TerryP
Staff
Twasn't a criticism over either body of water. I do have other areas to compare and contrast.
| FTBL Bye Week- Say One Good Thing About The State Of Alabama (cannot be anything UA or Crimson Tide)
- Thread starter alabama mike
- Start date
Lifelong Bama resident. I love living here. It’s a beautiful state with so many different environments. You want a beach? Orange beach has some of the most beautiful beaches in the world. Mountains? Northeast Alabama is absolutely gorgeous. You like being on the lake? Pick one. We’ve got dozens of beautiful lakes. The central plains and northwest area have beautiful farmland and pastures. We even have a swamp area if you enjoy playing in the swamp. Alabama is just a beautiful state.
Not to mention pickwick, wheeler, Jordan and the alabama, tombigbee, and coosa rivers. I'd say bama is a top 10 state for bass for sure and maybe top 5.
TerryP
Staff
I've seen the state routinely ranked as the top bass fishing state in the US. But, there are "catches" here.
In the kayak bass fishing leagues, when it comes to the national finals, areas like Florida and Texas are excluded because it's just a different game: different fish. All bass, but a different "sport."
I don't disagree with locations matter. I also believe a lot is on the angler.
A lot is on the angler but even the best can't catch big fish where they don't grow. Bama doesn't have the size of texas, florida or california but it has good size and good options. Pickwick for smallmouth, Jordan for spots, and Guntersville for largemouth. One of the best states I've ever fished in.
TerryP
Staff
If you aren't familiar with kayak leagues it's mostly judge by length; not weight. It's based on a month, your top five, total. 12"-14"...routinely thrown back (even people that aren't in the leagues.) In a nutshell, for the locals fishing the reservoir, if it's not 18" or more it's thrown back.
(There's a private lake I can get into in Coosaw Creek...bass in that lake are HUGE! So are the gators. I won't fish there.)
In 10' I can hit bream or crappie from the bank. In 30' or so I can be ready to go for bass, or red drum as another. In less than an hour, hitting one of the lakes, I can pull catfish like you do out of Guntersville.
It's no different than shrimping. You just have to know where to go.
On another note...shrimp baiting season ends on the 9th of next month. It's mostly white...I've got roughly 100+ lbs frozen in the deep freezer. Four trips, splitting the catch.
So...I'm with you on "location." I can't say Alabama is better than where I am in SC.
ON a related, but different note:
One of the beautiful things about living in Tuscaloosa is proximity. Within a few hours you can be in Memphis, Atlanta, New Orleans, the beach, the mountains ... IN a few hours you can be snow skiing in Tennessee or surfing on the beach around Mobile.
It really is a good mixture for a state... the impressions so many have of AL crack me up... mostly shaped by what they see on movies/TV shows and have formed in their minds over the years, where it's nothing but trailer parks and fucknuts. While there is no short supply of either, the mountains in the north, the rivers, lakes, beaches (especially the sand), the BBQ from Evergreen north and the seafood from Bay Minette south, nice state parks, nice golf options, good hunting, 4 seasons of weather (for most), the small towns which are all a bit different yet also much of the same (in a good way), and so much more.
PurlJam
Member
Smith Lake too.
PurlJam
Member
All of my work peers that has come to visit my site (most from Texas), always say that it doesn't look like they envisioned, the first time they come out, In a good way. They all really love the Shoals area.
All of my work peers that has come to visit my site (most from Texas), always say that it doesn't look like they envisioned, the first time they come out, In a good way. They all really love the Shoals area.
One thing I left off that I meant to add at the end was, per capita, AL does very well in the good looking ladies department... Something that is very easy to see when you visit pretty much any other state outside of the deep south.
Here in south alabama you may get all 4 seasons in the same week. I don't miss the heat and humidity here but it was a great place to grow up.
I hated that winter never had much of a bite when I lived down there... fall was always nice though. Humidity sucked.
I try to avoid the bite of winter and the heat of summer these days, decided we're going to need 3 houses when we quit traveling. We were supposed to leave last week heading to Florida but we had a cool morning and my wife said she missed fall and wanted to stay another month. She's not really enjoying this 86 degree fall weather.
I from Florence as well.
'65 Cobra
Member
Absolutely. And northerners - especially northeast - think it's still the 60s here. Good, just stay away, please. I went to college in Washington (DC) and had many friends from Virginia... it's funny, outside the DC metro area, Virginians think they're deep south!!
Muscle Shoals Music.
