Fall Fishing
in Gulf Shores & Orange Beach
Anglers are missing out if they don’t take advantage of all the fall fishing opportunities along Alabama’s Beaches. The Gulf State Park Pier offers some great fall fishing for Spanish and king mackerel, bluefish, whiting, redfish, speckled trout, and flounder. If you’re looking to hit the open water, book a charter to go after mackerel, triggerfish, amberjack or tuna, depending on the conditions.
When Do Fish Migrate Along Alabama’s Beaches?
Fall fishing migration on the Gulf Coast typically occurs September through November, with some movement continuing into December. The cooling water temperatures, cold fronts, and movement of shrimp and baitfish influence the timings. Several species along Alabama’s Beaches movie in different directions. Mackerel and cobia head toward warmer waters, flounder move into the Gulf to spawn, and trout and redfish may follow bait farther into bays, estuaries and coastal rivers.
Best Species to Catch in Fall
Mackerel
Before the cold weather arrives, Spanish and king mackerel will still be in the northern Gulf ahead of their annual migration. Try trolling small spoons for Spanish in nearshore waters, or put out a cigar minnow for kings. Kings and Spanish often hang around through October unless we have an unusually early cold front. Many of the charter boats on Alabama’s Beaches offer half-day trolling trips that are almost guaranteed to hook numerous mackerel.
Cobia
Cobia is another species that migrates to warmer waters in the fall and returns in the spring. This species likes to hang around structures like buoys and anchored shrimp boats. Early fall gives anglers a chance to find them before colder water sends them on their way. Toss live bait and see if you can lure a cobia into biting.
Flounder
Don’t forget those tasty flounder, but make sure you get out on a flounder trip before November. Flounder fishing is closed in November to protect the fish from their fall migration into the Gulf to spawn. Before November, you can find them assembled in the passes and channels leading to the Gulf, especially around the bottom structure, where they can wait for a meal to come by. If you can locate some bull minnows, the flounder can’t resist them. Otherwise, toss quarter-ounce jigs with a plastic grub and work them slowly along the bottom to get a reaction strike. Under Alabama’s current regulations, anglers are allowed to keep five flounder per person per day during the open season, with a minimum length of 14 inches.
Redfish & “Red October”
Known as "Red October," October is a productive time of year to target redfish on Alabama’s Beaches. These hard-fighting fish can be found feeding on shrimp and baitfish in the bays and along the beaches, with schools of larger reds also roaming nearshore waters. Around Fort Morgan, anglers fishing by boat can look for those bull reds around Dixey Bar at the mouth of Mobile Bay.
Speckled Trout
Speckled trout is a popular inshore species on Alabama’s Beaches. In fall, they follow shrimp and baitfish into bays, estuaries and rivers as the water cools. During warmer parts of the day, specks can be found in flats near deeper water, feeding before retreating as temperatures drop in the evening. If there’s a strong cold front, look for deeper holes and use slower presentations to target them. Little Lagoon is an ideal spot for targeting speckled trout in the fall, as bait-stealing fish are less active.
Try to land an Alabama Inshore Slam by reeling in speckled trout, redfish, and flounder in one outing!
Pompano & Whiting
For those who love to catch fish in the surf, whiting and pompano go on a feeding frenzy when the water temperature drops only a few degrees. Sand fleas, ghost shrimp, peeled fresh-dead shrimp, and fish bites are your best bait for those species. Local bait shops will have the equipment you need to find the sand fleas and suction pumps to slurp the ghost shrimp out of the surf line. Small hooks and light lines almost always result in more bites.
Amberjack, Tuna, & Swordfish
Head offshore to catch the hard-fighting greater amberjack when you can catch a good weather window. The 2026 recreational harvest season in federal Gulf waters runs from September 1 through October 13.
Fall is also an excellent time for a multi-day fishing trip into the Gulf to catch blackfin tuna, yellowfin tuna, and possibly a swordfish.
Fishing Seasons & License Requirements
Before you head out, check the current fishing seasons, size limits and bag limits for the species you plan to catch. Unless you are fishing on a licensed charter boat, you will need the proper Alabama saltwater fishing license if you fish from the pier, surf, or personal boat. Charter boats will have you covered under the boat’s license.
Plan Your Fall Fishing Trip
Whether you’re casting from the beach, dropping a line off the pier or heading into the Gulf, there’s plenty of fall fishing to enjoy on Alabama’s Beaches. If you’re booking a charter, talk with your captain about what’s biting and the fish you’d like to catch so you can choose the right trip. Keep an eye on the marine forecast, too, and leave a little flexibility in your plans when a fall cold front moves through.
David Rainer
David Rainer has written about the great outdoors on the Alabama Gulf Coast for more than 20 years. For 14 of those years, he covered the many fishing opportunities on the Gulf Coast as outdoors editor at the Mobile Press-Register. He is past president of the Southeastern Outdoor Press Association and currently serves on the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council's Outreach and Education Advisory Panel and the Alabama Gulf Coast Reef & Restoration Foundation board.
