Tombigbee River below Coffeeville Lock and Dam Fishing Guides
The last lock and dam on the Tombigbee, where eighteen thousand square miles of drainage pour into a deep tailrace that holds the best trophy catfish water in southwest Alabama.
Guides on the Tombigbee River below Coffeeville Lock and Dam
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About the Tombigbee River below Coffeeville Lock and Dam
Coffeeville Lock and Dam is the southernmost structure on the Tombigbee River, the last controlled point before the river runs free to its junction with the Alabama River and on into the Mobile River delta. The USGS gauge immediately below the dam watches a drainage of roughly eighteen thousand four hundred square miles, which is nearly the entire Tombigbee and Black Warrior system above it. It reports discharge and stage and carries no active temperature series. This is a big-water tailrace, and the discharge number is the single best predictor of how it will fish.
The tailrace itself is the draw. Water pushed through the gates scours a deep hole below the dam, concentrates baitfish, and holds a dense population of catfish year-round. Blue catfish are the headline species and reach genuinely large sizes here, with flathead and channel catfish alongside them. Guided catfish trips out of the Coffeeville and Jackson area work this water hard, drifting and anchoring the current seams below the gates and the deep bends immediately downstream.
It is not only a catfish fishery. White bass and striped bass stage below the dam on seasonal runs, largemouth and spotted bass hold on the rock and wood along the banks and in the lock approach, and crappie fill the slack water and the oxbows off the main channel. Freshwater drum are abundant and are often the first thing a drifted bait finds.
Commercial barge traffic uses the lock continuously, and that governs boat handling more than anything else. Generation schedules swing the current hard and fast, the water below the gates is turbulent and unforgiving, and the posted restricted zone immediately below the structure must be respected. Rising discharge muddies the river and pushes fish tight to the bank.
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Access
Coffeeville Lock and Dam public boat ramp - the primary tailrace access below the structure.
Service Park recreation area at the dam - parking, bank access and picnic facilities.
Jackson city ramp downstream - the main launch for the free-flowing river below the dam.
Bladon Springs area landings - additional downstream access on the lower Tombigbee.
Womack Hill landing upstream of the dam - access to the pool above the lock.
Okatuppa Creek confluence - tributary mouth that concentrates fish on falling water.
Silas and Highway 84 corridor ramps - road-supported access to the middle reaches.
Seasons
Spring: heavy discharge and the strongest white and striped bass staging below the gates.
Summer: steadier flows, hot water and the peak of the guided blue catfish fishery.
Fall: falling, clearing water and excellent bass fishing along the banks.
Winter: cold water pushes big blue catfish into the deep tailrace hole; the trophy season.
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Questions
What is the current flow on the Tombigbee River below Coffeeville Lock and Dam?
As of Sep 17, 5:30 am, the USGS gauge TOMBIGBEE R BL COFFEEVILLE L&D NEAR COFFEEVILLE reads 2,920 cfs. Conditions update every 15 minutes.
What species can you catch on the Tombigbee River below Coffeeville Lock and Dam?
Anglers target Black Crappie, Blue Catfish, Channel Catfish, Flathead Catfish, Freshwater Drum, Largemouth Bass, Spotted Bass, Striped Bass, White Bass, White Crappie on the Tombigbee River below Coffeeville Lock and Dam in Alabama.
Where can you access the Tombigbee River below Coffeeville Lock and Dam?
Coffeeville Lock and Dam public boat ramp - the primary tailrace access below the structure. Service Park recreation area at the dam - parking, bank access and picnic facilities. Jackson city ramp downstream - the main launch for the free-flowing river below the dam. Bladon Springs area landings - additional downstream access on the lower Tombigbee. Womack Hill landing upstream of the dam - access to the pool above the lock. Okatuppa Creek confluence - tributary mouth that concentrates fish on falling water. Silas and Highway 84 corridor ramps - road-supported access to the middle reaches.
When is the best time to fish the Tombigbee River below Coffeeville Lock and Dam?
Spring: heavy discharge and the strongest white and striped bass staging below the gates. Summer: steadier flows, hot water and the peak of the guided blue catfish fishery. Fall: falling, clearing water and excellent bass fishing along the banks. Winter: cold water pushes big blue catfish into the deep tailrace hole; the trophy season.
Where are the fishing regulations for the Tombigbee River below Coffeeville Lock and Dam?
Regulations change by season and section. Read the current rules on the Alabama agency site: https://www.outdooralabama.com/fishing/freshwater-fishing-creel-and-size-limits