UTERJanuary
Pickwick smallmouth and Smith Lake stripers
Hair jigs for smallies in the TVA tailwaters; live shad for stripers.
Guntersville to the Mobile Delta
Alabama freshwater fishing
What's biting in Alabama freshwater in October: striped bass, largemouth bass and smallmouth bass at their peak, with sauger, bluegill and redear sunfish around too. Fish Scouter's season calendar follows 24 fish here month by month, from Lake Guntersville to Mobile-Tensaw Delta.
Fall feed on Guntersville and the Coosa
TVA reservoirs on the Tennessee River in the north, the Coosa chain's spotted-bass lakes, Eufaula on the Georgia line, and the Mobile-Tensaw Delta's bayous where fresh water meets the Gulf.
Lake GuntersvillePickwick LakeWheeler LakeLake EufaulaWeiss LakeLewis Smith LakeMobile-Tensaw Delta
Updated
Now · October
Fall feed on Guntersville and the Coosa
Chase the schooling fish; crappie on the brush piles.
Largemouth bassSmallmouth bassSpotted bass (Kentucky bass)Black crappie (speck)Striped bassBlue catfish
This month here
From the season calendar, best firstPeakPeakPeakPeakPeakPeakPeakPeakPeakPeakPeakPeakPeakArrivingAroundAroundAroundAroundAroundAroundAroundAroundAroundAround
Striped bass
Largemouth bass
Smallmouth bass
Spotted bass (Kentucky bass)
Redeye bass
Shoal bass
Black crappie (speck)
Channel catfish
Blue catfish
White bass
Hybrid striped bass (sunshine)
Rainbow trout
Alligator gar
Sauger
Bluegill
Redear sunfish (shellcracker)
Redbreast sunfish
Walleye
Chain pickerel
Flathead catfish
Freshwater drum (sheepshead)
Common carp
Longnose gar
Bowfin (mudfish)
The water
Structure that matters
LakeReservoirRiverCreek / streamPond / pitDock / pilingsBridgeBoat ramp
Month by month
What's happening, and what to throwFebruary
Pre-spawn largemouth on Guntersville's grass
Largemouth bassSmallmouth bassSpotted bass (Kentucky bass)Black crappie (speck)Striped bassBlue catfish
Lipless cranks over the grass; tailwater sauger below Wilson Dam.
March
Bass and crappie on the beds
Largemouth bassSmallmouth bassSpotted bass (Kentucky bass)Black crappie (speck)Striped bassBlue catfish
Weiss Lake crappie in the shallow brush; Guntersville spawners.
April
Shad spawn mornings and post-spawn bass
Largemouth bassSmallmouth bassSpotted bass (Kentucky bass)Black crappie (speck)Striped bassBlue catfish
Spinnerbaits on the riprap at dawn; shellcracker beds.
May
Bream beds and the summer ledges start
Crickets on the bream beds; deep cranks on Pickwick ledges.
June
TVA ledge fishing
Big cranks and swimbaits on the offshore ledges when the current runs.
July
Night fishing and the ledges
Current generation is everything on the TVA lakes.
August
Hot water: ledges, night catfish
Cut shad for blues below the dams.
September
Fall transition; shad move to the creeks
Topwater in the backs of the creeks.
October · now
Fall feed on Guntersville and the Coosa
Largemouth bassSmallmouth bassSpotted bass (Kentucky bass)Black crappie (speck)Striped bassBlue catfish
Chase the schooling fish; crappie on the brush piles.
November
Smallmouth and crappie in the cold
Largemouth bassSmallmouth bassSpotted bass (Kentucky bass)Black crappie (speck)Striped bassBlue catfish
Pickwick smallies get big; trophy blues follow the shad.
December
Winter tailwaters
Sauger and stripers below the dams; float-and-fly for smallies.
Fish guides for Alabama freshwater
When, where and what to use, fish by fishBlack crappie (speck)Blue catfishBluegillChain pickerelLargemouth bassRedbreast sunfishRedear sunfish (shellcracker)Redeye bassSaugerShoal bassSmallmouth bassSpotted bass (Kentucky bass)Striped bass
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