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dolphin fishing
May 07, 2010

10 Deadly Dolphin Rigs

Keep these proven mahi fishing tricks handy in your offshore arsenal.
By George Poveromo
Related Tags: dolphin fishing, Fishing Tackle, How To Fish, rig fishing
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10 Deadly Dolphin Rigs

9. Live Shrimp

A "secret" taught to me at an early age was to take several dozen live shrimp when dolphin fishing. We'd put the shrimp in a traditional live-bait bucket and then place that bucket into the boat's livewell. The bucket enabled us to get to the shrimp quickly rather than chasing them with a net in the large, open livewell. When we uncovered stubborn dolphin or when a school grew wise to all other offerings, we'd pitch out a live shrimp rigged in a way similar to the light spinning rig I described earlier. I've yet to see a dolphin refuse one. In fact, my most vivid memory of this tactic occurred 30 years ago, when we happened upon a large school of fish that would not touch a thing - including live pilchards. Dejected, we rigged with a live shrimp, thinking our final option would also be ignored. Some 34 fish in the box later, I was shocked at just how potent a bait it proved to be.

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from Adventure-Ocean on 05.09.13 at 10:11PM ET.

Thanks for the lure tips. Like you I've spent my life fishing Mahi Mahi. I lived on Guam over 40 years and was a charter captain for 30yrs. Every year was a different run. Some years we caught fish using anything. We couldn't sell them because everyone had them. Some years we'd try every action lure or freshly baited hooks or whatever and couldn't get much of a bite going. Some believed in 3 yr. 7 yr or even 10 year cycle. What have you learned over the years of catching Mahi?

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from marlow (not verified) on 08.04.12 at 4:10PM ET.

Good day. I've also been doing that for years. I was also in the same position. there were layers of dolphin and they weren't hitting anything. I thru everthing at them. Pilchards spoons cut bait even sprayed the water with the wash down hose. I couldn't believe how many dolphin their was. My friend thru a old bass plug and landed 1. I then put a shrimp on a hook pitched it out there and the dolphin came out of the water after it. We landed so many. I never informed any1 about my little trick until reading your article.

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from dolphin (not verified) on 04.18.12 at 10:18PM ET.

What lure is the one mentioned under small trollibg lures?

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from Storch (not verified) on 01.24.12 at 1:32AM ET.

Hello :-)

My first encounter with Dolpines was at Kay Biscane in the seventies.
Mr. Cook from the local Church of Christ took me first bass fishing into the Everglades and then a friend of him took me with his boat dolphine fishing.
We started early in the morning and after I caught a triggerfish, that ran like crazy, wie drifted along the sargassum weedbeds looking out for dolfines.
We caught a few small ones. I was fascinated by the golden glittering rainbow colores of this "Liberaces of the Sea".

Next fishig trip after years of savings was to the Bahamas and Key West.
I think it was at Nassau were we trolled for Dolphines. Vorgive me, it is now more than 40 years ago.
I caught some big eye tuna and some gorgeous bull dolpines. It was great.

I wanted so badly to live in such a fishing paradies.
I even bought me a nor-fin fly reel and a fenwick flyrod 10 weight.

Instead of my favorite destination in Florida we moved to Texas.

Breckenridge and lake Hubbard-Creek-Lake. Fishing was tough for me there, and later in Abilene Texas at Lake Fort-Phantom.
I took me two year to learn the local tricks and fishing locations.
Instaed of Dolpings I was happy to catch a bunch of sandbass and crappies.

I got a Bachelor at Hardin Simmons and a Masters at University of North Texas, all that did not enable me to go back to Florida where my enthusiasm started. I met Stu Apte, Lefty Krey and most of the fishing hall of famers in the Forth Worth Fly fishing Club. Thousand times thanks to the club!

I still love the dolphines and dream about them like Santiago in "The Old Man and the Sea" was dreaming about the Lions in Afrika.

Tight Lines Friends. Catch one dolpine for me and unhook him in the water.
He ist much too pretty to dye in a fishbox.

Bob

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