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Alabama Saltwater Fishing Report for June 19 – 25, 2026

June 22, 2026

On this week’s Alabama Saltwater Fishing Report, host Butch Thierry covers a busy early-summer Gulf Coast pattern from Orange Beach and Gulf Shores to the Mississippi Sound, Dauphin Island, Gulf State Park Pier, Perdido Pass, Fort Morgan, and Mobile Bay. This episode features Chris Vecsey of J&M Tackle, Capt. Bobby Abruscato of A-Team Fishing, David Thornton, The Pier Pounder, and William Strickland of Mobile Baykeeper.

The main theme this week is that summer fishing is here, but anglers need to work around wind, sargassum, shifting water clarity, heat, and changing bait patterns. Inshore trout and redfish are active around shallow flats and windblown banks, the Mississippi Sound and marsh trout bite is strong when anglers find the right clarity, king mackerel are showing at the Gulf State Park Pier, and Mobile Baykeeper is continuing to push for better habitat protection in Mobile Bay.

Conditions Recap

The Alabama Gulf Coast is in a true summer pattern, with warm water, pop-up storms, wind, high heat, and short windows that are worth taking advantage of when they appear. Chris Vecsey said the weather had turned rough during the middle of the week, with offshore conditions making it tough to plan longer runs, but he expected the weekend to improve if the forecast held.

Sargassum continues to be one of the biggest factors from the surf to the nearshore Gulf. Chris said the grass has been almost everywhere, especially along the beaches, and it has made trout and surf fishing more difficult. David Thornton also reported heavy sargassum along the Gulf beaches and explained that anglers should use beach cams to check conditions before making a drive, because one stretch of beach can be covered while another nearby area may be fishable.

Water clarity is changing from place to place. Some areas around the beach and pier have had beautiful clear water, while the Mississippi Sound and marsh areas have required anglers to plan around wind direction, wave action, and protected banks. Capt. Bobby Abruscato said the key has been finding fishable water with enough clarity to work lures effectively, especially when wade fishing shallow shell, grass, and pothole areas.

Heat is now a major part of the fishing plan. Capt. Bobby stressed that anglers should hydrate before they ever launch, keep water within easy reach, watch for signs of heat stress, and avoid pushing too far into the day if the bite is not happening. Early starts and shorter trips are becoming more important as Alabama moves deeper into summer.

Orange Beach, Gulf Shores, Offshore, and Flats Report With Chris Vecsey of J&M Tackle

Chris Vecsey of J&M Tackle joined the report from Orange Beach after a full stretch of fishing that included offshore bottom fishing, surf fishing, and a strong inshore flats bite. He also recently returned from Cape Verde, where he fished aboard Dreamin’ On and experienced world-class blue marlin fishing with multiple shots at fish each day. For Alabama anglers, though, his local report focused on bottom fishing, redfish, trout, sargassum, and shallow-water tactics around Orange Beach, Gulf Shores, and Perdido Key.

Offshore, Chris said his recent trip was more of a mixed-bag effort than a red snapper run. The crew made a swordfish drop, worked deeper natural bottom in roughly 190 to 250 feet, and caught vermilion snapper, lane snapper, bigeye, and other bottom fish. The scamp grouper bite was not what he had hoped for, and sharks were a problem, but the trip still produced fish and steady action. He noted that he avoids some of his better gag grouper spots before the season opens because he does not want to unnecessarily catch and release big gags that may not survive, even with venting or descending devices.

Inshore, the shallow flats bite has been very good. Chris has been fishing a foot and a half of water or less around Orange Beach and Perdido Key, with redfish and trout both feeding well. He said the slot redfish are finally showing up after a stretch where many of the fish were over slot. The best areas have been windblown banks, points, and current-pushed stretches where bait and feeding fish are being concentrated. Even at night, the dock lights with the most wind exposure have held the most life.

Chris has been throwing wake baits, topwaters, soft plastics, and flies. For fly fishing, black, purple, and dark redfish-style bugs have been producing both redfish and trout. He also mentioned that ladyfish have not been as bad inside as they can be this time of year, which has made it easier to fish topwaters and plastics without constantly losing tackle.

Surf fishing is still producing speckled trout, but the sargassum has made it difficult. Chris said anglers should not simply look for the cleanest water if the fish are not there. Instead, they should identify the washouts, cuts, troughs, and areas that normally hold fish, then adjust presentations to deal with the grass. Plastics have been one of the better options because they can be fished through different parts of the water column and shed grass better than many hard baits.

Gear and product mentions from Chris’s report included Saltwater Assassin Sea Shad soft plastics in the Pilchard color, eighth-ounce and quarter-ounce jig heads, screw-lock swim bait hooks, wake baits, topwater plugs, twitch baits, fly tackle, steel and heavier leaders for toothy fish, and J&M Tackle as the place to get local help with fly fishing, surf fishing, inshore fishing, and offshore tackle.

Mississippi Sound, Marsh, Wade Fishing, and Trout Report With Capt. Bobby Abruscato of A-Team Fishing

Capt. Bobby Abruscato of A-Team Fishing has been spending most of his time in the marsh, the Mississippi Sound, and the island areas targeting speckled trout. He said this year’s pattern has been unusual because trout stayed in the rivers much later than normal due to a dry spring, clear water, and high salinity. In some areas, he was still catching fish in April where he would normally expect to be done by mid or late March.

As rain finally arrived and shrimp began showing in stronger numbers, the trout pattern started shifting closer to a more recognizable summer setup. Bobby said the shrimp were late, but when they appeared, they showed up in force. Birds began working, trout started spitting up shrimp, and shrimp imitation baits became more important. Before the shrimp arrived, the finfish bite was excellent, with Slick Lures, Slick Juniors, big Slicks, and topwaters all producing good trout.

One of Bobby’s main lure tips this week was to adjust profile size based on water clarity. In dirtier, wind-stirred water, he had better success with bigger lures because they pushed more water and helped trout locate the bait. In clearer water, downsizing to a Slick Junior can improve the bite-to-hookup ratio without giving up much quality. Bobby said the larger Slick can draw strikes from smaller fish, but the smaller profile often sticks more of the fish that bite.

For wade fishing, Bobby is focusing on hard bottom, shell, grass flats, and potholes where trout can spawn and feed. He looks for mullet, finger mullet, hovering bird activity, and especially fish slicks. When fishing slicks, he reminded anglers that the fish are not usually under the big slick by the time the angler sees it. The slick has drifted with the wind and current, so he sets anglers up to cast upwind or up-current of the slick and then wade toward the area until they intercept the fish that made it.

Wind direction is a major factor in his wade-fishing plan. Bobby prefers setting up anglers so they can wade and cast with the wind rather than fighting it. He said wading against the wind shortens casts, makes more noise, pushes more water, and defeats the purpose of getting out of the boat quietly in the first place.

Bycatch has been one of the highlights of Bobby’s recent trips. He has caught more flounder than usual this season, including multiple days with two or more flounder caught incidentally while trout fishing and one intentional flounder effort that quickly produced fish. He has also seen large Spanish mackerel mixed in with trout, along with redfish, white trout, and reports of black drum showing in the Sound.

Gear and product mentions from Bobby’s section included Slick Lures, Slick Junior, big Slicks, topwater plugs, shrimp imitation baits, Vudu-style presentations, croakers, artificial lures for trout and white trout, and wade-fishing gear. Bobby also discussed his Beat the Heat special, a shorter early trip designed to fish the prime morning window before the worst heat of the day.

Gulf State Park Pier, Surf, Sargassum, and King Mackerel Report With David Thornton, The Pier Pounder

David Thornton, The Pier Pounder, reported that the Gulf State Park Pier is finally seeing a good king mackerel run. The bite has been hit or miss, as pier fishing always is, but the best flurries have often come first thing in the morning and then stretched into the afternoon on better days. For visiting anglers, David explained that the pier is a major summer mackerel destination and can fish a large crowd, especially on the octagon.

King mackerel have been the main focus at the pier, and live bait has been the best way to get bites. David said most fish have been caught on live baits rather than lures, although lures can still produce reaction bites when the fish are fired up. Scaled sardines, locally called LYs, have been the key bait. Anglers are catching them with sabiki rigs in the wind and ribbon rigs when conditions allow.

David explained that ribbon rigs let anglers target specific bait sizes based on the mesh opening, almost like a small monofilament gill net. He likes to adjust bait size depending on whether he is targeting Spanish mackerel, king mackerel, bonito, or whatever else is around the pier. For Spanish mackerel, he may drop to smaller mesh and smaller baits. For kings, full-size LYs are a better option.

For mackerel rigs, David recommends steel leader. For king mackerel, he suggested sizing the treble hook to the bait, often using a number two, number one, or 1/0 treble with about two feet of steel leader. For Spanish mackerel, anglers can drop down in wire size, but he warned that a king can show up at any time and cut off a monofilament leader.

David also gave a practical live-bait presentation tip. He often hooks bait just behind the gills, under the belly, and over the pectoral fins because it is one of the tougher parts of the bait. That rigging angle lets him twitch the rod tip and make the bait swim in circles like a distressed fish. When mackerel are sorting through thousands of natural baits around the pier, making your bait look weak or injured can draw the bite.

The surf report is still affected by sargassum, but David said the heavy grass events are not permanent. Once the grass washes ashore, it dries, decays, and breaks apart over a few days. He recommended using beach cams before driving to the coast because one beach may be covered while another stretch may have much less grass. He mentioned beach cam resources around Gulf Shores, Orange Beach, Perdido Pass, Fort Morgan, Dauphin Island, Fairhope, and other coastal points.

Pompano are still around, but the numbers are not what they were a few weeks ago. To reduce bycatch, David recommended sand fleas when available, with Fishbites or Fish Gum as a backup or tipping option. He also noted that bull redfish and jack crevalle are showing around Fort Morgan and the mouth of Mobile Bay, especially when current is moving. Anglers targeting those fish can throw lures or fish fresh cut mullet or ladyfish, although cut bait increases the odds of shark and stingray encounters.

Gear and product mentions from David’s report included sabiki rigs, ribbon rigs, monofilament bait mesh, steel leader, treble hooks, live LYs, sand fleas, Fishbites, Fish Gum, fresh cut mullet, fresh cut ladyfish, heavy spinning tackle, beach cams, and Gulf State Park Pier tackle for king mackerel, Spanish mackerel, bonito, tarpon, redfish, jack crevalle, and surf species.

Mobile Baykeeper Update With William Strickland

William Strickland of Mobile Baykeeper joined the show to explain several current issues affecting Mobile Bay, including unusual low-oxygen events, fish kills, oyster and seagrass habitat, dredge material, and the continued push to end federal mud dumping in the bay.

William explained that Mobile Baykeeper exists to defend and revive the health of Coastal Alabama’s waters so people do not have to wonder whether fish are safe to eat or water is safe to swim in. Their work includes pollution response, habitat restoration, oyster restoration, youth education, and advocacy around issues that affect the bay, fisheries, and coastal communities.

One topic this week was unusual jubilee-like events and fish kills. William explained that Mobile Bay jubilees are low-oxygen events where flounder, crabs, and other bottom-dwelling animals come close to shore, where people can sometimes harvest them. This year, however, some unusual events happened earlier than expected, with dead fish also reported in parts of the system. Mobile Baykeeper has been trying to gather information and work with researchers to understand whether low dissolved oxygen, harmful algal blooms, or another cause is involved.

William encouraged anglers to report dead fish, unusual fish behavior, unusual algae, or anything that does not look right. Anglers are on the water often, and their photos, videos, and reports can help researchers and conservation groups track problems more quickly. Reports can be submitted through Mobile Baykeeper, and anglers can also contact the Alabama Marine Resources Division directly.

The main policy update centered on dredge material from the Mobile Bay ship channel. William said Mobile Bay averages roughly 10 to 12 feet deep, while the ship channel is around 50 feet deep, meaning the channel requires constant dredging. The controversy is what happens to the dredged material. Mobile Baykeeper and many coastal residents have pushed back against the practice known locally as mud dumping, where dredge material is sprayed across the estuary. William said that practice increases turbidity, blocks sunlight from reaching seagrass, and can smother oyster reefs and other habitat.

William said more than 35,000 letters have been sent to Senator Katie Britt asking for action, and a state law was passed earlier this year that could help stop the practice. However, he said the Corps of Engineers’ recent dredge management public notice did not reflect that change in law, so Mobile Baykeeper is continuing to ask the public to comment and ask federal leaders to end the practice.

He also discussed beneficial use projects, where dredge material is used to build or restore habitat instead of being dumped into the bay. The Dauphin Island Causeway project is one example. William said that kind of project can eventually create valuable marsh habitat, but controls need to be in place so sediment does not harm nearby resources like Cedar Point Oyster Reef. He also mentioned future projects such as marsh restoration near Fowl River and Coden, a western shore island project in Upper Mobile Bay, and the Upper Bay Marsh Island Project.

William’s broader point was that habitat is the foundation of better fishing. Oyster reefs, seagrass meadows, marshes, and nursery areas support shrimp, crabs, small fish, and the larger fish anglers want to catch. Instead of only fighting over limits, he encouraged anglers to focus on growing the size of the fisheries pie by protecting and rebuilding habitat.

Gear and Product Mentions From This Episode

Inshore and surf gear mentioned in Chris Vecsey’s report included Saltwater Assassin Sea Shad soft plastics in Pilchard, eighth-ounce jig heads, quarter-ounce jig heads, screw-lock swim bait hooks, wake baits, topwater plugs, twitch baits, dark redfish flies, fly rods, and J&M Tackle in Orange Beach.

Mississippi Sound and wade-fishing gear from Capt. Bobby Abruscato’s report included Slick Lures, Slick Junior, big Slicks, topwater lures, shrimp imitation baits, Vudu-style presentations, croakers, artificial trout lures, and wade-fishing gear for shell, grass, and pothole areas.

Pier and surf gear from David Thornton’s report included sabiki rigs, ribbon rigs, monofilament bait mesh from Foley Net Company, steel leader, treble hooks, live LYs, sand fleas, Fishbites, Fish Gum, fresh cut mullet, fresh cut ladyfish, and heavy spinning tackle for king mackerel, bull redfish, jack crevalle, and other pier and surf species.

Habitat and conservation resources from William Strickland’s section included Mobile Baykeeper, Save Mobile Bay, oyster restoration, seagrass protection, beneficial use projects, and public reporting for fish kills, pollution, and unusual water conditions.