Gulf State Park Pier - Gulf ShoresOn July 23 2009, Gov. Bob Riley officially opened the new Gulf State Park Pier in Gulf Shores, Alabama. Since then, the pier has been crowded with sightseers and fishermen. The Gulf Shores pier, at 1451 feet into the Gulf and a total fishing area of 2,448 feet, is the biggest on the Gulf Coast. The end of the pier is octagon shaped, 65 feet across. Some of the fishing area is wheelchair accessible.Restrooms are conveniently located half-way down the pier. Other amenities include picnic tables, an air conditioned snack bar, fish cleaning stations, and a tackle shop. The pier is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Parking is free in the 240-space parking lot, and it is first come, first served. Beach visitors have equal access to the parking lot. An Alabama Saltwater Fishing License is required to fish from the pier. These can be purchased at the pier. Fee Structure: Fishing  What can you expect to catch from the pier? Anything that swims in-shore, including king mackerel, Spanish mackerel, redfish, bluefish, sheepshead, flounder, pompano, whiting, white trout, ladyfish, to name a few species. You might see some amazing things that can't be caught. Manatees and whale sharks have been sighted from the pier.   Leave your sling shot at home. You are allowed to fight a shark if he takes your bait, but don't bring him on the pier. Just cut your line when you get tired.   Pier fishing is the easiest of saltwater fishing, and the learning curve is short. Every day there's people on the pier that's never fished before, and there's many who only fish during vacations. So don't worry about inexperience. That's a large part of the paying customers, especially during peak tourist season. Do these guys look like they're working hard?  The pier puts you a good ways out in the Gulf, but not so far that you can't keep up with what's happening on the beach. No worries about sea sickness either-- even on rough weather days that you wouldn't risk seasickness on a boat, fishing is still easy on the pier.  More Photos of the Gulf State Park Pier |
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