We're getting closer to the magic day when weather and water combine to create a fishing frenzy.
October and the Orange Beach October Fishing Rodeo are just around the corner. From the way things look the elements are combining in just about the right proportions at just about the right time.
Fish haven't caught up with cool weather
Boy, I love this weather, and so do the fishermen. All of the boat ramp parking lots have been full of vehicles and trailers as the cool front sparked a fishing frenzy.
The problem is the fish haven't quite followed suit.
Jay Gunn with the Alabama Marine Resources Division was checking anglers at the Chocalotta Ramp on Tuesday and didn't see much to brag about.
There weren't any speckled trout, but there were redfish and a nice mess (only Southerners know what constitutes a mess) of bream.
"That big high pressure and a messed-up tide probably had more to do with it than anything," Gunn said of the low success rate. "The thing about this time of year is that it can be completely different the next day."
Gunn also predicts in impending flounder run.
"Flounder aren't like speckled trout," he said. "They can't handle the low water temperatures. When the water temperature starts heading toward 65 degrees, they know they're supposed to be spawning in the Gulf. There will probably be a flounder run in the next week or so."
Meanwhile, down at the beach, Mike Miceli and Spencer Johnson have been taking advantage of a feeding frenzy in the surf.
The pair of fly-fishing enthusiasts hooked into loads of bluefish on flies near where the Gulf State Park Pier once stood in Gulf Shores.
"They'll hit anything that resembles a Clouser minnow or any baitfish," Miceli said. "I have caught them up to 7-8 pounds, but they were a little smaller Wednesday, probably more like 3-4 pounds.
"And you don't even have to get wet to catch them. Spencer was standing on the beach catching them. I waded out to about my waist to see if I could find the bigger ones."
Miceli said the bluefish were so thick the baitfish were beaching themselves trying to get away.
Out in the Gulf, the cold front kicked up the seas and not many boats have ventured out.
Lady Ann, out of Dauphin Island, caught red snapper, wahoo, triggerfish and beeliners. Intimidator, out of Orange Beach, caught wahoo, yellowfin tuna, nice amberjack, as well as a box full of bottom fish on an overnighter.