Guided Mr. Dale Smith this morning in Pensacola Bay and Santa Rosa in search of trout and redfish. Started with topwaters early and boated several quality trout in the 2-5# range with some medium 20-24″ redfish mixed in. As the morning heat rose, we concentrated on deeper water for the trout and even did some successful sightfishing for redfish in the shallows. Monday-Friday trips are great for this with very little boat traffic. The fish enjoyed a range of baits today from Berkley Jerkshads and Shrimp and spoons to topwaters and suspending baits. I guess if you’re around lots of quality fish they’ll pound most anything. Total for this morning was 25 trout and 9 redfish in a short 4.5 hour period. All fish released and the camera battery was...
Read MoreRedfish, trout and more for new Pensacola residents at Redfish University-August 6, 2010
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 MoreSpeckled trout, redfish and Spanish again at Redfish University-July 22, 2010
Guided Carl and Steve this morning for some early morning topwater action. Started at 515am and really got into the speckled trout. Landed 20-30 fish in a short period including some very nice 3-4# fish. As 9am came around, the anglers wanted to just catch fish and be around lots of action so we took off for the Pass and found some very nice Spanish mackerel grazing on schools of tightly packed minnows. Lots of sharks in the baitballs as well. The fellas picked off several very nice fish on Johnson Gold Spoons and we called it a day. Several trout and Spanish were taken for a fish fry. Please click an image to enlarge and view...
Read MoreLimits of Redfish and Trout at Redfish University- July 9, 2010
Took some time off the get ready for my home remodel and some time off the water and out of the sun. Back to work. Guided Mr. Homer Berry this morning. Homer wanted to learn about our inshore fishery here in Pensacola and take home lots of fish for a cookout back in Missouri. Started out at 500am in the rain with some superb topwater action. Cloud-cover all day made topwaters an easy choice and the fish pounded surface baits until 1230pm. Landed many redfish and speckled trout all day and Homer left Pensacola with a full cooler of fresh fish. Please click an image to enlarge and view...
Read MoreGeneral Motors Corp. “Fishing for Sales” trip at Redfish University-June 23, 2010
Guided Mr. Ron Fairbanks and business associate, Dennis, this morning at Redfish University. Ron was gracious enough to allow me and Redfish University to participate in General Motor’s “Fishing for Sales” program. Had a blast today fishing with these guys, both great anglers. Started out in the Sound for some topwater redfish action. Dennis was the first to draw a big strike and got the first nice redfish in the boat. This is where the story takes a grim turn. As I was prepared to remove the Skitterwalk’s treble hooks from the fish, the fish shook and my hand slid toward the redfish’s face implanting a hook firmly into the flesh and tendon between my thumb and fore-finger. That hurt! Short story, pushed the barb through, clipped it and carried on. Boy, did it hurt later in the morning. Went to the doctor for pain meds and antibiotics. First time I hooked myself in 35 years!! Back to the important stuff. We found plenty of redfish and small trout to bash our topwaters and also followed up some topwater blowups with Johnson Spoons to boat a few more redfish. Back to the launch and trailered to Pensacola Bay. Fished a few solid banks but the water was still dirty from the rains and only scored a few decent trout. Ran to find clear water and produced some bigger speckled trout and viewed some redfish unwilling to strike. Had a fun day(with the exception of the hook in the hand)and looking forward to working with GM Corp’s “Fishing for Sales” into the future. Thanks for the help with the hook removal fellas and thankfully I didn’t faint!! All fish released and caught on Berkley Gulp! Jerkshads, Johnson Gold Spoons and Skitterwalks with very sharp hooks. Please click an image to enlarge and view...
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