The Friday Report: a decent Friday and Saturday, a rough Sunday, and Florida snapper's last October weekend
The Friday Report is our standing weekly look at what’s happening on the water, bay to bottom, both sides of the line. The live numbers are on Beach Today and update all day. This is the human read on top of them.
The gist
Friday and Saturday are the workable days; Sunday is not. NWS Mobile has an east wind that builds through the weekend, with seas of 5 to 7 feet out to 20 miles on Sunday. If you’re going offshore or in a small boat, go today or Saturday morning and be home before the wind fills in. Tuesday looks like the first easy day again.
Conditions this week
The NWS Mobile coastal waters forecast, issued 3:02 AM CDT Friday, October 30. No watches, warnings or advisories were listed when we pulled it:
- Out to 20 nautical miles (Pensacola to Pascagoula): Today is east wind 10 to 15 knots, diminishing to 5 to 10 late, seas 2 to 3 feet. Saturday is east 15 to 20 knots with gusts to 25, seas 2 to 4 feet, occasionally 5. Saturday night builds to seas 4 to 6 feet, occasionally 8, after midnight. Sunday is east 20 to 25 knots with gusts to 30, seas 5 to 7 feet, occasionally 9. Monday is east 15 to 20, seas 4 to 6, occasionally 8. Tuesday is east 15 to 20 diminishing to 10 to 15, seas 2 to 4.
- 20 to 60 nautical miles: Today is east 15 to 20 knots easing to 10 to 15, seas 2 to 4 feet, occasionally 5. Saturday is east 15 to 20 with gusts to 25, seas 3 to 5, occasionally 6. Sunday is east 20 to 25 with gusts to 30, seas 6 to 8 feet, occasionally 10. Monday is east 15 to 20, seas 5 to 7, occasionally 9. Tuesday is east 15 to 20, seas 3 to 4, occasionally 5.
The forecast changes, so read the latest before you commit. The Beach Today feed showed 78°F water, about 3-foot surf, a northeast wind near 18 mph, moderate rip-current risk and medium-hazard flags on both sides, but it was flagged stale (last update 4 AM), so check the flag at your access. A steady east wind for three days tends to build surf and rips, so don’t let a decent Friday talk you into a loose Sunday.
Inshore, bay, Pass, and back water
The calendar says this is prime fall inshore fishing: slot reds and bull reds around the Pass as mullet move out, speckled trout on the grass flats and dock pilings as the water cools, sheepshead on structure, and flounder leaving. I can’t tell you any of that is biting this week, because nobody has told us. An east wind pushes water into the bay, so expect higher tides and chop on open bay water. The back water stays the protected choice.
Surf and pier
This time of year the beach normally holds whiting, pompano and the occasional redfish in the wash. With the surf already up and the wind building, expect it to get choppier and dirtier by Sunday. Call before you drive to a pier, since hours can shift with weather. Pier rundown on the piers page.
Offshore and bottom
Friday and Saturday morning are the offshore windows; Sunday and Monday are a rough ride, especially past 20 miles. A cooling pattern like this usually favors the bottom bite and fall kings and amberjack, but treat that as the calendar talking, not a report. If you’ve got a charter booked, call the captain, since they make the weather call. The how-to-book-a-charter guide covers the questions to ask, and the boats are at the Pass marinas.
The one regs reminder that matters
Seasons change year to year, and the Florida and Alabama calendars don’t line up. As posted when we checked this morning:
- Florida Gulf red snapper (private boats): FWC lists it open this weekend, Friday through Sunday, October 30–November 1. After that it’s weekends only: November 7–8, 14–15 and 21–22, Thanksgiving weekend November 26–29, December 5–6, 12–13 and 19–20, December 25–27, and January 1–4, 2027. Confirm on FWC before you go.
- Alabama (private and state charter): Outdoor Alabama lists the season open seven days a week until the quota is met or the year ends, with no closure date announced when we checked. Check before you go.
- Federal for-hire (charter) snapper: that season was posted to end October 26, 2026.
- Two reds per person, 16-inch minimum, and Alabama’s Snapper Check is mandatory on that side. (New to that? The Glossary has it.)
- Flounder: we couldn’t confirm 2026 flounder dates for either state this week, so check the regulations cheat sheet and the state sites before keeping one.
The honest take
Go early or plan around the wind. Today and Saturday morning are workable, Sunday is a steady 20 to 25 knot east push, and the back half of the week looks better. The fall calendar is a good one, but I won’t promise fish I haven’t heard about. If you fish today, tell us how it went.
Tell us what you saw
This report is only as good as what’s coming off the boats. Caught something, blanked, found a ramp or pier in an odd state? Send it in. Photos are welcome, and we’ll change your name if you want. Next report drops Friday.
— Chris
P.S. Captains, marinas, and bait-and-tackle shops on either side of the line can claim their listing free at /submit/claim/, or add one that’s missing at /submit/.
