The conditions are still good
and the dolphin fishing is still excellent on the waters south of Key West. We have a strong east current, probably associated with the Gulf Stream being in close. This, along with a strong east wind has caused the dolphin fishing to still be excellent.
I’ve been fishing a little to the east of Key West.
Off the Reefs known as the Sambos. The color change is out around 300 ft of water up in that area. That’s where the deep blue waters of the Gulf Stream meet the green inshore waters.
We ended up with 17 nice dolphin today.
We were 3 shy of our limit of 10 per person. Our biggest fish was right about 20lbs and we had 4-5 fish in the “teens”.
Most of the better dolphin fishing
has been in the dark blue, but there have been a few fish caught on the green side of the color change. Most of the fish are being caught between 300 ft and 500 ft of water. There may be good fish out deeper, but with good fish in close and the seas getting bigger the further south you go, I have seen no need to go deeper. We are catching plenty.
Almost all the fish we are catching
are “heavy lifters”, “gaffers” or bigger. Bigger dolphin almost always travel west against the current. Smaller dolphin can’t fight the strong east current, so are usually traveling east, with the current.
Many of the fish are under birds.
The birds follow the dolphin waiting for them to feed so they can pick up some scraps. Dolphin will scare flying fish out of the water as they travel. The birds try to pick off the flying fish in the air as they run from the dolphin. If you see 2 sets of birds, if one is working east and the other is working west. Always chase the birds going west. Odds are, they are on bigger fish.
When you hook up with a bigger fish,
always keep at least one bait out while fighting it. It is very common for big fish to travel in a “family” group. They can be spread by hundreds of feet. Keeping a bait out increases your chances of picking up a second fish or more.