Garmin GPS 76

[Steve]

I was looking at the Garmin GPSMAP 76 and I would like others opinions on whether this unit is worth twice the price as the Garmin 12XL? How much detail does this unit have for a body of water like Rainy Lake? Does it show reefs,points,navigational hazards,names of bays(Swell,Seine,Redgut) etc.? Or do you have to get a MapSource CD and figure out how to download it correctly into the GPS system to get that much detail? Sorry for being such a novice,but, I want to get as much info as I can before I can justify spending $350.00. Thanks for all the help!! Steve

[D189]

It floats! That makes it worth twice the price of the 12.

[Tennessee Jed]

I have a Map 76 that I just took fishing for the first time last weekend. No lakes are marked in detail on the plotter initially. You will have to buy the download CD, then go to their MapSource web site. After you buy your first region, you can get additional ones for more money, but you won't have to buy a CD each time.

The MapSource stuff is pretty good, I must say! The packaging for the CD will tell you which lakes are available in each region. I noticed that California is the only western state with maps available. If I am not mistaken, no maps were available for Idaho, Wyoming, Utah, Arizona, Montana, Oregon, and Washington. Anyway, the detail available for each map varies, but depth contours will be shown on every one. Some maps may have man-made fish attractor sites shown, as well as species and tactics suggested for each site.

I like the portability of the Map 76, but I can't find a mount for it yet to keep it conveniently accessible in the boat. Also, the screen is small. I am starting to wonder if I shouldn't have gotten a combo GPS/fish finder like the X-16...

[Suzuki]

Jed,
I bought my Map 76 dash mount for the boat at this site.
http://www.thegpsstore.com/
It works great. I also bought an external power cord and wired it into my 12V system on the boat so power is not an issue.

[Suzuki]

LAST EDITED ON Jul-09-01 AT 07:13AM (CST)[p]Steve,
I purchased the Map 76 about 1 month ago. It is the first GPS I have ever owned so I cannot compare it to anything. I can tell you that I chose it after much research and decided it was the best unit for me. I wanted something for the boat but also something I could take out of the boat and use for traveling, snowmobiling, hunting, etc. I used it to navigate a new route through Wisconsin last week while heading from Minnesota to Michigan and it worked sweet. I am very impressed with the mapping capabilites. I purchased the Map CD and just upload the areas I will be in. You can plot waypoints and routes on your computer and simply load them into the unit. It is very easy. The lake detail shows most landings and major bay names but it does not show depth and is sometimes missing detail on some lakes. I think their map information is outdated on the Roads and Recreation CD I purchased.
I could go on and on about all of the cool features it has but like D189 said it FLOATS! If you have any more questions let me know.

[Tennessee Jed]

Thanks for the link, Suzuki! I will get the mount right away!

You need to get the Fishing Hot Spots version of the MapSource CD to get more detail on the lakes, or go to that portion of the MapSource website. Some lakes in each region are not included in the downloads. My region (Arkansas and Missouri) were probably the easiest for them because we really only have a few resevoir lakes that are worth mapping. Minnesota must have been a nightmare for them...

[Suzuki]

I sent a message to Garmin this morning asking about the additional mapsource info. I don't have an unlock code they refer to. Unfortunately the Fishing Hotspots cd only has about 8 Minnesota lakes according to the website.

[Tennessee Jed]

Suzuki:

You get the unlock code when you buy the Fishing Hotspots CD. I didn't check the website to see if you can buy the unlock code online.

Sorry to hear about the shortage of mapped lakes in Minnesota. It must have been a nightmare they didn't want to attempt!