, criticism, etc. Just be nice

I have the Fierce, it is by far the best spinning reel that you can buy for the money. The 6000 sounds the best for what you are chasing. You're on the right track for rods too, the Offshore Angler Power Stick is a good surf rod, now if you are fishing for sharks, yes, I'd get the 12', but that rod is a bit heavy for pompano, if you want to go after them, Id recommend the 10'. now that is if you want to fish the surf. If you are going to fish off the GSP Pier, the 8' would be better. Also, if you are going to surf fish for sharks, Id strongly recommend getting either the Penn 850 Spinnfisher V or the Penn Battle 8000, these reels will better fit the 12' rod and will be more suited for larger sharks than the 6000 Fierce.
Hope this is helpful!

Surf rods are fine for surf fishing, but a 12' rod on the pier would be a pain to deal with. If you are going to hit the pier for Kings, you will be better off with an 8' 0r 9' rod and a reel that hold 300 yds of 15# mono for Kings, Bull Reds, Jacks and an occasional shark. Also get you a light setup 6'6" or 7' rod and spinning reel ten 10# line for smaller species and it can double as a bait rod.

To make sure you are setup right, I recommend that you wait till you get here and make J & M Tackle your first stop for tackle. Their employees are very knowledgeable about area fishing and several are pier regulars. They have the best selection of saltwater gear you will find.
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Hope this helps and you have a great trip, thanks for signing up!