Florida Dolphin (Mahi Mahi) Fishing

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!

Fishing Reports

4 star ratingBud and Mary's Marina is an icon in Isla Morada they have the greatest Fleet of Charter fisherman in all of South Florida if you are looking to Charter a boat you can't go wrong at bud and Mary's Marina. They also have a great variety of gear and a variety of shirts and clothing. There is a small restaurant next door for picking up breakfast before you go on your Charter. Many of the famous record-breaking fisherman keep their boats at bud and Mary's Alex Adler who happens to be one of the greatest fisherman of all time keeps his boat here and we fish with him quite often he always seems to get the limit for us we like to bring home lots of mahi mahi so that's why we come to Bud and Mary's to Charter our boats.
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Jeff L. Avatar
Jeff L.
6/02/2016
5 star ratingBuy all my bait, fuel and lunch here. Great staff and friendly owners.
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Tom P. Avatar
Tom P.
1/03/2015
5 star ratingIncredible Fishing Trip We had three couples who wanted to get out on the water and fish. Capt John Johansen and Capt Ted Wilson were kind enough to take us out and we had ourselves a boys vs girls fishing trip. I have to say, both captains outdid themselves as everybody had a wonderful experience. Capt Ted took excellent care of the ladies and they caught some giant grouper, shark, and jacks. Capt John kept us on big game all day. At one point, we were tripled up with two grouper and one cobia. Somehow, Capt John managed to help us land all 3 at the same time. Cannot thank these gentlemen enough for great day of fishing. Would absolutely recommend them to anybody of any skill level looking to get on some FL Keys fishing.
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Robert I Avatar
Robert I
1/30/2024