Written by Atlas Editorial · Last updated
Madison County Public Fishing Lake is a 105-acre ADCNR State Public Fishing Lake at 2501 County Lake Road in Gurley — 11 miles east of Huntsville, stocked with bass, bream, catfish, and winter rainbow trout.
Madison County Public Fishing Lake is the ADCNR-managed lake most Huntsville anglers drive past on their way to the Tennessee River and never stop to fish. 2501 County Lake Road, Gurley, eleven miles east of Huntsville — U.S. 72 east five miles, left on Ryland Pike, six and a half miles through Maysville, right on County Lake Road. The lake sits at 105 surface acres, one of 20 Public Fishing Lakes the Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries Division operates under Alabama Code 220-2-.36. Originally stocked with largemouth, bluegill, and redear; channel catfish added each winter; crappie naturally established. What sets Madison apart is the winter rainbow trout program: near the end of November, ADCNR drops roughly 3,000 pounds of one-to-two-pound rainbow trout into the lake, and a Daily Trout Permit opens a put-and-take fishery unusual for North Alabama. Amenities are simple: boat ramp, ADA-compliant fishing pier, restrooms, concessions selling bait, tackle, snacks, and licenses. Lake managers Chris and Cole Coultas: (256) 776-4905.
“Madison County Public Fishing Lake holds fish in patterns you can set your watch to. The bite isn't a secret — it's what most fishermen don't know about where the grass thins onto a hard ledge.”
Alabama Fishing Atlas Editorial
Major and minor solunar windows shift daily with the moon’s transit. Fish the windows above, or check the Seasonal Playbook below for Madison County Public Fishing Lake’s current pattern.
March through May is the heart of the year at Madison County PFL. The lake is open every day except Wednesday from February 1 through August 31, so midweek mornings are quiet bank water. Bluegill bed on shallow gravel from late April through May and take a cricket or red wiggler under a bobber off the ADA pier. Redear — an original ADCNR stocking species — hit red wigglers a little deeper than the bream. Largemouth stage into the upper end in March, spawn through April; work a wacky-rigged Senko, a square-bill, and a small spinnerbait on timber edges. Crappie move into brush and submerged timber in early March; long-line a 1/16-ounce jig through brush piles, vertical on marked schools. Channel catfish turn on as water climbs past 65°F — chicken liver or nightcrawler on a slip-sinker rig off the pier in late afternoon. All anglers 12 and older need a $5 fishing permit; anglers 16 to 64 also need an Alabama fishing license.
June through August the 105-acre pool warms into the 80s and the bite moves early-and-late. Bluegill stay stacked on pier pilings and shoreline brush all summer — a cricket under a small bobber or a black-and-chartreuse beetle spin keeps a rod bent through the heat. Largemouth work shade and shoreline wood at first light, then pull off into the deeper main pool through midday; a Texas-rigged worm flipped to shade and a drop-shot on deeper edges in the afternoon cover the pattern. Channel catfish are at their best — nightcrawlers, chicken liver, or cut shad on the bottom off the pier as the sun drops. Redear beat up crawfish and snail patterns; a small jig tipped with a red wiggler works. Hours stay sunrise-to-sunset every day except Wednesday through August 31, and the concessions building keeps bait, tackle, and licenses on hand. Jon boat rental runs through a $10 Boat Rental Permit and the lake is trolling-motor or slow-gas-trolling only per ADCNR rules.
September through November is the transition window. ADCNR shifts the operating schedule on September 1 — closed Tuesday and Wednesday instead of just Wednesday. Water drops through the 70s into the 60s by late October, bass push back into the shallows to feed up, and the shad bite turns on. A lipless crankbait and a ChatterBait along the shoreline and a white spinnerbait on timber edges catch bass feeding ahead of winter. Crappie stack on brush piles and timber in 8-15 feet — vertical jig with a minnow on a 1/16-ounce hair jig. Bluegill and redear hold on deeper brush and pier pilings into October. Channel catfish keep biting while water stays above 60°F. Late November is the transition most wait for: the schedule flips to Friday-Saturday-Sunday only on November 22, and ADCNR drops the first truckload of rainbow trout. PowerBait under a bobber or corn on a drop-shot in the main pool — the put-and-take program runs through the first week of January.
December through early January the lake transforms. From November 22 through January 3, ADCNR operates the lake Friday, Saturday, and Sunday only (closed Christmas Day) for trout season. The Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries Division stocks approximately 3,000 pounds of rainbow trout ranging from one to two pounds each, the daily creel is four trout per angler, and every trout angler needs a Daily Trout Permit on top of the $5 fishing permit and Alabama fishing license. PowerBait under a bobber, corn on a small hook, a 1/8-ounce inline spinner slow-rolled through the main pool, or a tiny spoon vertical-jigged when trout group up — standard put-and-take rainbow techniques all work. Bass, bream, crappie, and catfish fishing stays open during trout season, but water is cold and the bite slows. After January 3 the lake closes for the rest of January and reopens February 1. For limited night-fishing opportunities, contact the lake managers at (256) 776-4905.
Primary ADCNR-stocked bass species — Madison County PFL was originally stocked with largemouth and the lake is intensively managed to sustain the fishery. Shallow impoundment typical of Alabama's PFL network.
Original ADCNR stocking species — bluegill are a headline bream fishery at every Alabama PFL, with bed fishing in spring and pier action through summer. Crickets, red wigglers, small poppers on a fly rod.
ADCNR stocks channel catfish at every PFL each winter — Madison is no exception. Classic put-and-grow program producing eating-size catfish on chicken liver, nightcrawlers, and cut bait off the pier and bank.
White and black crappie have naturally established in many of the 20 PFLs, including Madison. ADCNR's state overview explicitly notes crappie populations. Early-spring timber and brush-pile bite is the window.
museum
1 Tranquility Base, Huntsville, AL 35805
Official visitor center for NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center and home of Space Camp. Saturn V on display, dozens of flight-history artifacts, indoor and outdoor exhibits. Approximately 30 minutes from Madison County PFL — the anchor family attraction for any Huntsville-area fishing trip.
state park
5105 Nolen Avenue, Huntsville, AL 35801
Alabama State Park on the mountain above east Huntsville — overlook, cabins, lodge, hiking and biking trails, Dry Falls. Roughly 20-25 minutes from Madison County PFL via U.S. 72 and Monte Sano Boulevard.
historic
3101 Burritt Drive SE, Huntsville, AL 35801
Historic mansion and living-history park on the top of Monte Sano — Dr. William Burritt's 1930s mansion, pioneer-era homes relocated to the grounds, overlook views of the Tennessee Valley. Family-friendly half-day stop.
scenic
4747 Bob Wallace Avenue, Huntsville, AL 35805
112-acre botanical garden with a nature center, butterfly house, and seasonal trails. Family attraction about 25 minutes from the lake — good rainy-day or off-water option for a mixed-itinerary family trip.
scenic
200 Church Street SW, Huntsville, AL 35801
Downtown Huntsville's signature park anchoring the Von Braun Center, Huntsville Museum of Art, and the Rocket City's urban core. Free walk-around park, seasonal events, 25-30 minutes from the lake.
Madison County Public Fishing Lake sits on the east edge of Huntsville's metro orbit, eleven miles out from downtown on the Gurley side of the county. On a weekend trip with family, Huntsville itself is the draw. The U.S. Space & Rocket Center on Tranquility Base is the official visitor center for NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center and home of Space Camp, with a Saturn V that stops traffic. Monte Sano State Park sits on the mountain above east Huntsville with overlook cabins, hiking trails, and a lodge, roughly twenty minutes from the lake. Burritt on the Mountain, the 1930s-era doctor's estate-turned-museum, is on the same mountain. Downtown anchors Big Spring Park, the Von Braun Center, and a walkable core of restaurants. The Huntsville Botanical Garden sits off Bob Wallace Avenue. The Flint River — the watershed this lake drains into — has put-ins a few miles north. Lodging is Huntsville-based; most families stay in town and drive the eleven miles out.
Gurley
ADCNR-built concrete boat ramp at 2501 County Lake Road, Gurley AL 35748 — the only ramp on the 105-acre lake. Personal boats require a fishing permit plus a launch permit, and the angler must be purposely fishing. ADCNR prohibits gasoline outboards except at slow trolling speed (no-wake), and rental jon boats are available through the concessions building for a $10 Boat Rental Permit. Contact lake managers Chris and Cole Coultas at (256) 776-4905 for current rental availability and any operational changes.
Directions2501 County Lake Road, Gurley, AL 35748
Madison County Public Fishing Lake is one of 20 State-Owned Public Fishing Lakes operated by the ADCNR Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries Division under Alabama Code 220-2-.36. Only hook and line with natural or artificial bait is permitted — no trotlines, set hooks, jugs, snagging, or snatching. Live bait minnows are restricted to goldfish minnows, golden shiners, and fathead minnows (no releasing minnows into the lake). Gasoline outboards are allowed only at slow trolling / no-wake speed where posted. No swimming, no wading, no camping, no alcohol, and no hunting on PFL land (designated wildlife sanctuaries). Fishing is sunrise to sunset on posted operating days. Published ADCNR operating schedule: February 1 - August 31 open every day except Wednesday; September 1 - November 22 open every day except Tuesday and Wednesday; November 22 - January 3 open Friday, Saturday, and Sunday for trout season (closed Christmas Day); closed during most of January. All creel, possession, and size limits are posted at the lake per Alabama Code 220-2-.36 section 4 — verify before keeping fish. A $10 Boat Rental Permit is required to rent a jon boat and renters must be 16 or older. Confirm current rules and schedule changes with lake managers Chris and Cole Coultas at (256) 776-4905.
Alabama fishing license required for anglers 16 through 64 (residents and non-residents), plus a $5 ADCNR Fishing Permit required for anglers 12 and older. During trout season, a Daily Trout Permit is required in addition to the Fishing Permit. Licenses and permits available at the concessions building on site, online via alabamainteractive.org/dcnr_license, by phone at (888) 848-6887, or through the Outdoor AL mobile app.. Always verify current rules before your trip.
Full Alabama fishing regulations ›67,100 acres
Bass · Crappie
River
Stripers · Bass
10,370 acres
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15,930 acres
Bass · Catfish
More on Madison County Public Fishing Lake:
Fishing regulations, water conditions, and seasonal patterns change. Alabama Fishing Atlas provides informational content only. Verify all regulations with the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources before fishing, keeping any fish, or launching watercraft. We are not liable for decisions made based on information published here. Full disclaimer →
Data last reviewed: 2026-04-19
