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In this week’s Mobile-Tensaw Delta Fishing Report, host Nick Williams is joined by Josh Gunter for a high-water crappie and tournament-week report from the Mobile River side of the Delta, followed by Dave Middleton, also known through his YouTube channel Basscatlildave, for a detailed summer bowfin, grinnel, and bass fishing conversation. The episode covers falling river stages, muddy water, crappie behavior in current, the Delta Crappie Trail tournament out of Mount Vernon, and why hot, still summer days can be prime time for targeting grinnel in the backwaters.
Josh Gunter opens the report while pre-fishing for the Delta Crappie Trail tournament out of Mount Vernon. He explains how the Mobile River is still running higher than ideal, why the 10-foot range is a key line for crappie anglers, and how white crappie can still be caught in stained water when anglers get away from current and use bright, visible jigs.
Dave Middleton closes the show with a deep dive into bowfin fishing in the Mobile-Tensaw Delta. He talks about growing up on the Delta, learning from his father, Big Dave, and why grinnel have become one of his favorite fish to target. His report includes where to find them, how to fish dirty water, why they stay active in summer heat, and the heavier soft-plastic and spinnerbait setups he uses to get their attention.
Conditions Recap
The Mobile-Tensaw Delta is still dealing with high water, but the trend is improving. Josh Gunter said the Mobile River side was still about a foot above where it usually likes to settle, with the gauge leveling around 10 feet. He considers that level fishable, but anything over 10 feet generally means anglers should expect to work harder. Below 10 feet, he said the Delta usually starts to fish better.
Water clarity remains a major factor. Nick Williams described some areas on the Tensaw side as muddy enough that anglers could see the sediment in a mason jar, while Josh noted that the Mobile River side can fish differently because white crappie often tolerate stained water better than black crappie. In dirty water, the fish may still bite, but they usually hold tighter to structure and have a smaller strike radius.
Current is the biggest thing crappie anglers need to avoid right now. Josh said crappie do not like current, and even if fish are found in moving water, they can be difficult to make bite. The better plan is to find places out of the current that still have bait, structure, cover, or the right depth contour.
The bowfin report points toward a classic summer setup. Dave Middleton said grinnel become especially active during the hotter, stiller part of the year, particularly in backwater areas, dead-end sloughs, grass, laydowns, and the first drop near the bank. With falling water and real-feel temperatures pushing toward the upper 90s, anglers looking for a hard-fighting Delta fish may have a strong bowfin window ahead.
Mobile River Crappie Report with Josh Gunter
Josh Gunter joined the show from a lake off the Mobile River while pre-fishing for the Delta Crappie Trail tournament. He said the water was still high, but the Mobile River side was beginning to level out. His general rule is that the Delta becomes more difficult once the gauge gets over 10 feet, but it can still be fishable if anglers adjust.
Josh and his partner were using forward-facing sonar to look for open-water crappie in an area that would normally be three to four feet deep but was closer to eight feet deep because of the extra water. That added depth gave them more room to work, even though the fish were not stacked in one obvious winning area yet.
One of the better fish they put in the boat was about three-quarters of a pound and came on a Delta G Showgirl jig. Josh described the bait as a gold jig with a chartreuse tail, a combination he likes because gold picks up light well and chartreuse gives the bait a brighter profile in stained water.
Gear mentioned in this section includes forward-facing sonar, open-water crappie setups, the Delta G Showgirl jig, gold-and-chartreuse crappie jigs, black-and-gold Beetle Spins, bright chartreuse profiles, and darker profile baits for certain water conditions.
Dirty Water, Current, and Crappie Positioning
Nick and Josh spent much of the crappie conversation talking about how to adjust in high, dirty water. Nick said that on the Tensaw side, he often looks for cleaner and lower water in the backs of sloughs and creeks when the main river gets muddy. Josh agreed that black crappie on that side may react differently than white crappie on the Mobile River side.
In stained water, Josh said crappie are still catchable, but anglers need to slow down and put the bait close. Fish may be tighter to structure and less willing to move far to eat. Nick compared it to fly fishing the day before, when casts had to land right by the shoreline or right beside the target, because a cast two feet away might not be seen.
Color matters, but Josh said profile may matter just as much as color in muddy water. Nick had tried bright electric chicken-style streamers with chartreuse and pink, while Josh leaned toward gold and chartreuse. They also discussed black baits, with Josh saying black often gives off a cleaner profile and can work well, especially when paired with a gold blade on a Beetle Spin.
The most important factor Josh emphasized was current. He said crappie are rarely schooled up in current, and when they are, they often do not want to eat. The better areas are slack-water spots with bait, structure, depth changes, or cover where fish can hold without fighting flow.
Delta Crappie Trail Tournament Out of Mount Vernon
The Delta Crappie Trail tournament out of Mount Vernon was the main tournament note in this week’s report. Josh was pre-fishing for the Saturday event and trying to find fish that could hold up through tournament day. He said they were seeing a few fish, but had not yet found a spot that clearly said, “this is where we need to be.”
With the water still high but falling, competitors will likely need to stay flexible. Josh’s report suggests that finding fish away from current will be more important than simply fishing historical areas. Open-water crappie, structure-related fish, and areas with enough depth to work in the high water could all come into play.
For tournament anglers, the key takeaway is that the Delta is fishable but not easy. Water above the preferred range means more searching, more adjustment, and more attention to boat positioning, bait visibility, and current breaks.
Summer Bowfin and Grinnel Report with Dave Middleton
Dave Middleton, also known through his YouTube channel Basscatlildave, joined the second half of the show for a detailed bowfin report. Dave is 60 years old and has been fishing the Mobile-Tensaw Delta for roughly 50 years. His father, known by many as Big Dave, introduced him to the Delta and the outdoors at a young age.
Dave said he refers to bowfin as grinnel, while some anglers in Louisiana call them choupique. Whatever name anglers use, he said the fish have become more popular with him and his friends because they are aggressive, hard-fighting, and fun to target on purpose. He first got more interested in them through grinnel tournaments and now regularly fishes friendly competitions with a group of friends.
Dave said the summer bowfin bite can be strong, especially when the days are hot, still, and almost miserable. Unlike some bass and panfish patterns that can slow down in the heat, grinnel remain active in shallow backwater areas, especially where there is wood, grass, dirty water, and enough cover for them to cruise and ambush prey.
On a recent rainy trip, Dave fished fairly shallow around laydowns, treetops, and bank cover. He caught several good grinnel, including fish weighing 6.16 pounds and 5.99 pounds. His three-fish total was over 14 pounds, while the winning three-fish bag in his group was nearly 20 pounds.
Bowfin Gear, Baits, and Hooking Tips
Dave has changed his tackle and tactics over the years to better target grinnel. He pours some of his own soft plastics and likes bright colors that stand out in dirty Delta water. Bright red worms, worms with chartreuse tails, and other highly visible plastics have been productive for him.
He also upsizes his spinnerbaits when specifically targeting grinnel. Where he might throw a quarter-ounce or three-eighths-ounce spinnerbait for bass, he often goes to a half-ounce or five-eighths-ounce spinnerbait for bowfin. He likes a bigger profile, heavier weight, and more vibration, especially from a big Colorado blade.
Nick noted that hot pink, chartreuse, black, and other high-contrast colors can help in muddy backwater conditions. Dave agreed that black can work, but his best grinnel results usually come from something bright, bulky, and noticeable. He wants a bait that disturbs the bottom, throws vibration, or gives the fish something obvious to react to.
Gear mentioned in this section includes bright red soft-plastic worms, chartreuse-tail worms, pink floating worms, half-ounce and five-eighths-ounce spinnerbaits, big Colorado blades, buzzbaits, frogs, heavier Texas-rig weights, and 5/0 offset wide-gap worm hooks. Dave specifically mentioned using Owner 5102 Series offset wide-gap hooks with a cutting point because he likes how they penetrate when a grinnel clamps down.
Hooking bowfin can be difficult because they do not always inhale a bait like a bass. Dave said they often chomp down and hold the lure without the hook ever penetrating. Nick and Dave both described landing fish that released the bait as soon as they hit the net, proving the fish had been holding the bait rather than actually being hooked. Dave’s advice is to set the hook hard and use a hook-and-weight setup that helps force the mouth open and get the point into the fish.
Where to Find Bowfin in the Mobile-Tensaw Delta
Dave’s preferred bowfin areas are backwaters, laydowns, wood, grass lines, and the first drop near the bank. He often targets the same general bank-related zone a bass angler might fish, but he may back off slightly to work the first break where grinnel cruise. He believes they are often moving along that first drop, especially when they are not actively up on the bank feeding.
In the lower Delta, Dave likes grass lines around areas such as Gravine Island and below, as well as clearer backwater areas where eelgrass and other vegetation can make sight fishing possible. He mentioned that a pink floating worm can be very effective when the water is clear enough to see fish cruising.
Nick added that he often uses gar as a sign that bowfin may be nearby. Areas with gar, buffalo, carp, lily pads, submerged vegetation, cypress knees, and blowdowns often have grinnel underneath or nearby. Dave said he had not always thought of gar that way, but agreed that he has seen grinnel in many of those same areas.
For anglers looking this week, Dave pointed toward the Tensaw Lake area, Globe, Stiggins, Bear, and similar hot-weather backwater areas. With the river stage falling, he recommended staying in the middle, fishing toward the first drop, keeping a worm in the water, and fishing slowly with a slightly heavier weight than most anglers would use for bass.
Livescope, Punching, and Bass Notes
Dave also discussed using LiveScope while fishing for grinnel, though he said he has not found it to be the advantage he hoped for. He believes bowfin often stay locked close to the bottom and move enough that they are hard to separate from bottom detail or cover on the screen. He has seen fish appear off the bottom, but it can be difficult to know whether it was a grinnel, bass, or something else.
The conversation also touched on punching heavy vegetation for bass in the lower Delta. Dave enjoys punching hyacinth mats around the Causeway and below Gravine Island, and he once caught a grinnel around eight pounds from under a mat while using a beaver-style bait with an ounce-and-a-half weight. He said when the punching bite is slow, it can feel like a slow death, but when it works, it is one of his favorite ways to bass fish.
Gear mentioned in this section includes LiveScope, GoPro cameras, beaver-style punching baits, ounce-and-a-half punching weights, heavy vegetation tackle, buzzbaits, frogs, and fly rods for anglers like Nick who prefer to chase Delta fish on the fly.
Local Delta Fishing and Bass Cat Little Dav
Dave said he started his YouTube channel for fun and for his children and grandchildren. His channel includes fishing, clay shooting, family videos, and other outdoor moments, so he joked that the algorithm does not know exactly where to push it. In recent years, he has been posting more fishing videos by letting a GoPro run during the day and editing the footage afterward.
Nick said he enjoys local YouTube channels because they show real Delta fishing rather than polished productions from somewhere far away. He mentioned that part of the appeal is recognizing local canals, banks, and areas where anglers are actually fishing the same water as the audience.
Dave said much of his bass fishing takes place around Briar and the middle section of the Delta, while some of his punching is farther south around the Causeway, Gravine Island, and nearby vegetation mats. Nick said Dave will likely return to the show later this summer to talk more about punching and bass fishing in the Delta.
What to Expect This Week
Crappie anglers should watch the river gauge closely. The Mobile River side is still fishable around the 10-foot mark, but anglers should expect a tougher bite if the water stays high. Focus on slack-water areas, open-water fish, structure, and places that have bait without too much current. Bright, visible jigs such as gold-and-chartreuse combinations should be in play.
On the Tensaw side, dirty water may push anglers toward cleaner backwaters, sloughs, and creeks. Black crappie may hold tighter to structure and require more precise presentations. Whether fishing jigs, Beetle Spins, or fly tackle, expect a smaller strike zone and slower fish in muddy water.
Bowfin anglers may be entering one of the best windows of the summer. Hot, still days from late morning into early afternoon can be productive, especially around laydowns, backwaters, grass lines, lily pads, gar activity, and the first drop off the bank. Bright worms, bigger spinnerbaits, pink floating worms, black profiles, heavier Texas rigs, and slow bottom contact should all be part of the plan.
For anglers fishing the Delta Crappie Trail tournament out of Mount Vernon, the bite may come down to who best handles high water and current. For casual anglers, this is a good week to keep options open. If the crappie bite is stubborn, bowfin can provide a hard-fighting summer alternative in many of the same backwater places that make the Mobile-Tensaw Delta unique.
