July on the Gulf Coast begins with a bang and rarely slows down. The July 2024 events calendar opened with Independence Day fireworks from Mobile to Pensacola and went on to feature two of the region’s most celebrated fishing tournaments, a roller derby twist on Pamplona’s famous bull run, a farewell tour stop by blues legend Buddy Guy and a jazz festival rooted in education and heritage. This look back revisits those highlights, along with the fireworks sites and other events that made the heart of summer so busy.
With beaches and bays crowded with people trying to beat the heat, July is peak season for tourism along the coast. It is also a month of summer camps, concerts and family events, and in 2024 communities across the region offered no shortage of ways to spend a hot afternoon or a warm summer night.
Where the Fireworks Lit Up the Sky
Independence Day 2024 fell on a Thursday, and communities and venues across the coastal area hosted celebrations. Fireworks displays were held at locations including:
- Battleship Memorial Park on the Causeway
- Cooper Riverside Park in Mobile
- Henry George Park and the Fairhope Municipal Pier in Fairhope
- The Al Trione Sports Complex in Daphne
- A fireworks cruise from Blakeley State Park in Spanish Fort
- The Memorial Wall and public beach on Dauphin Island
- The Gulf State Park Fishing and Education Pier in Gulf Shores
- Bayfront Parkway along Pensacola Bay in Pensacola
Watching fireworks reflect off the water is one of the great pleasures of a coastal Fourth of July, and many of these locations have hosted displays for years, drawing families who stake out spots on the grass or the sand hours before dark.
Blue Marlin Grand Championship at The Wharf
From July 11 through 14, the Blue Marlin Grand Championship returned to The Wharf in Orange Beach. Billed as “The Greatest Show in Sportfishing,” the tournament is known for huge fish and even bigger purses, and it serves as the final leg of the Gulf Coast Triple Crown series.
The tournament also has a charitable mission. The BMGC has raised more than $200,000 for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Visitors who arrived early could browse industry vendors and try the St. Jude Fighting Chair Challenge, a tug-of-war style contest in a real sportfishing fighting chair that raises money for the hospital.
Registration closed Wednesday, July 10, at 9 p.m., and the tournament began at noon Thursday with a shotgun start in Perdido Pass. Weigh-ins were held Friday and Saturday at 5 p.m., and there was no admission charge to watch. Blue marlin weigh-ins draw big crowds because of the drama: boats arrive at the scales not knowing whether their fish will hold up against the leaderboard, and a single catch can be worth a fortune in prize money.
The 91st Alabama Deep Sea Fishing Rodeo
A week later, July 19 through 21, the 91st Annual Alabama Deep Sea Fishing Rodeo took over Dauphin Island. A project of the Mobile Jaycees, the rodeo has been billed as the largest fishing tournament in the world. Founded in 1929, it draws more than 4,000 anglers and 75,000 spectators to the island.
The rodeo is a three-day Captain’s Choice tournament sanctioned by the Southern Kingfish Association, with 33 categories and prizes for first, second and third place in each. The total awards package is valued at up to $1 million in cash and prizes, anchored by boat, motor and trailer packages. A Master Angler is also recognized, and cash prizes are awarded in King Mackerel, Speckled Trout and Big Game jackpots.
The rodeo has a long relationship with marine science. Organizers seek input from the University of South Alabama’s Stokes School of Marine and Environmental Sciences on the state of Gulf fisheries, and the Dauphin Island Sea Lab collects scientific data on numerous species brought to the scales. Over nine years, the rodeo donated $500,000 toward that research fund, with the University of South Alabama Foundation matching the contribution each year.
Running of the Bulls Pensacola
On July 20, the 13th Annual Running of the Bulls Pensacola brought a lighthearted take on Spain’s Festival of San Fermin to Seville Square. Instead of live animals, the “bulls” were skaters from West Florida Roller Derby and guest leagues, equipped with roller skates, horns and plastic bats to playfully tap runners along a course of about two miles.
Participants could run, jog or walk the route, and some simply strolled into Seville Quarter to enjoy complimentary beer while waiting for the after-party and awards ceremony. The event captures Pensacola’s playful side, and Seville Quarter, the historic entertainment complex near Seville Square, makes a fitting finish line.
Buddy Guy’s Farewell Tour Stops in Mobile
On July 23, blues icon Buddy Guy brought his Damn Right Farewell Tour, with Tom Hambridge, to the Saenger Theatre in Mobile. Guy is a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee, a major influence on rock guitarists including Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton and Stevie Ray Vaughan, a pioneer of Chicago’s West Side sound and a living link to the city’s golden age of electric blues.
Although forever associated with Chicago, Guy’s story began in Louisiana. One of five children, he grew up on a plantation near the small town of Lettsworth, about 140 miles northwest of New Orleans. In 1957 he took his guitar to Chicago, where he played on numerous sessions for Chess Records alongside Howlin’ Wolf, Muddy Waters and other legends of the label before building his own recording career. For Gulf Coast blues fans, the farewell tour offered a chance to see one of the last surviving connections to a historic era of American music.
Gulf Coast Ethnic and Heritage Jazz Festival
The month’s headline events closed July 27 with the Gulf Coast Ethnic and Heritage Jazz Festival at the Saenger Theatre in Mobile. The nonprofit festival is founded on the belief that “ethnic” means everybody and “heritage” is not a fixed point in the past, and its mission is to preserve and grow jazz for future generations by educating young musicians about the music and its history.
The festival is known for the Marcus Johnson Summer Jazz Camp, An Evening of Poetry and Jazz and its main-stage concert. Over the years it has presented nationally and internationally acclaimed jazz musicians, including some with roots in Mobile and Baldwin counties and alumni of local school systems.
Other July 2024 Events
- The Red, White and Blues Pensacola Beach Air Show featuring the Navy’s Blue Angels, July 12
- The Battleship Rugby 7’s Tournament at Battleship Memorial Park in Mobile, July 13
- Comedian Mark Normand’s “Ya Don’t Say” tour at the Saenger Theatre in Pensacola, July 13
- Air Supply at the Saenger Theatre in Mobile, July 18
- Parker McCollum at The Wharf in Orange Beach, July 19
The Pensacola Beach Air Show is one of the most anticipated events of any summer, since the Blue Angels are based at Naval Air Station Pensacola and the show over the beach is a homecoming of sorts. Most of these events recur, but dates and lineups change, so readers planning for a future July should confirm details with organizers. Whatever the year, pack sunscreen, drink plenty of water and plan outdoor outings for mornings and evenings when the heat eases.