Pier & Shore Fishing Outlook 4-15-26

Pier & Shore Fishing Outlook 4-15-26

By David “The Pierpounder” Thornton

Our preceding flirt with spring sure took a dive along when cooler temperatures and much stronger winds invaded during the previous fortnight. Hard easterly winds not only kept the temperatures down, but dingier coastal waters made fishing and catching much more difficult. It seems this year fishing patterns are a bit confused from historical norms mostly due to weather differences that have delayed some spring migrations.
Some years it is like we get our March winds in early April, and this certainly seems like one of those years.
As a result, catches of sheepshead all but ceased from the Gulf State Park Pier at the end of March. Even though boats are still catching some in Perdido Pass as sheepshead have staged there before moving back into the estuary for the summer.
Meanwhile spanish mackerel have been a scarce commodity in Alabama waters with just a few good catch days reported from the pier. Even the boats are not catching many as it has been difficult for small boats to get out into the Gulf with the wind blowing so hard. That has not been the case to the east at the Florida Panhandle piers where catches of spanish and even king mackerel have been much more common.
About the same is true of pompano too, which usually show up off the Alabama beaches by mid April in the numbers we have only seen caught from the Panhandle beaches so far. Lucky them! But it should be our turn soon, and perhaps the bite will sustain for a while longer that usual, at least until early to middle May perhaps? Some years keep you guessing as to the patterns of when and where fish show up or disappear in reference to historical trends, or it may be affected by some quirky weather anomalies. Nature tends to even things out in the long run though. So we can only hope that the weather and fishing get back on track during this period of late April.
Another factor that may affect spring fishing is the continued drought across the area. Even though the State Pier received over 1.2 inches of rain Easter Sunday, we remain way behind the yearly average of rainfall over the area. This has a huge affect on the salinity of inshore and nearshore Gulf waters, and that has a huge effect on where fish spawn.
For instance, higher salinity in the surf zone could mean fewer speckled trout moving into the Gulf just off the beaches this spring. They may instead remain in the lower estuaries of Perdido Bay, Bon Secour Bay, and Mobile Bay where they find more suitable salinities (10 to 20 ppm) for spawning.
This phenomenon could make multiple ripples throughout the fisheries as higher salinity could affect where and when particular fish species spawn, and manifest future effects in the success of their spawn and the survival of their fry. Too little, or too much fresh water entering a coastal fishery often has lasting consequences in the availability and location of finding fish to catch in succeeding years. So, adjusting your approach and tactics through the remainder of this month will be most critical. I have already heard too many times the phrase “Well, we tore them up here, this time last year. But are catching none now” This is just a different kind of spring for fishing this year.
Of late, there have been fair numbers of speckled trout and flounder caught from the Gulf State Park Pier (mostly on live shrimp) when weather conditions have allowed the Gulf to calm down so the water cleared some. But the days of 15 to 20 feet of visibility into the water seem to well behind us now. Pier anglers, especially novice ones, would likely be more successful with these marginal conditions to concentrate on more plentiful species like spadefish or whiting.
These can be caught at either end of the pier with just small pieces of frozen shrimp, though fresh dead shrimp work better. The main tip is to NOT use too large a piece of bait as these are relatively small mouthed fish, so a small hook, like a #6 Eagle Claw All-Purpose single hook is all that is needed. Use as light of line on a sensitive rod to promote getting bit and detect a light bite. Do no use too of heavy terminal tackle, but only as much weight as in needed to get the bait in front of the fish. Often just one or two splitshots for spadefish, and ½ to 1 ounce egg sinker for whiting.
But for many it has been too much of a temptation to proceed directly out to the octagon at the end of the pier to cast for spanish (or king) mackerel that simply have not been there (most of the time) in sufficient numbers to maintain their interest. So fishing vacant water for a while, they get discouraged and go home mad, just because they were too stubborn to change tactics and try for another species that is present. One of the wonderful attractions to fishing that pier for me through the pervious 6 decades is it offers at least something to catch every day throughout much of the year. All we have to do is be adaptable.
Surf anglers east of Perdido Pass have been catching fair numbers of pompano from those waters which tend to be a little warmer and clearer than elsewhere in the area.
A combination of Fishbites or Fishgum with ghost shrimp seems to be the most reliable bait combination to tempt wary early season pompano to bite the hook. Meanwhile, most shore anglers west of Orange Beach had to deal with an unprecedented bloom of June grass through much of the previous fortnight. Some folks were occasionally successful catching a few pompano and whiting despite the seaweed infesting the surf zone by finding spots relatively clear of the grass.
These can often be found near the beach points where the water is shallower so waves scour the grass away into the troughs on either side of the point. Polarized sunglasses and a wide brimmed hat are valuable tools to aid surf fishers to read the beach and find water clear of grass. Rare wind changes to the north also helped anglers by blowing the surf size down some and moving much of the pesky grass farther from shore. Wind direction and speed will continue to be problematic for surf fishers, as will the NEAP tide period centered on April 27th. Then, lack of tidal change and water movement could seriously disrupt beach fishing. Tides look more favorable April 18th through the 25th to create tidal currents that are more likely to get pompano and other surf denizens into a feeding mood depending on weather and wave conditions.