So, My Son and I trolled for Dolphin and...

[Bart]

We vacationed in Key Largo a couple of years ago. You definitely need to get beyond the reef to catch dorado. I was amazed that we went "out" 10 miles out of Islamorada, to come up on sections 2 ft deep. Scary actually. Once we crossed the far side of the reef, it dropped from a depth of 30ft (5 fathoms) to 210ft (30+ fathoms) in a stretch of 100 yards. Just beyond the reef there was a very loose weedline and it was crawling with chicken dolphin (in the 5lb range). Just be wary, the experience of the ocean changes beyond the reef... we went from more or less calm conditions inside, to solid 5 - 7' rollers beyond the reef. It wasn't rough, just big IMHO. We trolled cedar plugs parallel to the reef line (the same direction the dorado we cruising) North to South. With no wind, and a couple of semi-seasick kids we weren't able to stay out very long. Dorado are not very elusive... when you find any kind of floating debris this time of year, it will have at least some small dolphin on it.

[BobW]

Barry,
I lived in Boynton Beach (east coast) for 15 years. We fished offshore nearly every Saturday when the ocean allowed. Experience has taught that Dolphin can be found nearly anywhere but weed lines and flotsam are the best bets. We've taken them from under floating bamboo logs, pallets, even "square grouper" (pot bales that we left untouched). Our largest (43 lbs) was taken within a quarter mile of Boynton Inlet along a scruffy weedline, others out of sight of land. The smallest was a tiny 3" fish taken while netting shrimp at night on the inlet jetty.

Generally speaking, we'd head east from the inlet, put the lines out when we hit about 200 feet depth & troll east til we hit a weedline then troll alongside it. If we knew (or strongly suspected)weeds were offshore, we'd often run to the weed line before putting lines out. Other times we high-speed trolled with lures toward the suspected weedlines & would pick up stragglers where no floating structure was evident. We trolled two lines on outriggers, a third one flat off the transom & another on a downrigger at varying depths to 100 feet. That down rigger often saved the day & accounted for a lot of Wahoo, Kingfish & a few Sails. We varied our trolling speed (you'd be surprised what 100 rpms difference can make), watched the baits constantly, changing them when they swam or skipped poorly. Our baits were ballyhoo that we rigged ourselves on 4/0 to 7/0 hooks with number 7 stainless wire leaders. We often added a plastic skirt over the head of the bait. Green & chartreuse worked best on the surface. Blue & white from the downrigger.

Good luck fishin. Summer is the best season to fish for Dolphin. Keep at it. Ask questions at the bait shops & boat ramps. You'll catch 'em. One other point: rinse all your gear thoroughly with freshwater after every trip. It'll prolong the useful life of your gear considerably.

Hope this helps.
BobW

[BarryB]

From what I've read, it sounds like we were doing the right thing. I think my son and I became impatient. We only trolled for about an hour, then gave up and bottom fished.

I've seen some fisherman use the skirt in front of the Ballyhoo and I've seen them without the skirt.

The seas look great for the next six days (East winds 5 - 10, seas < 2 feet) so we will try again either Tuesday or Wednesday. I'll bring the camera, and if successful, I'll send photos.

[arsmetal]

Try trolling a blue and white No Alibi Dolphin Delight 1-1/2 oz in the prop wash, also try bumping your speed up to 7mph.

[Fishin' DC's]

I've read that blue/white Billy Baits are good as well. Also in pink/blue's and pink/whites. I picked up these along with some Williamson ballyhoo lures at Bass Pro over this past weekend. So far, I imagine the fish we catch will average about $200/lb by the time we get there. This doesn't count the new truck transmission that I just got tagged with today. But I'm still looking forward to getting down there this time next week.

[BarryB]

Well, I went out today (Friday) by myself. Wind was West at 5 knots, seas were smooth. Little 170CC ran like a mini tiger. Rigged the ballyhoo. Found a weed line and followed it for a few miles. Not a bite. Followed some other boats trolling too. I don't think they caught anything either.

Went on to drifting and bottom fishing. Just grunts and small Yellow Tail Snapper (legal size in Florida is 12"). Then, the storm hit. The crack of thunder got my attention, so, I ran in the opposite direction. When the lightening ceased, I turned around and entered the squall. It was a complete whiteout. Put on the PFD, turned on the running light (first use) set a course with the compass and followed it out of the storm.

It was late, so, home I went. Still have the ballyhoo, back in the freezer it went.

I did see something cool today. See the attached photo of a submarine. It was being towed to a scrap yard. I heard the coast guard call the tow boat and heard the sub was from the WWII era. However, it looked bigger than the one's I had seen in movies.

Well, perhaps next week, I'll do better.

[Fishin' DC's]

We just arrived today in Islamorado. I was tieing off the boat in the slip behind the house we're staying in and got to talking with a couple of guys in the house across the canal. They've been here for two weeks and, at least say, that they haven't caught anything. They say it's the worst trip they've had over the past six years coming here. Man, I didn't want to hear that. Oh well, they're out there and got to be hungry sometime. After the travel down, and an "eventful" time of getting situated at our house, we'll rest up tomorrow and hit the water Wednesday.

[BarryB]

Hi DC,

Welcome to the summer season of hot mornings and great thunderstorms in the afternoon.

According to Florida Fishing Weekly, the dolphin in the lower keys are "still in close from 300 to 600 feet under frigate birds and debris. Wahoo show up during the full moon in some of the same haunts as our big dolphin. Mutton snapper and mangrove snapper are biting good on the reef".

Also, the Burdines Waterfront Fun Fishing Tournment in Marathon is June 27 through 29th.

Good luck, tight lines, lots of action.

[Fishin' DC's]

Well it figures that we're here and chomping at the bit to get out fishing...but not in 20 knot , 4-6 ft small craft advisory conditions. Oh well, I guess we'll have to lay around soaking up sun and doing some 12 oz. curls. It could be worse, I could be at work this week.

[BarryB]

Hi DC, what about fishing the Gulf side. Generally calmer than the ocean side.

I checked the forecast for the rest of the week. Doesn't look good.

Here is the link:

U.S. Coastal Waters Forecasts by Zone - South - Key West, FL

Ft. Lauderdale has 10 to 15 east winds and 2 - 4 foot seas for the rest of the week. Here is the link:

http://weather.noaa.gov/cgi-bin/fmtb.../am/amz651.txt

You may want to try up here.

Keep in touch.