Alabama River

PRO REPORT

Overall Rating:

Last Updated: 05/13/2013
Bamaspots

The river is still hot with big bags of spotted bass and a few big heads being weighed in the Bassmaster Elite tournament having finished up Sunday. The bite is still in current breaks on the main river fishing shad type baits and jigs. I like fishing a 3/4 oz spinnerbait around rocks and layins in the current, on outside river bends. Fish back water areas for the Largemouth right now with jigs and soft plastics around grass beds and stumps.

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ABOUT THIS LAKE

The 318-mile long Alabama River originates just north of Montgomery from the confluence of the Coosa River and the Tallapoosa River near the Fall Line. The Fall Line in Alabama is the boundary between the East Gulf Coastal Plain and any of the provinces of the Appalachian Highlands Region. As with most of Alabama’s great rivers, dams slow the progress of the Alabama River as it flows to meet the Tombigbee River and form the Mobile River.

All of the Alabama River downstream of Montgomery is commercially navigable. The Alabama Scenic River Trail is a 631-mile boating trail from Weiss Lake down the Coosa River into the Alabama River and through the Mobile Delta to the Gulf of Mexico.

The lakes on the Alabama River are run-of-the-river type of impoundments; each lake is basically the old river channel. From upstream to downstream, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers lakes on the Alabama River are Jones Bluff, Millers Ferry, and Claiborne. Temperate climates in the area make fishing ideal on the river from February through June and in October through December.

Millers Ferry

Millers Ferry – officially named the William (Bill) Dannelly Reservoir – is a 17,200-acre impoundment with numerous public access areas. It provides excellent fishing opportunities for both largemouth bass and spotted bass of three pounds or larger due in part to high fertility and a relatively stable threadfin shad population. The largemouth bass are found primarily in the backwater areas such as Alligator Slough, Houseboat Slough, Pine Barren Cree, Gee’s Bend and Foster Creek. While spotted bass are found more commonly in the main river areas, look for deep points and bluff walls for good places for spotted bass angling.

Claiborne Lake

Immediately downstream of Dannelly Reservoir is Claiborne Lake. Formed by Claiborne Lock and Dam, it is the most primitive of the Alabama River lakes. Nestled in Alabama’s southwest hill country, the lake encompasses over 60 miles of the Alabama River. Claiborne Lake provides good fishing for largemouth bass.

Lower Alabama River

The Lower Alabama River begins at the Claiborne Lock and Dam and runs south 72.5 miles through Monroe, Clarke, and Baldwin counties where it joins the Tombigbee River.

Anglers on the lower Alabama River generally target largemouth bass, spotted bass, striped bass, and white bass. Largemouth bass can be found among the fallen timber and creek mouths along the banks, as well as in the backwater areas off the main river. These backwater areas are important nursery habitats for a host of game and non-game fish species. Spotted bass are commonly found just below Claiborne Lock and Dam, and along creek mouths, rock piles, and bluff banks.

CURRENT WATER DATA

GUIDE REPORT: BEST TIME TO FISH

SEASONAL TEMPERATURES