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.
Nov16
Stay natural in off-colored or dirty water. There are some great secrets to catching redfish in dirty and muddy water. Just because you can’t see them doesn’t mean they’re not there! Bring the redfish to you. Conventional wisdom says, when the water is dirty, use brightly colored baits like chartreuse, orange or something disco neon, right? How many times have you seen a baitfish, shrimp, crab or anything else for that matter that a redfish eats in these colors? Stay with the most natural colored bait possible. I prefer olive green and natural amber. When water color changes, redfish food doesn’t so neither should you. In the Panhandle, water color changes are notorious after heavy rains. Instead of throwing on a chartreuse plastic or pink hard bait, stay natural but make adjustments. Here are a few secrets we use at Redfish University. We focus on the three S’s; Shake, Sound and Scent. Shake in the form of a small inline gold spinner. This will produce flash and vibration that can be seen and heard from a good distance. Sound...
Nov16
Well, before I got back to Redfish U. trips this week, I thought a little offshore bottom fishing would be fun. Clay Peacher, Randy Hamilton, Tracy and myself heading south on Sunday morning. Caught a bunch of everything. Some species we could keep, some we couldn’t. Ended up with some nice grouper, a dolphin, lots of snapper(kept some mingos and lanes), amberjack, kings, etc. Also got a 17lb red snapper and some other 7-9#ers which were properly released. Had a really fun day and Tracy caught the most quality fish. Still hearing about it this morning! Please click on an image to...
Nov16
Over the last six or seven years, I’ve taken it upon myself to get involved with the angling community from Panama City to Orange Beach. Writing in the Pensacola News Journal, countless magazine angling articles, Berkley/Penn Tour, speaking at fishing clubs and especially in creating the “Hook, Line and Sinker Seminar Series” in Pensacola, a series heading into it’s sixth success season. Until 2009, we did not receive payment for the HLS, we didn’t really want to. Because of it’s success, local businesses were very interested in advertising with banners because the HLS sttracted 150-350 attendees on a very consistent basis. This brought in some cash for us. Of course, these events are beneficial to me for several differents reasons but I hope they have been an important source for knowledge for anglers along the Gulf Coast. They are always free to the public and I hope they have improved everyone’s angling experience in some way. Anyway, I see seminar attendees all the time along the Gulf Coast and many times they walk up with a beer and say...
Nov14
Took a short spin around the bay this afternoon with friend, Capt. Bob Quarles. Bob is a fellow Maverick Boats guide and one of my favorite anglers to fish with. Found a big school of bull redfish and got to work. Hooked four fish on four rods including a sweet topwater strike right next to the boat. I also wanted to test my new favorite redfish combo, the Penn Conquerer 4000 and the Allstar ASR Redfish rod. Hooked a 25# redfish on this combo and really put some major pressure on the rod and reel. It came through like a champ and I actually tried to break the rod with the fish near the boat but actually broke the braid. Very, very tough set up!! Anyway, achieved my goal of pulling on some heavy fish, getting some sun on my face and watching the Blue Angels. Fun afternoon. Several trips schedule in the coming weeks and the fishing should be excellent. See everyone soon. Eric Holstman Please click an image to...
Nov08
As Hurricane/Tropical Storm Ida approaches, the Gulf Coast prepares for this late-year storm. Here at Redfish University, we have cancelled trips at least through Thursday, November 12th. These three trips will be rescheduled and all clients have been contacts. Obviously, we will do our absolute best to fit these trips in as soon as possible, even considering working a few weekends!! Depending on wind and rain amounts, Redfish University may resume operations on Friday, November 13th, but most likely next Monday, November 16th. Our apologies for the weather inconvenience and look forward to seeing everyone soon. E....
Nov06
Guided Tim Haney, Yamaha saltwater promotions coordinator, and Adam this morning. Our first choice was to rocket out to the beaches and do some sightfishing for pompano and redfish and then go stick some over-sized redfish nearshore and inshore. The 15-20mph winds from the east scratched that out for us but that is our plan tomorrow. We decided to trailer up to Blackwater and do some shallow water fishing for redfish and trout. Thankfully, it was much better up there than yesterday. We had lots of action with medium-sized redfish and some very nice trout, including a 3# fish. All fish caught on Gulp! 5″ Jerkshads in camo rigged with Marsh Works 1/4oz. Bull Red jigheads in assorted colors with worm rattle inserts. All fish released. Looking forward to seeing and sticking some pompano tomorrow and pulling on some big, dumb redfish!! Please click a photo to...
