GPS Mapping or not ?

[Dont know]

I am a small boat fisherman (16ft) but do get on Lk Mich. as well as Lk Erie on the right days. I am wanting to buy a permanent mounted unit aand want opinions on manufactures models and if mapping capibilties are worth the extra couple hundred bucks to a guy thats not going to go more than 6 or 8 miles out of port. Whats the advantages or disadvantages between a mapping GPS and one with out the mapping capibilities, and what ever I get it must be user friendly. Thanks in advance for the info!

[Swat1]

Good Question.

Mapping capability while certainly not neccessary is a very nice feature. If you can plug in coordinates and have the unit get you there that is half the battle. But if you can see on a map where you want to go and put a cursor there and travel to it so much the better.

Having used a mapping unit for years I would almost feel lost without it now. However onefeature I would definately not want to do without is the Chart Plotter feature. This allows you to see where you have been and repeat a drift or a troll basicly right over the area you just went through.

As for a brand name, Lowrance is what I have but there are others out there that will do a wonderfull job just like the Lowrance products, Garmin is one that comes to mind but I know there are others too. Shop arround and try to get the most bang for your buck.

In Summary. Do you need mapping? No. Is it a good thing to have? Yes. Once you have it you will learn to love it and not want to go out with out it again.

Hope I helped a little.


Dan
Swat 1

[T-Mac]

A-Men to what Swat said.
Nicest thing about maps is, anybody can relate to maps and understand them.

[SeaCat]

I have found three main uses for the C-Maps in my Magellan 6000:

1) If I forget to store a waypoint at the harbor, it sure is nice to come back in from offshore by looking at the map -- have used it 15 miles out in Lk Mich at a new port.

2) On Lk Erie it is nice to launch from a Michigan ramp and head for the islands and actually know that I'm headed correctly by watching the boat on the GPS map.

3) Again, on Lk Erie, I like that the dividing line between Michigan, Ohio, and Ontario waters shows up. Really helps me stay out of trouble rather than guessing!

The new Navionics' CD-ROM maps for many of the new GPS units look real good. The C-Map NT carts are about $150 each -- lucky they cover areas like half of a Great Lake! The Navoionics are going to be $79 if I remember correctly and you can get them for $25 right now on prerelease orders.

Ryan

[SLS]

Has anyone been looking at the new Raytheon units utilizing the new satelite differential system with accuracy within three meters 95% of the time, they look good from what I have read about the units and the new SD system. They also feature the Hot Maps capabilities which will give detailed information on some of the more popular bodies of water. No,I am not associated with them, just thought you might like to check into their units.
SLS

[Lund_Dude]

With the new Navionics "Hot Map Series", How much area does the "Lake Erie, Western Basin" cover? I would guess that it covers the same area as the FHS map of the same name. Is this correct? Thanx!

[mossboss]

How about other than the great lakes. Do they have maps for Missouri River system, Devils Lake, Millacs, Lake of the Woods?

[Fin Addict]

Both are equally accurate but for me the map is much easier to work with. If you are on a strange body of water seeing the blip superimposed on a map tells me more about where I am quickly than simply looking at coordinates or a tracking line and then looking for distance to a way point or going to a map. I would definitely spend the $.

[Mike Michalak]

Hey guys!

Just heard from Navionics today and there are nearly 100 maps done in the new HotMaps series! They should have the info on their site (www.navionics.com) shortly, if not already.

As for Lake Erie, the coverage mirrors that of the FHS map, including the Canadian side. Nice mix of NOAA and FHS data.

And don't forget Garmin debuts their new MapSource Fishing Hot Spots CD-ROM in March for their GPSmap 162 & 168 units. Nine different regions of the country and detailed contour fishing maps will be available.

Mike Michalak
President
Fishing Hot Spots, Inc.

[Keith Krych]

The BEST reason to have mapping GPS was at the PWT at Saut St Marie MI last year.

The early morning fog was so thick that you could not see past the bow of your boat.

Using my Lowrance LMS 1600 I was able to follow between the channel markers on the map to get to my destination without running on up on the rocks JUST off the river channels.

Once you get it you’ll wonder why you didn't get it sooner.

Good fishing
Keith Krych
NPAA #372

[Ron Floyd]

I will be using a Raychart 425 this year, I believe my MWC partner Zach Boudreau will be using the Raychart 520 on his Tuffy. They also offer a Raychart 320 chartplotter which uses the same technology. I would like to explain a few facts on these units. These two units will use Raytheon's WAAS GPS satellite differential system. WASS is a system of ground based stations and geostationary satellites sending GPS corrections to WASS enabled receivers.These units are said to be accurate to within 3 meters. DGPS is accurate to about 8 meters, GPS will get you within 18 meters. Raytheon's WAAS system will be the most accurate unit on the market. The Raychart 425 that I will be using, uses Navionics cartography. The Raychart 520 and the Raychart 320 will use C-MAP NT cartridges. The Raytheon units will allow you to have better repeatability than even using DGPS. These units should excel when used for contour trolling, or anyplace you want repeatability,an example would be open water trolling. If you have any other questions on these units, I will try and answer them and if I can't I will contact someone who will.

[Ron]

Great under following circumstances: can't see shore in large lake, night, fog, irregular shoreline with lots of bays, lots of islands, other possible navigational problems, and a lake you have never fished before and are not familiar with. I have a Lowrance Globalmap 2000 that does the job for me.