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Alabama Saltwater Fishing Report for July 24 – 30, 2026

July 24, 2026

This week’s Alabama Saltwater Fishing Report takes a post-rodeo roundtable look at one of the biggest fishing weekends of the year with Capt. Tanner Deas, Capt. Branden Collier, and Dr. Dylan Kiene. The group recaps an extraordinary Alabama Deep Sea Fishing Rodeo that included an exceptional flounder bite, quality speckled trout, a successful live-weigh-in program, strong tripletail participation, big red and mangrove snapper, cobia, and one of Branden’s best tournament weekends.

Branden and Tanner explain how they approached the rodeo from both the inshore and offshore sides, including a 101-flounder day on Friday, Tanner’s much tougher inshore experience Saturday, and the heavy-tackle bottom-fishing program that produced Branden’s 28.4-pound red snapper and a pair of roughly 12-pound mangrove snapper. Dylan gives the view from the weigh-in and science side, discusses the quality of the trout and live-release categories, and explains a Gulf-wide cobia and tripletail tagging project that could answer major questions about where these fish move, spawn, and spend different portions of the year.

Conditions Recap

Fishing conditions changed dramatically over the course of Alabama Deep Sea Fishing Rodeo weekend. Friday produced one of the most memorable flounder bites Branden and Tanner have experienced, with the crew boating 101 fish while covering multiple areas and repeatedly finding concentrations of flounder. Saturday was a completely different story. Tanner found bait, slicks, good-looking beach water, and traditionally productive inshore areas, but the bite was much more difficult despite working live croakers, shrimp, topwaters, popping corks, and other proven presentations.

Dylan believes the very weak neap tide, hot weather, calm nights, freshwater influence, and resulting water stratification played a major role. Low dissolved oxygen likely developed in portions of the bay, and wind or large boat wakes could then move that low-oxygen water into otherwise productive areas. He pointed to a report from Capt. Patric Garmeson, who had a productive trout area shut down after a ship wake triggered a jubilee and brought eels, shrimp, and other animals to the surface.

Wind-blown shorelines became especially important because the surface mixing can introduce more oxygen into the water. In conditions where fish are stressed by low oxygen, the best-looking traditional spot may not be the best fishing spot. Anglers should be willing to move until they find water with active bait and fish that are feeding normally.

Water temperatures were still hot, but Branden noted that the weekend was somewhat cooler than the previous stretch of 90-plus-degree water, with temperatures more often in the mid- to upper 80s. That likely helped the live-weigh-in effort, where a large number of trout, flounder, redfish, and tripletail arrived at the rodeo site in excellent condition.

Offshore, current remained surprisingly strong for a neap-tide weekend. Water clarity varied from spot to spot, with some of Branden’s best mangrove snapper fishing occurring in green, slightly dirty water where heavy leaders did not appear to hurt the bite as much as they might have in clear blue water.

Alabama Deep Sea Fishing Rodeo Flounder Report With Capt. Branden Collier and Capt. Tanner Deas

Capt. Branden Collier and Capt. Tanner Deas went into Friday’s rodeo fishing with flounder as one of their primary targets. Their reasoning was simple: in a tournament with a massive field, anglers need to concentrate on one or two species where they understand what it typically takes to make the leaderboard. For flounder, Branden felt a fish around five pounds or better would normally put an angler in the conversation.

The day turned into something far beyond a normal tournament trip. The crew kept a clicker aboard and counted every flounder that hit the deck, eventually reaching 101 fish. They covered plenty of water rather than sitting in one small area all day. When a fish was caught, Branden would often deploy the Power-Pole and thoroughly work that immediate area. Some stops produced five to 10 fish, while one location produced roughly 25.

The primary artificial-bait program centered on Z-Man soft plastics. Branden fished Z-Man Big BallerZ in four- and five-inch sizes, while other anglers used Z-Man DieZel MinnowZ. Durability became a major advantage during such a high-volume bite. Branden said he went through only a few soft plastics all day despite catching dozens of flounder.

The frustrating part from a tournament standpoint was that the exceptional numbers did not translate into an exceptionally large fish. The crew caught multiple quality flounder, including fish around 19 1/2 inches and roughly three-plus pounds, but nothing over 20 inches. The biggest lesson was that a tremendous bite does not necessarily mean the largest fish in the area are feeding at the same time.

Dylan added that tagging work has shown large flounder can remain in an area even when anglers suddenly stop catching them. Big fish may simply feed on a different schedule. That helps explain how one day can produce a great run of quality fish and the next day, or even the next tide period, can produce mostly smaller fish from the same general habitat.

Products and gear discussed in this report included Z-Man DieZel MinnowZ, Z-Man Big BallerZ, and Power-Pole shallow-water anchors.

Speckled Trout, Neap-Tide Conditions, and Saturday Inshore Fishing With Capt. Tanner Deas

Saturday produced the opposite experience for Tanner. He started with a classic front-beach speckled trout approach, carrying live croakers, live shrimp, topwater lures, and multiple ways to present shrimp. The beach looked right, bait was present, slicks were forming, and several areas had all the visual signs that normally suggest feeding trout.

Despite those signs, Tanner struggled to make the fish eat. He worked multiple sections of beach, moved to gas rigs, and finished in areas that normally provide an “everything bite” of trout, black drum, sheepshead, redfish, and flounder. He caught some fish, but the overall day was well below what he expects when the conditions and habitat look that good.

Dylan’s explanation centered on low oxygen associated with the weak neap tide and summertime stratification. Calm nights can allow layers of water to separate, while the combination of heat and freshwater can contribute to hypoxic water beneath the surface. As the wind builds during the day, that lower-oxygen water can be moved around or pushed toward shore.

That means anglers may need to abandon a traditionally productive location even when fish are visibly present. Dylan specifically mentioned wind-blown banks as areas worth checking because wave action and surface turbulence help mechanically mix oxygen into the water. Fish stressed by poor oxygen conditions are often more concerned with finding livable water than eating.

The weekend also showed how much presentations can matter on difficult days. Tanner noted that Capt. Patric Garmeson and Cooper Garmeson found success on artificial lures while nearby anglers struggled. Their approach with Z-Man DieZel MinnowZ and Pure Flats SLICK Jr. allowed them to keep triggering fish even when more traditional live-bait presentations were inconsistent.

Products and gear discussed in this report included live croakers, live shrimp, topwater lures, popping corks, Z-Man DieZel MinnowZ, and Pure Flats SLICK Jr..

Alabama Deep Sea Fishing Rodeo Weigh-In and Live-Release Report With Dr. Dylan Kiene

Dr. Dylan Kiene spent rodeo weekend on the other side of the scales, helping with fish handling, live weigh-ins, tagging, and biological sampling. He described the event as a strong showing both in participation and in the quality of fish brought to the dock, with roughly 4,000 tickets sold and close to 5,000 fish weighed during the event.

Speckled trout were one of the standout categories. Dylan described the rodeo as almost a massive trout tournament with dozens of additional species layered around it. The slot-trout category was especially competitive, with several fish over four pounds and a large number of fish near the upper end of the legal slot.

Because slot trout must stay under 22 inches, Dylan looks at tournament performance somewhat differently than simply asking whether a fish won. If an angler can consistently produce trout over 21 inches and close to 22 inches, he believes that angler is doing everything within their control. Whether one of those fish happens to be a heavy, egg-filled tournament winner is the part that introduces some luck.

The live-weigh-in effort was one of the biggest successes of the weekend. Dylan said approximately 190 fish were brought to the scales alive, and the overwhelming majority arrived in excellent condition. Those fish included speckled trout, flounder, redfish, and tripletail.

The inaugural live tripletail category exceeded Dylan’s expectations. Large fish were brought to the rodeo site throughout the weekend, including multiple fish over 20 pounds. The fish were weighed, held in the live system, tagged when appropriate, and released. A second-place overall flounder was also weighed alive, and the first-place overall redfish was reportedly brought in alive as well.

Dylan says the live categories add another level to the event because anglers can compete in the normal leaderboard while also contributing living fish back to the resource. The strong participation suggests that live categories could be expanded in future years.

Cobia and Tripletail Tagging Project With Dr. Dylan Kiene

The day after the rodeo, Dylan joined Tanner and Branden for a Gulf-wide cobia and tripletail research trip. The project is designed to answer major questions about movement, migration, spawning, and life history for two species where managers still have significant data gaps.

Tripletail are a particular focus because they have never had the same type of comprehensive stock assessment as many federally managed species. Researchers know some basic age and biological information, but major questions remain about where these fish spawn and how they move between bays and offshore waters.

Dylan is especially interested in the large summer tripletail that enter Alabama bays carrying hydrated eggs. One possibility is that the fish spawn inshore. Another is that they move into the bays to feed heavily, build reproductive energy, and then return offshore to spawn. Acoustic tracking should help researchers determine which pattern is actually occurring.

The group deployed three acoustic tags during the trip. Each acoustically tagged fish also carries an external high-dollar reward tag. Dylan says those external tags are worth $250. If an angler catches one of the research fish and wants to release it, the tag can be clipped off and submitted while the fish is returned to the water so the acoustic transmitter can continue collecting movement data.

The scale of tripletail movement is already becoming clear. Dylan discussed a fish originally tagged near Point Clear at approximately 16 inches. It was later recaptured near Port O’Connor, Texas, after traveling more than 500 miles by the most direct route. By then, the fish had grown to roughly 24 inches.

Those movements are one reason Dylan believes the current acoustic project could produce valuable new information. Researchers will be able to see where tagged fish travel, how long they remain in particular areas, and potentially whether spawning-size tripletail leave Alabama bays before releasing their eggs.

Products and research equipment discussed in this report included acoustic transmitters, external reward tags, live shrimp, dead shrimp, and slip-cork presentations.

Offshore Red Snapper Tournament Strategy With Capt. Branden Collier

Branden shifted offshore on Saturday with one primary goal: find a red snapper large enough to place in the rodeo and snapper jackpot. Instead of fishing for numbers, he built the entire program around reducing the number of smaller fish that could get to the bait before a true tournament-class snapper.

Large live baits were a major part of the strategy. Branden stopped to catch croakers, ruby lips, and other larger forage before moving to his snapper spots. While running offshore, he encountered an unusual concentration of croakers in approximately 110 feet of water and caught full strings of them on a sabiki rig. Some suffered barotrauma during the ascent, but the healthier fish were added to the livewell.

At another bait area, the crew caught roughly 20 to 30 large ruby lips. Branden likes these larger baits because an eight- or 10-pound snapper can still eat them, but they give him a better chance of putting the bait in front of a 20- to 30-pound fish before a smaller snapper takes it.

His first drop on one of his better spots produced the fish he was looking for: a 28.4-pound red snapper that eventually finished third in the tournament. The crew continued fishing and caught several other red snapper in the 20-plus-pound class but released those fish while attempting to upgrade.

Branden’s tournament setup is intentionally heavy. He used an Avet HX reel with approximately 65- to 80-pound braid, a heavy monofilament topshot, an eight-ounce egg sinker, and up to 130-pound leader. The rig was essentially a heavy Carolina rig with a three- to four-foot leader and a large 9/0 or 10/0 circle hook.

Drag pressure is critical. Branden would rather pull the hook immediately than allow a trophy snapper to gain enough line to reach structure. If the hook pulls, he can rebait and make another drop. If the fish gets into the wreck or reef, the opportunity is over.

Products and gear discussed in this report included Avet HX reels, 65- to 80-pound braid, 100- to 130-pound leader, eight-ounce egg sinkers, Carolina rigs, 9/0 to 10/0 circle hooks, sabiki rigs, live croakers, and ruby lips.

Mangrove Snapper and Cobia Report With Capt. Branden Collier and Capt. Tanner Deas

On Sunday, Branden, Tanner, and Tanner’s father stayed closer because of rougher conditions and shifted their focus toward mangrove snapper. They had located quality mangroves the previous day and believed they had a realistic chance of putting multiple fish on the tournament board.

The fish were holding extremely tight to offshore structure, and the current was moving much harder than expected for a neap-tide day. That made live bait essential. Branden says large mangrove snapper are extremely structure-oriented and much more deliberate about using the wreck or reef to break an angler off.

He did not dramatically lighten the tackle. The crew caught quality mangroves on approximately 100-pound leader, aided by the green, less-than-perfect water clarity. Branden kept the heavy bottom-fishing approach but reduced the hook size to approximately a 5/0 Mustad Demon Circle hook.

Live bait was still the key. The fish were feeding inches from the structure, and the crew needed enough drag to stop them almost immediately. Branden says pulling hooks is part of the process when fishing that much pressure. He would still rather lose a fish to a pulled hook than let a tournament-class mangrove reach the structure.

The approach produced a pair of mangrove snapper around 28 to 28 1/2 inches and roughly 12 pounds each. Tanner also caught a personal-best mangrove snapper during the trip. The crew added cobia action as well, catching two undersized fish and one legal fish before heading back toward Dauphin Island.

Products and gear discussed in this report included live croakers, 100-pound leader, 5/0 Mustad Demon Circle hooks, heavy bottom-fishing tackle, and Carolina rigs.