With an abundance of new gadgets on the market, technology can sometimes become overwhelming for today’s bass angler. For instance, our outboards are becoming more powerful – not necessarily to fly off to the honey hole any faster, but just to have enough power to get up and out of the hole with that boatload of equipment.
Bass anglers have needs that go well beyond the desire for mounds of rods, reels and terminal tackle. Lake maps with our picks to the best areas, a GPS to help us get there and pinpoint our exact location, and a high-quality fish locator to see what’s lurking down below are all essential tools.
Garmin, experts in electronic navigation and communication, and Fishing Hot Spots, the nation’s largest publisher of fishing maps, have joined forces to bring maps, GPS, fish location and more all together in one unit. The public saw the release of the GPSMAP 162 and the GPSMAP 168 Sounder in March of this year.
What’s new?
With the flick of a switch, the Garmin GPSMAP 162 (GPS and mapping only) and GPSMAP 168 Sounder (With 1200 watt fish locator, depth and temp) can bring up a detailed map of select lakes showing depth contours, shorelines and navigational aids like boat ramps, marinas and even campgrounds. Another push of a button brings up tips, techniques, lake profiles, and the species of fish and the best locations to find them. Both units feature a large 4.2″ viewing area with a crisp, high-resolution display (240 x 240 pixels).
Included with the purchase of a new 162 or 168 unit is the MapSource Fishing Hot Spots CD ROM, cables for PC connection, and an unlock code to download one region of lakes off the CD for free through the Garmin Web site or by phone. What if you already own one of these units or a Garmin handheld e-Map or e-Trax GPS? No problem there either. The MapSource CD ROM is available separately and can be downloaded into these units through your PC.
What does all this mean for the tournament angler?
Is your real job limiting your on-the-water pre-fishing efforts? You know a good plan of attack will keep you in the money during tournament time. The new Garmin unit allows you to have crucial information about the lake well before your boat hull ever gets wet. Once on the water, the unit’s GPS interacts with the live mapping and shows your location with pinpoint accuracy, distances to hot fishing locations, and even gives you tips for the best lures for the area. It’s like having your own personal fishing guide with you.
Dan Bartel, director of recreational and mobile electronic sales for Garmin International, says, “This is a big deal for tournament anglers. For example, with the interaction of the GPS and lake contour map, they can put their boat directly over a channel, mark fish and start fishing immediately.” Less time searching for structure means more time with your lure in the water. And if the bass are inactive, you can create a waypoint onto the map, bringing you back to the exact location to fish later.
How about the weekend angler?
Fishing Hot Spots maps have been one of the vacationing angler’s best friends for years, and now a number of the best fishing destination lakes are available on the interactive program. Big lakes can be intimidating to the first-time visitor. Vintage paper maps helped, but anglers wasted their precious fishing time fishing the void of dead water.
These interactive computer maps take the guesswork out. An angler can simply place the cursor over a contour that looks likely to hold fish, and click. The text readout on fish species, bottom conditions, best baits to use and seasonal fish patterns is easy to read and is invaluable to anglers with limited time on the water.
The new unit cuts down on wet, ripped paper maps flying around and out of your boat. With just a quick glance at your boat’s dashboard, you have the most accurate and up-to-date information right in front of your nose.
How much will it put me back?
It won’t hurt as bad as you might think. The GPSMAP 162 lists for $514.27 and the GPSMAP 168 for $685.70. Besides the one free regional download, anglers can opt to download the entire nine-region CD-ROM for an extra $174.98, or you can pick just a few extra regions for less.
For those that already own one of these units, the CD-ROM can be purchased separately for $116.65 with the one free region option, or you can opt for the extra regions for an extra charge. It is a remarkably low price for such advanced technology. By most accounts, no other company has anything like it on the market to date.
Click here for more on the GPSMAP 168 Sounder with MapSource Fishing Hot Spots.