GPS FishFinder

[Bass Tracker]

Hi all,



I do not currently have a GPS Fishfinder but I am most likely going to purchase one soon.



I have a question about them,



I assume having a "GPS" one for the Trolling motor(bow) would be pointless. But for the dash it would be great, So



were i fish is mostly lakes, ponds, rivers, and none that would probably be on a "memory chip" that lowrance uses, So what would show up on my graph if I were in a local lake, or river that was not on the "database" of the card? Would i still be able to set waypoints and "mark" locations, and see the body of water on the map?



again i am new to the gps versions, so if my questions are dumb, i apoligize. Thanks alot

 

[TritonGlenn]

The advantage of having a GPS on the bow is fantastic - depending on how you fish. I fish a lot of large grassbeds. Seeing my position while fishing without having to run back and forth to the dash unit is a handy thing to have. Plus, if I want to mark a spot on my GPS, I simply reach down, and don't have to run back to the console to mark it.



My Lowrance 332C, 520C, and 28HD all showed lots of smaller "community lakes". I had a neighborhood pond across the street from my house that showed up on all three. I could cast completely across that lake, and it was only about 5 times as long as it was wide - so it wasn't very big at all.



However, that doesn't say that all bodies of water will show up. You can mark waypoints and save locations no matter if the GPS says there is water there or not. I've fished larger bodies of water that had the water level WAY above normal level, so lots of things that were not normally under water were now several feet under. I fished brand-new creeks and pockets that didn't exist before. My GPS told me I was fishing land all day long, but I knew better - and I understood why it was telling me that.



Don't apologize for asking your questions. They are not "dumb" at all. I hope my response helped you out a bit. If I can answer more questions for you, please post them and I'll address each issue you might come up with.



I hope you enjoy whatever GPS you decide to buy. They are a great instrument to have on your boat.



All the best,

Glenn

 

[Greg Duggan]

i grew up in Billerica and have fished the area for the past 20+ yrs, so don't assume because of the area you live in there won't be any of the lakes on the"memory cards".

if you go with the Lowrance 520 or the 522, be sure to get the Navionics card for our area. you will be surprised how many lakes are featured on these cards. the depth contour (bathmetric)lines are extremly accurate and will assist you in finding more fish through the year. as you start to fish bigger waters or if you are fishing any tournements you will need to be able to find and mark your spots with ease.

i use my electronics as much as my favorite rods and bait. the more you understand them the more fish you youll catch.

Not sure that you will find it nessasary for the Concord river. if you are fishing any of the lakes in MA or NH you will note that finding deep structure is a must when the water starts to heat up.

do your home work and pick the unit best suited for your needs, there are a lot of options today. i use Lowrance products, but the next guy will tell you to use Humingbird....



GregD

 

[TritonGlenn]

but the next guy will tell you to use Humingbird

No I won't! :lol:



All the best,

Glenn

 

[Randy Walls]

I will add to the questions. Would a hand held do just as well as a mounted type? One I could use in the car as well as the boat?



Randy!

 

[Greg Duggan]

Randy,

i used my Garmin E-Trex for 2 yrs before i bought a new GPS/FF combo.

if all you need is a device for marking your hot spots, that would work fine. i was ready to up grade the finder on my console, so i went for a combo unit.

i also just upgraded my bow unit to a X510 FF. no GPS on the bow.





GregD

 

[TritonGlenn]

Randy,

Hand helds work just fine for calmer waters. I used one for several years before the combo units became popular. However, in a rough-water situation, you may find the smaller screen and buttons of a hand-held to be difficult to see and use as you are driving. I advocate "both hands on the wheel, foot on the hot-foot throttle" when I'm driving my boat, but there have been times where I could not come off of plane in some rougher water, and had to use one hand to punch buttons on my GPS, looking for a certain area and changing distance on the readout. I would not have been able to accomplish that with a hand-held, I'm fairly certain. The first time you have a hand-held bouncing around in a bracket in rough water, you come to appreciate a larger screened, mounted unit.



Hand helds that I would recommend are the Lowrance IFinder H2O / H2OC, or when they finally hit the market (May timeframe from my last update) - one of the new Lowrance Endura series (Sierra, Safari, Out&back). I have not had the opportunity to test one of the new ones, but I liked the IFinder series, and currently use the IFinder Hunt when I'm treking through the woods. I also used it as a temporary unit when I sold my 520C in-dash, and was waiting on my LCX-28 to show up. It worked very well, but coming from a 5" color in-dash to a smaller grayscale screen was difficult to get used to.



All the best,

Glenn

 

[Bass Tracker]

Thank you all very much for your input. Helps alot.



Greg,



Just for sake of asking, Are the Concord / Sudbury Rivers on the chips? I fish them 80% with knops pond / baddacook pond being my other 20%?



Wish i could see a online map of these lakes/rivers

 

[TritonGlenn]

Knops pond is on the Navionics HotMaps Premium East and Platinum list:

http://www.navionics.com/HMPremium09LakeList.asp?RegionID=3

http://www.navionics.com/HMPlatinumLakeList09.asp?RegionID=7



I didn't see any of the other ones you listed on there. I can check my electronics when I get home today to see if those are on the Lowrance base maps.



All the best,

Glenn

 

[Greg Duggan]

Bassman,

i know Knopps is on the Navi chip, i will check the rivers when i get home tonight. my first though would be that they are not.

have been on Lake Attitah in Merrimack? if not, be sure to check it out. there are some really nice fish in that lake. i have personaly seen an 8+lb weighed in at a tourny. not me and not my club.I was just out fun fishing and stayed to check out there weigh in. his bag was in the 30lbs range with 5 fish!



Check this link, it list all teh lakes currently in our region.

http://www.navionics.com/HMPremium09LakeList.asp?RegionID=3



GregD

 

[Bass Tracker]

thank you very much.



Yes I have been to Attitash, That is a great lake in the right conditions.



Biggest i ever got was last year, during the spawn, I caught a 9LB Female LargeMouth at a small lake off rt2. We probably caught about 75fish that day, not one was over 1 pound. It was raining HARD off and on. and as we were about to leave. I casted my jig to the shore and on a 10-15' immediate drop off. She took it. and dam, was it HUGE.. especially for New England..

 

[Greg Duggan]

you posted that pic last year, right?

if so it was a pig!

if you want to get a first hand view of the Navi Plat Card, drop me a line and we can try to meet up at a local lake.



GregD

 

[Randy Walls]

Bass tracker sorr you hijack you thread. Glenn and Greg, thanks for the input. I will use it when I go looking, maybe this weekend!



Randy!

 

[Bass Tracker]

lol Randy No problem at all.



yes i posted that picture last year. I'll See if I can find it..(like i dont have 500 copies of it)



And Yes greg that may be a great idea. I fish all the time so it's no burden on my part

 

[Bass Tracker]

 

[Randy Walls]

One tough bass or did you get so excited you wet yourself? LOL!



Nice fish. My biggest is 8.45lbs.



Randy!

 

[Bass Tracker]

haha ya i prob did piss myself. that was a big one . 8.45 is no small fight either. were did that come from?

 

[Randy Walls]

Lake Walk in Water, Florida. My buddy went down to catch the largest bass of our life times and it only took me 45 minutes to catch it!



His biggest was 6.5.



It was a blast though!



Randy!

 

[Dan J.]

FWIW - I think Glenn hit it on the head when recomending an H20c handheld. Easy to use and easy on batteries. Mine has made three consecutive yrly. trips to Lac Seul/English River in N OT, Canada. I'll have it with me this summer up there again and will surely drop it, leave in the rain, spill untold Cokes and fish slime/blood on it,...generally standard, yet hard, use for seven solid days, power on in the morning and off back at camp, and I am positive it will keep performing all week. If it don't, I'm screwed!! :lol:

 

[Dan J.]

Oh, yeah..NICE BASS!!!!