Fishing spots in Baldwin County

Baldwin County holds most of Alabama's Gulf coast and the whole eastern side of Mobile Bay. Its beaches run from Perdido Pass and the Alabama end of Perdido Key through Orange Beach and Gulf Shores to the tip of the Fort Morgan peninsula, with long undeveloped stretches inside Gulf State Park and Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge. Behind them lie Little Lagoon, the back bays around Wolf Bay and Perdido Bay, Bon Secour Bay, and the Eastern Shore of Mobile Bay from Daphne through Fairhope to Point Clear, with the Mobile-Tensaw Delta at the head of the bay.

Anglers come for Spanish and king mackerel and cobia off the Gulf State Park Pier, pompano and Gulf kingfish in the surf, sheepshead and bull redfish at Perdido Pass and Fort Morgan, and speckled trout and flounder in the bays. The tide is small and usually comes once a day, so wind, rain and moving water matter most. Baldwin County keeps Central Time.

Orange Beach and Perdido Pass

• Character: Orange Beach's only Gulf inlet, surf either side and back bays behind
• What it suits: sheepshead, bull reds and flounder at Perdido Pass Seawall and Boggy Point Boat Launch; reds and mackerel at Alabama Point East; pompano at Shell Beach, Cotton Bayou Beach Access and Romar Beach; trout at Orange Beach Waterfront Park
• Access: state park beach lots with a daily fee; a seawall boardwalk; a free city pier

Gulf Shores and Little Lagoon

• Character: Gulf State Park's natural beach, the West Beach strip and clear, shallow Little Lagoon
• What it suits: mackerel, kings and cobia from Gulf State Park Pier; pompano and kingfish at the Beach Pavilion, Branyon Beach and the West 6th and West 10th Street accesses; flounder and trout at Little Lagoon Pass Park and Mo's Landing Park; sheepshead at Canal Park
• Access: a 24-hour fee pier, pay lots and meters; no fishing at Gulf Place

The Fort Morgan peninsula

• Character: refuge dunes and quiet beaches ending at the mouth of Mobile Bay
• What it suits: trout at Jeff Friend Trail; surf pompano and reds at Pine Beach, Mobile Street Beach, Morgantown Beach Access and Burgoyne Road Beach; bay trout at The Pines Boat Launch; bull reds and flounder at Fort Morgan Fishing Pier and Mobile Point
• Access: free refuge sites, sunrise to sunset; a free 24-hour pier

Perdido Bay and Wolf Creek

• Character: brackish, sheltered water on the Alabama side of Perdido Bay and up Wolf Creek
• What it suits: trout, reds and sheepshead at Lillian Boat Launch; trout and flounder at Josephine Park Public Access and County Road 95 Park; a mixed bag at Wolf Creek Park, Foley
• Access: small county launches and a road-end overlook

The Eastern Shore, Weeks Bay and the Bon Secour River

• Character: the shallow east side of Mobile Bay, known for summer jubilees, with tidal rivers at Weeks Bay and Bon Secour
• What it suits: trout, croaker, reds and flounder at Fairhope Municipal Pier, May Day Park, Bayfront Park in Daphne and Mullet Point Park; flounder and reds at Weeks Bay Reserve Fishing Pier and The Launch at CR 6
• Access: free city, county and reserve piers

The Causeway and the delta

• Character: the head of Mobile Bay, where the delta's fresh water meets the bay
• What it suits: reds, trout and flounder in fall, bass and bream after rain, at Meaher State Park and Chocalotta Ramp
• Access: a state park pier and a busy state launch; check the license boundary

Season	Likely species (shore)	Notes
Spring (Mar–May)	Spanish mackerel, king mackerel, cobia, pompano, Gulf kingfish, sheepshead, speckled trout	Mackerel and cobia reach the Gulf State Park Pier as the Gulf warms; pompano run the surf; sheepshead finish on the pass and pier pilings
Summer (Jun–Aug)	Spanish mackerel, king mackerel, hardtails, ladyfish, Gulf kingfish, speckled trout, croaker	Fish dawn and dusk; jubilees on the Eastern Shore; storms most afternoons
Fall (Sep–Nov)	Bull redfish, pompano, flounder, speckled trout, Spanish mackerel	The best season: reds pour out through Perdido Pass and past Fort Morgan, flounder head for the passes, and trout feed hard in the bays
Winter (Dec–Feb)	Sheepshead, black drum, speckled trout, redfish, Gulf kingfish	Sheepshead on the seawall, piers and bridge pilings; trout in deeper channels after fronts

• Pier mackerel: Gotcha plugs and small spoons worked fast for Spanish mackerel, and a live hardtail caught on a sabiki and drifted on a wire leader for kings off the end of the Gulf State Park Pier
• Surf: a 9 to 11 foot rod, 2 to 4 oz pyramid sinkers and a double-drop pompano rig with fresh shrimp, sand fleas or Fishbites, cast to the darker water of the troughs
• Bull redfish: cut mullet, menhaden or a live croaker on a fish-finder or Carolina rig, with enough lead to hold in the pass current
• Sheepshead and black drum: fiddler crabs or shrimp on a 1/0 hook tight to pilings, rocks and the seawall
• Bays and lagoons: live shrimp under a popping cork, soft plastics on light jig heads and gold spoons for trout and reds, and bull minnows on a light Carolina rig for flounder
• Bring a pier net or long-handled net; the Gulf State Park Pier and Fort Morgan pier decks stand well above the water

• Tides are diurnal, one high and one low most days and only a foot or two apart, with a few near-still days each fortnight; check the tide for the Gulf Shores, Perdido Pass or Mobile Bay area
• Even a small tide runs hard through Perdido Pass, Little Lagoon Pass and the mouth of Mobile Bay at Fort Morgan, and the falling tide carries bait and redfish out
• Clean green water on a light south or southeast breeze brings mackerel and pompano to the beaches and the pier
• Strong south winds stack up rough, dirty surf; north winds behind winter fronts flatten the Gulf but drain the bays and push fish into the channels
• Heavy rain upstate and up the rivers freshens Mobile Bay and Perdido Bay and moves trout and reds toward the passes, while dry spells pull the salt up the rivers and the delta
• Eastern Shore jubilees come on still summer nights with an east wind and a rising tide near dawn, crowding flounder and crabs into the shallows

• Lightning: leave piers, boardwalks and beaches at the first thunder; summer storms build fast over the Gulf and the bay
• Rip currents form along every Gulf beach; heed the flags, and remember that Fort Morgan's beaches have no lifeguards (Tropical Storm Bertha's swell led to at least 22 rip-current rescues there in one day in July 2026)
• Perdido Pass, Little Lagoon Pass and Mobile Point run deep and fast, with heavy boat and ship traffic; never wade off the points, and stay off the wet jetty rocks
• The Gulf State Park Pier bans shark fishing, and Alabama does not allow chumming for sharks from public piers or near the beach
• Shuffle your feet for stingrays, and fish well away from swimmers and any guarded swimming area
• Gulf State Park's beach accesses charge a daily parking fee and allow no overnight parking; the refuge opens sunrise to sunset and bans pets; Gulf Shores removes gear left on the beach an hour after sunset
• Alligators and biting insects live in the delta and the swamp creeks, and the Causeway mud is soft enough to trap a leg

• Reach the Gulf State Park Pier before sunrise in spring to get a rail at the end for the mackerel run; a daily parking ticket there includes the pier fishing permit
• One daily Gulf State Park parking pass works at every one of the park's paid beach accesses
• Sheepshead peak on the Perdido Pass Seawall in late winter and early spring; switch to fiddler crabs when they start stealing shrimp
• Live bull minnows are the flounder bait in Little Lagoon and at Weeks Bay
• When the surf is too rough, fish the bay side: the Fort Morgan Fishing Pier, Little Lagoon or Orange Beach Waterfront Park
• After a dry week, try the river and delta spots; after heavy rain, head for the passes
• Gulf Place, Gulf Shores' main public beach, bans fishing; use the West 6th Street access just west
• Daphne is the Jubilee City: after a calm, still summer night, walk the Eastern Shore at first light

• Mobile County, Alabama – across Mobile Bay by the Causeway, or by the Mobile Bay Ferry from Fort Morgan: Dauphin Island's surf and pass, the free all-night Cedar Point Pier, and the Dog River and Fowl River parks
• Escambia County, Florida – east along Perdido Key and across Perdido Bay and the Perdido River: Perdido Key State Park and Johnson Beach for surf, Big Lagoon State Park, Innerarity Point Park on Perdido Bay and the Pensacola Beach Gulf Pier farther east (a Florida license and Florida's own rules apply)

• Do I need a fishing license in Baldwin County?
  • An Alabama saltwater fishing license is required unless you are exempt; Alabama residents who are exempt (and anglers fishing only from a pier that holds a pier license) must still complete the free Saltwater Angler Registration. Anglers under 16 are exempt, and the Gulf State Park Pier's daily permit is not a license. In the delta and up the rivers, check ADCNR's license boundary map at outdooralabama.com; Meaher State Park says an Alabama freshwater license is required there.
• What is the best month to fish here?
  • April for Spanish mackerel, cobia and pompano at the Gulf State Park Pier and in the surf, and October for bull redfish at Perdido Pass and Fort Morgan, flounder and the second pompano run.
• Can I fish at night?
  • Yes, from the Gulf State Park Pier and the free Fort Morgan Fishing Pier, both open 24 hours, and from the Perdido Pass Seawall. Most city parks close at dusk, the refuge and the Beach Pavilion at sunset, and Gulf State Park's beach accesses allow no overnight parking.
• Where can I fish when the Gulf is rough?
  • Orange Beach Waterfront Park on Wolf Bay, Little Lagoon Pass Park and Mo's Landing Park on Little Lagoon, the Fort Morgan Fishing Pier on the bay side of the point, or the Eastern Shore piers.
• Can I fish for free?
  • Yes. The Fort Morgan Fishing Pier, Orange Beach Waterfront Park, Mo's Landing Park and The Launch at CR 6 are free, May Day Park lists no fee, and the Fairhope Municipal Pier is free to fish, though non-residents pay park and beach admission in summer.
• Can I keep what I catch?
  • Check current Marine Resources Division rules for size, bag and season limits before keeping anything.

Area	Coast character & access	Best species	Prime season	Go-to methods	Key safety notes	Facilities
Orange Beach and Perdido Pass	Inlet seawall, surf accesses and a Wolf Bay pier	Sheepshead, bull reds, flounder, pompano	Feb–Apr; Sep–Nov	Fiddler crabs, cut bait, pompano rigs	Fast pass current, boat traffic, rip currents	Restrooms at most accesses, city park amenities
Gulf Shores and Little Lagoon	Fee pier, state park beach, lagoon pass and docks	Spanish and king mackerel, cobia, pompano, flounder	Apr–May; Sep–Oct	Gotcha plugs, live hardtails, bull minnows	Lightning, rip currents, swimmers	Bait shop and rentals at the pier; restrooms
The Fort Morgan peninsula	Refuge beaches, bay shore and a free all-night pier	Bull reds, trout, flounder, pompano	Fall, and spring at Mobile Point	Heavy surf rigs, live croakers, popping corks	No lifeguards, strong currents, ship wakes	Few; ADA parking at the pier
Perdido Bay and Wolf Creek	Quiet bay launches, creek pier and road-end overlook	Trout, reds, sheepshead, black drum	Fall; late winter for sheepshead	Popping corks, Carolina rigs	Ramp traffic, soft banks, insects	Restrooms at Lillian only
The Eastern Shore, Weeks Bay and the Bon Secour River	Free city and county piers, tidal rivers	Trout, croaker, reds, flounder	Fall; jubilee nights in summer	Live shrimp, bull minnows	Lightning, boats near ramps	Restrooms at Fairhope, May Day and CR 6; portable toilets at Mullet Point
The Causeway and the delta	Brackish head of the bay; state park pier and launch	Reds, trout, flounder, bass, bream	Fall and dry spells	Live shrimp on Carolina rigs	Traffic, soft mud, alligators	Campground and pier at Meaher