Back from vacation and busier than ever! Guided Mr. Jim Ball and his son, Thomas, this morning. Jim, Thomas and family are recent new arrivals to the Pensacola area. They are buying a new boat soon and wanted to learn about our local waters and fishery here in Pensacola. They are now very familiar with both!! Started out earlier and showed the guys where they can catch plenty of fish to eat. Whacked the trout and redfish on topwaters, suspending baits and Berkley Powerbaits most of the early morning. Thomas really came into his own with the suspending baits boating several quality speckled trout. We covered a variety of extremely productive areas and lots of proven techniques that have been the bread and butter at Redfish University. Next, the guys wanted go to some areas where they could just catch lots of fish. Picked out some areas in the bay and around the Pass and the guys had a ball with big Spanish mackerel, bluefish, ladyfish and some big sharks. Ended the day with some fishing talk and 15 typed pages of detailed inshore angling tips, locations and techniques for fishing in Pensacola. Jim and Thomas will have no problem catching fish in Pensacola year-round and Redfish University wishes them the best of luck in their future angling adventures. Most fish released but a few trout, redfish and Spanish macks were kept for the cookout. Please click an image to enlarge and view...
Read MoreSightfishing Extravaganza at Redfish University-April 29, 2010
Guided Mark Battia and Dave this morning. Both are very talented anglers and although today was difficult at times, they really showed some solid skills. Started in the upper bays for some big trout. Found some very nice speckled trout pretty quickly with some redfish and flounder in the mix. The lack of mullet made things difficult but we stuck 12-15 very nice trout between 2-3.5#. Next, sightfishing was on our minds so we traveled to some very clear water. Immediately found big schools of redfish in shallow water and got to work. It may have been the full moon but these fish were pretty difficult at first but when the tide changed, they really started to bite. Mark and Dave were able to sight fish many redfish in shallow, clear water with some very nice casts and exciting strikes. Even a few double hookups were achieved!!! I enjoyed the awesome view from the poling platform as they picked off redfish along the bank. I hope to fish with both guys again very soon. Challenging but very enjoyable trip for us all. All fish caught on Berkley Gulp! Jerkshads and all redfish were sight fished with Johnson 1/4oz. Gold Spoons. Some trout, flounder and smaller redfish went home for the grill. Please click an image to enlarge and view...
Read MoreFinally found them at Redfish University-March 16, 2010
Guided Mr. Fred McGafferty and Mr. David McGafferty this morning. Started out in the upper bays looking for redfish and trout but the combination of dirty water and little water movement from the neap tide made things difficult. Picked off one 5.5# speckled trout and a few smaller ones. Also got a few small redfish. With things looking grim up there, we decided to cruise south in search of clear water and redfish. We immediately found a great area to sightfish redfish in the 29-42″ range. Stuck plenty of 12-21# redfish in 4-8ft of water. All fish caught on Berkley Gulp! Jerkshads rigged with Marsh Works Jigheads. Also worth mentioning, these big fish were taken on 6# and 10# Berkley Crystal and Spiderwire Ultracast InvisiBraid. All fish release. Heading to Jacksonville tonight for the first HT3 Cup East event. See everyone next week!! Please click an image to enlarge and view...
Read MoreMisty morning redfish and trout at Redfish University-March 12, 2010
Guided Mr. Bill Shan this morning. Bill is an accomplished angler from the north US to the Florida Keys. Bill was interested in learning some new areas for redfish trout. Start around 800am with misty, overcast conditions. Found plenty of trout and redfish immediately. Redfish were shallow and the trout were holding on uneven bottom with potholes. Ended up with 15-20 quality trout and some nice redfish including a 26″ fish and a few in the 4-5# range. All fish taken on Berkley Gulp! Jerkshads and 3″ Shrimp. All fish released. Looking forward to our second trip early next...
Read MoreShort trip, short fish at Redfish U.-March 3, 2010
Had a short trip this morning for some redfish and trout. A more instructional trip but surprisingly, caught quite a few. Started in some protected waters and immediately caught a handful of decent trout including an estimated 5# fish that fell off at the boat. Traveled in the open bay(1-2.5″ chop!) to some protected banks and found some relatively clean water. Pop-corked and ran Lipless Cranks to score some small redfish with a few small trout mixed in. Also cranked some deeper structure and picked up a small redfish. Fishing is tough but they’re still around. All fish caught on Gulp! Jerkys in camo, 3″ Gulp! Shrimp in lime tiger and Lipless Crankbaits KVD style! All fish...
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