The spring and summer months (April – September) bring plenty of Florida Dolphin Fishing throughout the keys. Dolphin are also known as Florida Mahi Mahi. Typically the summer time is the most consistent for these bad boys!There is usually a mix of smaller ‘schoolie’ fish along with bigger ‘bulls.’ Bull dolphin are the male fish with a more square head, and the ‘cows’ are their female counter parts. Nothing compares to getting into a good school of dolphin with every rod on the boat screaming drag at once!
Dolphin in the Keys are often caught trolling baits and lures. While blind trolling in deeper water your always ‘in the game’ when trying to catch a big dolphin. However often times captains will run around and look for birds which are following schools of fish and bait, and are a good indicator of where to fish. This style of fishing can often put you on the fish faster than just blind trolling. Our captains know what to look for to find them.
When throwing baits to a school of dolphin, often times dead bait is used, though occasionally fish are picky and it helps to have some live pilchards or the like. The boats at Bud n Marys are always keeping up with where the live bait is to give you the best shot at getting nice fish!
One rule when in a big pack of dolphin is always leave one in the water (usually a schoolie, smaller fish) in order to keep the rest of the school following you. You often will see dolphin jumping when they know they are hooked, which is very impressive!
The captains at Bud N’ Mary’s are true professionals when it comes to catching big Islamorada Dolphin!
July 15, 2026
Early Summer Fishing in the Florida Keys June & Early July: Prime Time for Anglers If there is one time of year that truly showcases everything the Florida Keys fishery has to offer, it’s early summer. June and early July bring warm water, calm seas, abundant bait, and an incredible… Read More
Had a great time aboard the Miss Islamorada !! Super professional and friendly crew !! The captain was awesome. He explained everything in detail. He was always ready to answer a question or help you while we were anchored. The mates were the best I have ever encountered on a party boat !! Seth and Essex went far and above to make sure everyone caught fish and had a great time. So professional !! They seemed to be everywhere at once !! This boat may not have all the amenities some look for, like an air conditioned cabin and food for sale on board, but the Miss Islamorada is a serious fishing machine. Fast and stable. Leaves and arrives on time, 30 people max on the boat, which makes for an awesome mate to passenger ratio. I think there were about 20 people on my trip. Again, best mates I have seen yet. The mates provided us a variety of baits like ballyhoo, squid, and shrimp. They even hooked me up with live baits. Lots of action !! This boat also does not allow the stern to be reserved like many party boats I have been on. That is awesome. The mates split us up into 3 groups and rotated us to the stern where they had chummed the water. They gave us all spinning reels and shrimp for bait and we slayed the mangrove and yellowtail snappers !! Best part for me. So much fun. We also took turns drift fishing for yellowtail with shrimp and sinking chum balls. Crazy fun !! Everyone caught fish. The mates and captain also gladly filleted our fish and bagged them up for us. Thank you to the Captain and Crew of the Miss Islamorada. Great experience. I will return.
My Husband & I were on Miss Islamorada for our 20th Wedding Anniversary on January 27th, 2021, it was SO Beautiful out and we had the most Amazing Full Day of Fishing! We had the Best experience and So much fun, we caught So many different types of fish. Ray was so helpful and knowledgeable, he took his time before we went into the deep water to show me how to use the reel and basically show me how to fish myself and not bother my husband so much.. I haven't been fishing in years. I highly recommend Miss Isalmorada and definitley hope to see Ray again, we will be definitely back. They provided everything needed to fish, just get there and bring some food and drinks.
Miss Islamorada 300 fish caught A great day on the water. Crew was kind and professional. Over 30 people on the boat and there was room to fish. A little overhang provided some shade. Capt went to three spots and rotated positions so everyone got a chance to fish off the back for yellowtail. Boat pulled in over 300 fish and my daughter and I walked away with 10 mangroves and three yellowtail, best drift boat experience for me personally! Great job to the capt and crew of Miss Islamorada!
