Mahi-Mahi, also known as dolphin and dorado, are one of the most tastiest, and fun to catch saltwater fish that are out there. If you are in a tropical area such as the Florida Keys, or the Bahamas, then you are in the right spot to be fishing for mahi mahi. But what is the best saltwater fishing tackle for dolphin?
Well first off, every fisherman will have their different opinion on what is the best saltwater fishing tackle used to catch them, but many of them will agree that trolling with trolling rods and reels are the best and most efficient way to find and hook up with the dolphin.
As far as the saltwater fishing tackle itself, I use anywhere from 20# test line all the way up to 40# for the bigger and badder reels when trolling, along with a 3-4 ft stainless steel leader line. The saltwater fishing hooks used are usually colorful lures made for dolphin fishing, along with a frozen ballyhoo, tying the nose of the ballyhoo with a piece of wire. There are many different ways that you can rig up ballyhoo to catch dolphin, and I have also had success with just using certain types of saltwater fishing lures alone just to hook up with them.
Strategies to Catch Mahi Mahi
I think that every fisherman can agree that mahi mahi love to hang around warm waters ranging from 72-82 degrees, and most will also agree that trolling at around 12 knots is the most efficient way to catch them, as you can cover a lot of ground and also look for signs that may indicate that dolphin are near.
Some of the things that you want to look out for when you are trolling for dolphin are frigit birds, diving friget birds are even better, meaning that they are diving for bait, which more than likely will something chasing the bait, usually dolphin. Another thing that you want to look out for are weed lines, and any type of floating object that may be in the water, such as boards, which will also usually have mahi mahi under them.
Many mahi-mahi travel in schools, but the bigger and badder mahi mahi tend to travel. This is very important to know. If you have a medium sized dolphin on the line, the trick is to reel him up to the boat and leave the line in the water, this will usually attract the ’schoolies’ over to the distressed dolphin.
If you see that the schoolies are following the distressed dolphin, grab your spinner rods and quickly bait them with some chopped up ballyhoo. If they are under 5 pounds you may be able to net them, or even lift them into the boat, but me personally, I recommend gaffing them, because once the gaff is sunk into them, they are not escaping. You would be surprised how much mahi mahi jump, and when they are in the air they tend to spit the hook out, very frustrating.
I am not the best dolphin fisherman out there, but I do know enough to catch tons of them on some days, and none on others. It is very expensive to fish for mahi-mahi, as you will be burning a lot of fuel trolling, and will need some pretty good saltwater fishing reels, rods and tackle to be able increase your chances of catching them.
If you have any more tips on how to catch dolphin or the best saltwater fishing tackle to hook up with them, please feel free to share your thoughts with us, 
