By: Capt. Tony Young
This summer has given us some of the best mahi fishing we have seen in years. It is not often we are able to find schools of fish large and curious enough to have divers jump in on. Overall, there is nothing easy about doing this but it sure is a blast! The hurry up and wait type fishing is what diving is also like. Waiting on the transom of the boat for the right moment, then all of a sudden you are in the water with a pack of fish swimming by your side. There are many ways to catch and shoot Mahi, let’s dive into a few.
Birds, birds, and more birds. If you have speared tuna, any place in the world, you know it is about the birds. The captain will run up in front and time your drop perfectly, just like that you’re in the water. Looking down you will see the whitewash dissipate out from the engines and looking into the sky you will see the set of birds coming your way. Put your face back in the water and see a rushing school of tuna swim below you, it’s time for your dive and a quick shot. Then just like that, you’re back in the boat, chasing the birds again.
This same tactic works for hunting the summertime migrating mahi. They are hard fish to stop, so you need to keep running with them. The diving is tiring but also thrilling, you only get one shot per drop, but that’s all you need! A few weeks ago, we took some very good friends of ours offshore spearfishing. We found a massive pack of migrating fish and dove on them for at least two hours. Motors running hard chasing the birds, setting up, dropping in the water, one shot, back on the boat. It was a true blast, and we were watching well over a hundred fish feed on the bait they were following. The ocean is an aggressive and wild place, to see this in nature and be a part of the food chain is very special.
If you get lucky, you might have the opportunity to slide in on some offshore debris. Last month we took Mike and his father fishing, naturally we always have a speargun on board! Mike is a great diver and when we came across a floating pallet, we had him slide in. Immediately swarmed by mahi and two smaller wahoo in the distance, a spear fisherman’s dream. Mike took the closest and best shot, landing his first mahi on spear! His father and I continued to catch fish, while Mike reloaded and tossed fish into the boat.
The most common tactic is the absolute chaotic mahi fishing we all know and love. Find fish, keep one in the water, pitch out a lot of live bait, and hope for the best! Meaning, the fish will school around the boat and feed aggressively on the live bait you’re dumping into the water. The summertime pilchards are perfect for this, and the mahi will go crazy. This works best with larger groups, having 2-4 anglers catching fish with two divers shooting them. I often say good luck, because it truly is a mess of fun! Fish flying into the boat, divers shooting them, fish blood all over the place, it is a blast!
It has without a doubt been a great summer to live, travel to, fish, and dive in the Florida Keys! The next time you head offshore, think about bringing your speargun with. Take your time, remember to dive under the waves, and take your shot. Keep in mind, there is often a very large bull mahi swimming amongst the smaller schooling sized fish. Our largest mahi we have shot to date was seven years ago by Billy Moscatello. We got into a pack of schoolies and had a larger fish down deep that would not eat. Billy hopped in and placed a great shot on him, this fish ended up weighing 45 pounds back at the dock. Enjoy every day on the ocean, fish patiently, and remember your speargun!
Dive Safe!