# Info needed on fishing off of dauphin island AL



## Paolo

Hey guys, i'm pretty new to all of this here. I've fished quite a few times off of dauphin island from shore, the cedar point pier and the dauphin island pier and have always caught something. Now i've just recently bought a 17' dc hydrasports and would like to take her out in a few weeks and do some fishing with her. I've never been out in mobile bay or off of dauphin island with a boat to fish, so i'm titally new at it. Could anyone maybe tell me where i could fish for what species? Unfortunately i could only go out like 10-20miles out max on really good conditions. Any good reefs within that range? Any good spots around dauphin island? Would appreciate any info immensely. 
Thanks a lot,
Tight lines
-paolo


----------



## Johnms

Congratulations on the new boat. I often fished that area in my 17' boat. There is no need to be in a hurry go 20 miles out as that are has awesome inshore fishing. Fish it for a while until you are very comfortable with the boat and learns it's quirks and issues before heading even considering that far out of a trip. A great place to practice is the Sand Island lighthouse which is 2.5 to 3 miles out of the port. On a calm day - no big deal - on a windy day -watch out! I often catch sharks at the light house on live shrimp (really!) Inshore from a boat around the jetties at Fort Conde is a good red fish/trout location again live shrimp and also live croakers. * Dixey Bar (It’s actual name often spelled wrong) runs from the tip of Ft. Morgan out about 3 miles. IT runs along the left side of Mobile Ship channel and the water is 6’ of less all along the bar. Drop a 3 oz weight and a size 8 or 6 treble hook with a live croaker. BE prepared for a long fight with Bull Red Drum (redfish). In Alabama the trebles are legal and you can keep one oversize red. Each of the inshore oil derricks are good but you often have to move from derrick to derrick to find where the fish are hanging. Live croakers on a slip cork deep – like 12’ work for trout. Also at the crack of dawn be at the shoals, which are three little oyster shale island in the Mississippi sound just west of the DI bridge with live shrimp 1 -2 ‘ off the bottom. For bait -you can cast net your own live shrimp in the canal just behind the airport all day long.*


----------



## Paolo

wow, thanks for the great info, i appreciate it a lot. great stuff. i`ll def make sure to check out the boat before i head out even 1 mile out there, no worries. safety comes first. 
do you still fish there often? what about other species? mangrove snapper, vermillion snapper, mahi mahi, aj,.... i was out on a charter last year and we were only out about 3 or 4 miles (out of destin) due to federal waters still being closed bc of the oil spill and we caught vermillion, red, red porgy, lane,etc. are there any of those species that close to shore from DI?


----------



## Johnms

sorry, I'm an inshore man! I fished off Ft Conde about 2 months ago and caught 10 big trout on live shrimp and was back home in Perdido Key by 9:45 Am.


----------



## Paolo

Ah ok, gotcha. Man, that is some good fishing. Trout really are great. I've caught quite a few white trout off of DI, fun stuff. Thanks again for the advice.
Tight lines


----------



## smann316

Once you get in the gulf there will be many oil rigs within view. Go rig to rig bottom fishing with squid, cigar minnows, bonita chunks, live bait and you're gonna catch something (snapper, lane snapper, mingo's, trigger etc). Many times you can find Cobia at these rigs and you can sight fish for them which is awesome! Just have a pretty stout rod read with a 30-50 lb leader and a circle hook with a chunk of cigar minnow and when you see the cobia put the bait in front of his mouth and he will eat it (almost guaranteed). Let him take it for a bit to make sure he has it good and then reel down and let that circle hook do it's job and hang on. Great fight better eating.


----------



## Paolo

niiiice, that sounds like fun. def wan a catch me a nice cobia, never have before. had fun catching some red porgies and lane snappers last year, great eating too. can`t wait to get out there and do some fishing. do you go out of dauphin island to fish? the rigs are pretty close to shore right? so no prob with my boat?!
thanks a lot for the info,
tight lines


----------



## smann316

Whether you are running 1 mile or 15 miles in the gulf you will need good seas to go in your boat. 1-2 foot seas will be the most I would go out in. I have a 19 ft Pathfinder and have been 10 miles out with relative ease. You have to know how to run the waves and use your throttle to your advantage. As far as rigs are concerned, They vary in distance. There are some in the bay and some within a few miles of the beach. You will be able to see several as you enter the gulf. Just pick one and go to it and start. Over time you will figure out which ones work best for you. good luck!!


----------



## Pier#r

The water off Destin gets deeper closer to shore than the Alabama coast.
Check the navigation chart for relative depths and distance from shore.

Besides you're not likely to find many cobia (aka ling) around the near shore rigs in mid summer.
But mackerel are plentiful and relatively easy to catch within a few miles of the Sand Island Lighthouse.
And the Dixey Bar thing mentioned earlier is chocked full of opportunities. :thumbsup:


----------



## spear em

Johnms said:


> sorry, I'm an inshore man! I fished off Ft Conde about 2 months ago and caught 10 big trout on live shrimp and was back home in Perdido Key by 9:45 Am.


holy smoke, ft. conde is in down town mobile and is land locked. how long was your pole?


----------



## Ruger7mmmag

If you fish DI, eventually you'll see me in my powder blue sea pro (18') with blue bimini top. We fish only inshore from Dixey Bar to inshore rigs to the bridge. What's great about Mobile Bay is time of day can change any spot. some of the rigs and the bridge we'll go for flounder, reds, trout etc during the daylight hours and not an hour after dark the sharks move in. One thing is for sure, learn to throw a cast net if you don't know how as FINGER MULLET are your friend...


----------

