The Gulf Coast's Ultimate Angling Experience!
Best Rates on the Gulf Coast!! $600 (1-2 anglers) for 5 hours. $50 for each additional angler up to 4 total anglers. Includes Pensacola, Gulf Breeze, Navarre and Pensacola Beach. Call (850) 748-4368 or email ericholstman@hotmail.com. *(Adjusted for fuel prices on July 1, 2022)
Welcome to Redfish University in Pensacola, Florida
Redfish University is a unique opportunity for beginner, intermediate and advanced level anglers to improve their skills in the art of shallow water fishing for redfish, speckled trout, pompano and flounder. Redfish U. specializes in the challenging realm of sight fishing for redfish with the use of artificial baits. Redfish U. also targets speckled trout, flounder, pompano and bull redfish on traditional guided fishing trips. Our extraordinary curriculum insures that no detail is overlooked. From bait choices and line selection; to casting presentation and approaching your target, you will receive unsurpassed angling instruction. Challenge yourself, broaden your angling knowledge and invest in your fishing future at Redfish University.
Oct30
Well, it was one of those days that we should have stayed in bed. Guided long-time client and Redfish U. VIP, Bob Willice, this morning in the upper bays for some redfish and trout fishing as well as some location and technique instruction. Bob, living on Santa Rosa Sound, has fished down there with me several times but has never entered East Bay or the Blackwater area. Our results from today may make certain Bob never returns to those areas!!! With the fish predictably biting so well pre-cold front, today’s high pressure, high winds and blue skies, were not exactly a great recipe for success. Nevertheless, we should still catch fish right? You would think… Started at 630am and covered some great speckled trout spots only to find catfish. Travelled further south to some fabulous redfish areas and threw the whole tackle box at them. The day after a cold front passes, it’s very important to scale down your baits, slow your retrieve to a crawl and get around as many fish as possible. We accomplished all three but both of...
Oct28
Guided Gene and Tina Hunter this morning for some redfish, flounder and speckled trout action in hopes of packing the cooler with fresh fish. It was Redfish U’s intent to make a valiant effort to follow my friend Matt’s stellar performance on yesterday’ trip with Gene and Tina, a tremendous bay trip of grouper, snapper and big redfish! It seems we just couldn’t catch a break with the weather this week with Monday’s strong winds and this morning’s downpour, lightning and hard northwest winds. Our plan was to return to the site of yesterday’s epic inshore trip where we conquered over 30 redfish, big flounder and plenty of trout. Made the run west in pretty nice conditions with darker skies to the north. Radar indicated that clouds were moving from the southwest to the northeast but as we all know, things can change very quickly. Arrived in the area and started fishing. Wham! Big flounder on the second cast, a redfish immediately after that and plenty of bait and strikes in the next few minutes. Then the rain and wind hit us making...
Oct27
You gotta love this time of year! Pre-cold front conditions can be outstanding for shallow water fishing as redfish, trout and flounder are predictably rabid one or two days before a major front. Today was no exception! The redfish were biting extremely well and we hit it on a superb tide. Guided Mr. Rick Olsen and Mr. Rob Roberts this morning in Mobile Bay/Orange Beach for some spectacular inshore redfish, trout and flounder action. Rick and Rob are seasoned offshore anglers but wanted to tighten up on some inshore techniques and prime locations where they can utilized Rick’s 22 Pathfinder. Made a pretty lengthy run and got started around 630am. Lots and lots of redfish were taken on Johnson Gold Spoons, Marsh Works Bayou Thumper spinnerbaits and Gulp! 3″ Shrimp in lime tiger under Marsh Works Big Poppys. The guys got to experience how effective corks are for locating fish. A few doubles and even a triple hookup today! We even got some huge flounder in the mix as well as some small speckled trout. Total for the day was over...
Oct25
Guided Mr. Gene Hunter, Tina Hunter and Tina’s father, Len, this morning for DAY 1 of 2 in hopes of finding some large redfish and some speckled trout. We’ll be fishing together again on Thursday hopefully in much better conditions. Hit Destin again where Redfish University has been producing great numbers of bull redfish sight fished and blind casted. Very ugly conditions today with south winds at 20-25mph and mostly cloud-cover, a combination that makes seeing fish extremely difficult. Launched in Fort Walton and ran to a big flat near Destin, FL. Started with some decent speckled trout with a few being legal, as well as the usual ladyfish and medium-sized bluefish in the mix. Once we could see a little, I actually spotted a few large redfish on a shallow drift and it wasn’t long before Gene stuck the first bull redfish. Ten minute battle produced a quality 20# fish. A few minutes later, Tina sticks another. As fish were being fought, from the platform I could see a few more singles cruising and threw to each of the three isolated fish. No...
Oct23
Redfish University NEVER guides on the weekends but for Redfish U. VIP’s, we make exceptions. Guided Dr. Edwin Yee, his son Jordan and friend Andy this morning in some northern areas of the bay system to find some redfish and speckled trout as well as to introduce them to some new areas to them that will be very, very productive in the coming weeks. Launched Edwin’s beautiful 22 Pathfinder/F150 Yamaha at first light and got to work. Full moon, high pressure, low/dead water made things difficult but not impossible. There was a real lack of mullet this morning but we found some redfish hanging on muddy banks to draw some topwater strikes. Very uncooperative fish today with only a few fish caught but we had some great strikes as well. With total home renovation in the process at the Holstman residence, I departed a little early to meet the interior designer and theater room specialist, and sent the crew a bit further south where I hear they found a few more redfish. Hopefully, this trip was extremely productive in a few other ways (locations, techniques and...
Oct22
Many anglers have found yesterday’s report from Destin visually stimulating. As a result, it looks like Redfish University will be spending quite a bit of time in Destin in the near future. Did a little overtime today so this afternoon’s guide trip in Pensacola was postponed until next week. Guided Mr. Shane Johnson and his mom, Mrs. Johnson, this morning over in Destin, FL. Both were looking for some inshore tips and techniques for redfish and trout. Started with topwaters and Gulp! Jerkshads in camo early in the morning and found the redfish and trout very, very difficult. We picked up some trout but nothing great. Visited some local bayous but it was really off. Good news was that we could go hit the big redfish early. Found the same groups of oversized fish as the day before and caught fish between 15-28.5#. Mrs. Johnson’s largest fish previous to this trip was a 20# salmon. Needless to say, she smashed that record many times over and won the “chicken dinner” with the 28.5# massive redfish. Worth mentioning is how impressed I was...
