July 22, 2009 - Orange Beach / Gulf Shores, AL (OBA) - The Big
Day finally arrived and for anglers around the southeast it was none-to-soon.
As the 11 o'clock hour on July 20th drew near, people started lining up
at the gate. When the clock struck 11, a parade of angler with
their rod buggies scrambled on to the pier in an effort to be the first
person to catch a fish from the new Alabama Gulf State Park Pier. Pictured right is Gulf State
Park Director Hugh S. Branyon and Asst. Director Trey Myers welcoming the first guests to the
newly opened pier.
The artificial fishing reefs placed around the pier during its
construction by David Walter, aka The Reef Maker, has turned the longest
pier on the Gulf of Mexico into an amazing ecosystem. As can
be seen in the photo slideshow below, everything from
small minnows, to large King Mackerel, to even larger sharks and
stingrays can be seen swimming in the waters directly adjacent to the
pier. This is the primary reason for the No Swimming area 300
yards around the pier. As they say, "Its not only a good idea, it's the law"
- defiantly true in this case. "The human element is what makes pier fishing such a unique
experience," says David Thornton, better known as Pier#r, a Gulf
Coast-renowned pier angler. Thornton was
on hand with his wife, Susan, for opening day. (This comes as no surprise
to anyone who knows Pier#r.) Thornton's excitement level was at an all
time high as the gates opened for the first
time. His primary question since Hurricane Ivan has been, "When is the
state going to rebuild our pier?". OBA Editor's Note of Appreciation: Much of the pier
information that you read about on The Orange Beach Community
Website, both in articles and on our new
Gulf of Mexico Fishing
Pier Information Page, was contributed by Pier#r.
We greatly appreciate his contributions. Also on hand for the opening day was Orange Beach Mayor Tony Kennon, who
as a child growing up in Mobile County, spent hours and hours for years and years on the old pier
when his family would visit the beach. "My parents used to have to
drag me off of the pier, I never wanted to leave", says Kennon. Now that the pier has been
rebuilt, he's looking forward to spending time enjoying the pier's
amenities with his children. The photo slideshow below contains pictures from beside, on and
high above the pier on opening day. The video below was shot by
Paul Doss of Alabama Gulf Coast Video. The video is a 10 minute
clip of the pier and people fishing. We are in the process
of editing a video clip showing an aerial fly-over of the pier.
This clip will
be available on this page as soon. We'd like to
thank The Reef Maker, David Walter, for the opportunity to fly above the
pier on opening day to shoot pictures and video footage of this
momentous occasion. Outdoor television sportsman Gary Finch, of Gary Finch Outdoors, is preparing to do one of his upcoming
tv shows
from the Gulf State Park Pier. "The Pier is a
great location for us to shoot a program highlighting the abundant fish in
the northern Gulf of Mexico", says Finch. Visit the
GaryFinchOutdoors.com website
to learn more about the Gary Finch Outdoors television program,
including channels, dates and times you can catch his shows.
The short iPhone video clip below shows anglers waiting for the
gates to open at the new Pier.
Gulf State Park Pier Photos & Video from Opening Day 