Altoona, AL Fishing: An Inviting Destination

Altoona is in Alabama's western Etowah County. The community stretches westward into Blount County, with a portion crossing into the county. The community of Altoona sprang up around the coal mines operated by W. T. Underwood, the brother of the former United States Senator Oscar Underwood. In 1907, the first telephone company was created in Altoona, although it was eventually relocated to Walnut Grove. The town had grown large enough for its citizens to seek organization, and the municipality received its charter sometime between 1908 and 1912. Altoona got its name from the Pennsylvania city of the same name by coal miners who moved to Alabama in search of a better life.

Underwood later sold his mines to a group of Gadsden investors, who then sold them to Republic Steel. Like many mining towns, Altoona grew rapidly, with two banks and a population of over 2,000 people by 1916. Additionally, Altoona was located on the Louisville and Nashville Railroad branch known as the "Mineral Line." With around 1,200 residents, Altoona is an inland city only a couple of hours away from major fishing destinations.

Altoona Fishing

Altoona lacks proximity to various state parks with lakes and rivers known for housing great fish across Alabama. These include Lake Guntersville State Park, Bucks Pocket State Park, and Desoto State Park.

The Tennessee River runs through Lake Guntersville State Park in Northeast Alabama. With its resort-style amenities and outdoor facilities in a huge space covering 6,000 acres of natural woodlands, Lake Guntersville State Park will be your home away from home. Being one of the best bass fisheries in the Southeast, Lake Guntersville can be overwhelming when figuring out trends and areas for the fish. Boasting miles and miles of hydrilla and milfoil grass lines, humps, roadbeds, rip rap, ledges, boat docks, high cliffs, shallow sloughs, and everything else found in a dream bass lake, Lake Guntersville can seem pretty intimidating. However, with key research on a few essential pieces of seasonal information, a basic understanding of break-lines, and a quality map, this beautiful lake reveals its secrets to anglers, allowing them to fish productively in every season, year after year. With accessible boat ramps and private marinas dot the lake’s perimeter, anglers will have a great time fishing largemouth bass, redear sunfish, redbreast sunfish, crappie, sauger, and channel catfish.

It is important to remember that bass prefer wounded prey, so a battered worm is ideal for catching them, especially in shallow water. Some anglers prefer to use a spinnerbait with a red or pink head and a crankbait with red hooks under shallow cover like wood, stumps, and clumps of grass. Because of the crimson tint, the fish believe the bait is hurt and will attack it. The redear sunfish is considered a terrific game fish that always plays a good battle for anglers. Because they are not afraid of bait, you can use this fish to practice your baits. Finding redear sunfish is the most challenging part of getting them, so seek vegetation or reeds where they might be hiding. Because they are bottom-feeding creatures, use sinkers. Fly fishing is not a popular choice for this species because they spend most of their time at the bottom of the water.

On the other hand, sauger is aggressive and has excellent flesh. They hide during the day because they are light-sensitive, and their unique eyes are for night feeding. Therefore the optimum time to catch saugers is at night or early in the morning. Because they are bottom-dwelling fish, utilize jigs to assist you in presenting your bait to their preferred depth of 25-40 feet. Look for holes, cast your lure to hit bottom, and slowly raise it to coax the fish out of its hole.

About an hour from Altoona, Bucks Pocket State Park is a publicly owned recreational and fishing area on Sand Mountain in the northeast part of the United States state of Alabama. The state park has 2,000 acres of land running along South Sauty Creek, an upstream tributary on Guntersville Lake's east side. It is surrounded by a natural pocket of the Appalachian Mountain system. From the heights of Point Rock, the park offers magnificent vistas of its rocky, seemingly pristine nature. Morgan's Cove on Lake Guntersville provides a boat launch and fishing location about seven miles downstream.

Whether you would describe yourself as a nature enthusiast, a sports fanatic, or just someone who enjoys the occasional time outdoors, DeSoto State Park provides lots of activities you can do to keep you occupied. Kayaking, fishing, swimming, hiking, biking, cycling, rappelling, climbing, picnics, wildflower trips, and simply experiencing nature are available at DeSoto State Park. It provides some of the most beautiful fly fishing opportunities in Alabama. Here, anglers can catch redeye bass, Spanish mackerel, ladyfish, bluegill, and even the occasional tarpon.

To catch them, use lures that resemble redeye bass foods, like shrimp, crayfish, and worms. Jigheads are also effective because the noise they generate attracts the fist. Colorful baits with bushy tails, such as spinners and bucktails, are also popular.

Top 10 Fish Species in Altoona, AL

The top ten fish species caught near Altoona, AL, are largemouth bass, striped bass, crappie, bluegill, smallmouth bass, spotted bass, white bass, redear sunfish, channel catfish, and blue catfish.

Seasonal Fishing

Knowing the optimum times and seasons to fish in Alabama can significantly enhance an angler's catch rates. Fishing for redfish, flounder, largemouth bass, catfish, crappie, bluegill, weakfish, and snapper is best in Alabama from March to June and then from August until late October.

Cast Your Worries Away in Altoona

1. Book a Fishing Charter

A chartered fishing trip allows you to sit back and relax while focusing solely on catching that big catch. The guides will teach you all you need to know about fishing. The skilled pros on board can assist you whether you want to practice your abilities or learn a new technique for casting the line. A charter allows you to explore pristine waterways confidently, and the crew will be able to take you through those new fishing grounds.

2. Have Fun Under the Sun at the Spring Valley Beach

Spring Valley Beach is a delightful, one-of-a-kind water park run by a family! It is the only waterpark in the Southeast that allows you to bring your picnic basket or grill to the park and provide free sunscreen and parking. Spring Valley Beach has something for everyone, with over 20 pavilion spaces, ten exhilarating water slides, the Southeast's largest pool, and a vast water playground for kids.

3. Visit the Tigers of Tomorrow at Untamed Mountain

Tigers for Tomorrow at Untamed Mountain is a non-profit exotic and native animal preserve and environmental education center that houses approximately 160 species, including tigers, lions, bears, wolves, lynx, and black leopards. They work to care for these animals while giving visitors the avenue to learn about and appreciate them. It is open to the public all year and is a fantastic spot for children and adults to have fun!