Party Boat Mahi Fishing - Help?

[Super]

I've been on party boats a lot but never for overnight mahi. I'm interested in knowing what to expect. Is it typically bait or jigs? Best spot to be on the boat? Use braid? Fluoro? Mono? What techniques work the best?

Thanks.

[tunajoe]

I like throwing bait at them - spinning rod. Canyon or Inshore? Most PB's dont allow braid , you will need to top shot it with mono. No need for flouro. Barrel Swivel from line- then 30 lb leader - then hook of your choice.

[Dino]

couple things-- ive done 50+ overnight PB tuna trips, and i have never once seen a trip with no braid on any reels, or heard captain or crew complain. you 100% want a 20 to 30lb class spinning rod with 30 to 50lb braid. 50lb braid will allow you to set the hook on a mahi, and get him boatside before he wraps you up in another anglers line, but its thin enough to cast and fish like you were flipping jigs for largemouth on grandpa's pond. You will need a 20, 25, or 30lb flourocarbon leader. the longer it is, the more bites you will get. Yes, some days the mahi are suicidal and hitting ava 47s tied direct to red braid, but do yourself a favor and tie in a 3-12 foot flouro topshot. If you are able to tie a uni-uni knot, even better. Bait and jigs both work, but unless you are fishing for the one large bull or cow that will be lurking deep under the school of dozens or hundreds of 2-15lb fish, less is more. a 1 once white spro bucktail tipped with a small strip of fresh squid is unbeatable. very small white butterfly style jigs work great as well. again, there will be smaller agressive fish on top, slightly larger less aggressive fish below them, and the big bull or cow deep under them all.. usually out of sight. so if you want to get a dozen small fish in the boat quick, flip that jig out to where you can see fish, wait for the bite, and swing him in quick. if you've had your fill of the small guys and want to try bigger, freeline that whole 7" sardine back deep under the fray. the smaller fish will roll and swirl on it but often cant commit to such a large bait. these are swallow whole feeders, not choppers like a bluefish. eventually a larger fish will find it as it sinks (or a tuna? wahoo? ) or so the theory goes. last little thing, if you are fishing bait, dump 10 feet of line of so immediately when your chunk or strip hits the water if freelining. this will allow your bait to get down to the magic zone 5-15 feet under the surface, if you dont give any slack, often the suction effect of the water slapping up against the hull or stern will pull your bait right to your feet, where its not really fishing. mahi has been so good lately, i doubt you'll need any of these tips, but if its scratchy bite with just a handful of fish on each pot, it makes all the diff. have a blast, mahi are not the brightest fish in the ocean, you'll get them.

[Gerry Zagorski]

Great suggestions Dino!! I'll tack on a few more here...

Surface poppers work too, this is especially true when the they get finicky and won't eat. They would not be my first choice but it's fun fishing with them and will often times work when nothing else will. You do have to watch since Mahi's do tend to trash around on the deck and those treble hooks on the poppers can be dangerous.

If you've been fishing one area for a while the fish eventually get smart and can shut down. When that happens mix up what you any everyone else is throwing at them (including a popper) and it may trigger a bite.

Lastly, if you're getting into to them good remember the limit on Mahi are 10 per person... For this reason I would not be keeping anything small... Not a lot of meat on these fish to begin with and you don't want to waste your limit on small ones.

Hope you have a great trip and please be sure to let us know how you did.

[Jigman13]

Drop down a rigged small/medium bally with a 3 oz egg sinker with a heavier set up, 4-6 ft fluoro leader #30+ and hold on. Bigger baits down deep past the chickens will land you a bull/cow. Or a hoo is the water is right. They can often linger 40-50 ft below the traffic above around the high flyers.

[hartattack]

When hooked up, leave one in the water to attract their bigger buddies