# Best GPS/fish-finder for rivers?



## rondv (May 30, 2012)

Hi folks, this is my first post. I grew up fishing in GA and I'm retired now but still fishing. I fish 3 to 4 days a week. I'm fishing some tail-water rivers now, and looking for a GPS/fish-finder that will help me navigate to the chute I need to run for the down river return in low water until I can memorize the shoals. Most all my old boats had flashers so I'm a little behind the curve. Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated.


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## dturnersr (May 30, 2012)

What kind of budget are you looking at?

Hmm flashers I thought I was a dying breed...

I'm a little bias .....gotta go with a bird...naviagtion made simply, better, clearer.


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## rondv (May 30, 2012)

dturnersr said:


> What kind of budget are you looking at?



Something cheaper than boat damage. Maybe up to 1K.


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## 1gr8bldr (May 30, 2012)

You will love the GPS aspect for navigating. They are not always pinpoint accurate. But I can tell when mine is off when I pass known obstructions. If it seems to be off 12 feet, then I just adjust in my mind. I marked the deepest trails when the water was extremely low. Now I just follow the marks. Like a connect the dot puzzle. You will love it. Just this week, I went to some old fishing spots. Been four years. I was looking around for an upcoming tournament. Marks were a big plus since I had forgotten all the hazards of this shallow river. Everytime you press the "mark" button, it assigns a number to that spot. I hit it about every 30 feet in shallow water and about every 100 when no obstructions are present. I would advise that you scout it each year for washed in obstructions like logs


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## rondv (May 31, 2012)

Sounds like what I want but can anyone recommend a unit and maybe loadable maps of an area for my question? I will be lake fishing some but mostly rivers.
Thanks!


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## 1gr8bldr (May 31, 2012)

Mine came with it. I can't recall what you call it. But it shows all the lakes and rivers.


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## brianj (May 31, 2012)

rondv said:


> Something cheaper than boat damage.



That's a great way to think about it


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## Chase Simmemon (May 31, 2012)

I'd recommend going with one of Lowrance's HDS units and to get the biggest screen you can afford because things start to get really small when you start having multiple pages on one screen. 

Also, in my opinion, I believe that HDS's are more user friendly than the birds, but the bird guys are going to say just the opposite. So my recommendation is to go to a store like Bass Pro and play with each unit and find one that suits you and your needs best.


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## rondv (May 31, 2012)

Chase Simmemon said:


> So my recommendation is to go to a store like Bass Pro and play with each unit and find one that suits you and your needs best.



Thanks for the reply Chase and I can do that, but most of those guys working there do well to remember where they slept the night before. I think a wide screen where I could zoom in on the river would work fine, now I just need to figure out which one will have a good selection of Southeastern maps for rivers. Be nice to find a factory rep at a show or BPS. Thanks again!


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## 1gr8bldr (May 31, 2012)

You set the size or zoom how you like it best. I have mine set so that I see both banks of the river. The river I fish is 100 yds wide. No sense in seeing much bank. But I can zoom out to see the ocean if I want.


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## 1gr8bldr (May 31, 2012)

I also use mine in the Lake above the river I fish. I have marked the old river bed beneath. Logs wash in all the time in our lake. But they only hang up in the shallows. So I know that if I run the deepest part, then I'm good. Our lake is full of hazards. 100's of stumps and log jams


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## 1gr8bldr (May 31, 2012)

You might consider side imaging. Great for locating bait and learning bottom structure, but contrary to what some will say, not much good for fish. Unless your looking for fish the size of a bridge or sunken boat.


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## 1gr8bldr (May 31, 2012)

Good features also. Such as speed, depth warnings, voltage, etc. My battery is 20ft from my motor, so low voltage combined with loss of voltage due to the length of the power cables, will leave me stranded. But I have set my voltage alarm at just the lowest it can go to warn me. It saves me often


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## Chase Simmemon (May 31, 2012)

1gr8bldr said:


> You might consider side imaging. Great for locating bait and learning bottom structure, but contrary to what some will say, not much good for fish. Unless your looking for fish the size of a bridge or sunken boat.



On the contrary, side imaging with definitely help you locate fish if you know how to interpret what is being shown on the screen. There have been numerous times when I have found a school of fish with my structure scan, marked them with a waypoint, and turn around and catch a fish on the very first cast.


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## 1gr8bldr (May 31, 2012)

Chase Simmemon said:


> On the contrary, side imaging with definitely help you locate fish if you know how to interpret what is being shown on the screen. There have been numerous times when I have found a school of fish with my structure scan, marked them with a waypoint, and turn around and catch a fish on the very first cast.


Those I see on my side scan were also on my normal finder. Suspended


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## Chase Simmemon (May 31, 2012)

I can see fish on my structure scan that are way out of the cone of my sonar.


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## 1gr8bldr (Jun 1, 2012)

Chase Simmemon said:


> I can see fish on my structure scan that are way out of the cone of my sonar.


I should try readjusting mine. I have it set less than most. What unit do you have. Mine is the first one that hummingbird came out with.


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## Chase Simmemon (Jun 1, 2012)

I have an HDS 10. I'm not sure about the settings on a bird, but I have mine set to scan out 2-3 times the water depth. So if I'm in 20-30 ft, I usually have my range set to 60 ft. I set my page up so that my side scan page is as big as I can get it. The bigger it is, the more detail it will show. Most of the time I just run side scan, down scan, and my chart. I have the down scan and chart page as small as I can, which makes the side scan page as big as possible. I don't really run my sonar at the console that much, I feel like the down scan is showing me the same thing, so I just run the down scan. Also, play with your contrast and color palettes. Some color palettes show fish better, some color palettes show structure better, etc. Most of the time when you're looking for fish out that far you're looking for the shadow that they cast, so its crucial that you have your contrast set up right to get the best picture. Hope this helps.


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## T.P. (Jun 1, 2012)

1gr8bldr said:


> You might consider side imaging. Great for locating bait and learning bottom structure, but contrary to what some will say, not much good for fish. Unless your looking for fish the size of a bridge or sunken boat.



Crappie, 40 feet from boat, not shown on 2d or downscan.


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## rondv (Jun 1, 2012)

Wow! This thread took a u-turn but after doing some more research I think I like this one. 
(Humminbird 597ci HD DI Down Imaging Internal GPS Combo)
It's over kill for what I want in the river, I think, but I will be on the lakes some. 
Any comments on this choice?


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## 1gr8bldr (Jun 2, 2012)

T.P. said:


> Crappie, 40 feet from boat, not shown on 2d or downscan.


Compared to mine, this looks strange. Is that straight down. Nothing looks familiar. Or is it scanning one side only? Is this your pic using the save features? Not sure if save feature is the correct term. Mine came out before that became available. Mine is a 987c.


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## 1gr8bldr (Jun 2, 2012)

T.P. said:


> Crappie, 40 feet from boat, not shown on 2d or downscan.


I wonder if mine has the side distance graph?


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## T.P. (Jun 2, 2012)

1gr8bldr said:


> Compared to mine, this looks strange. Is that straight down. Nothing looks familiar. Or is it scanning one side only? Is this your pic using the save features? Not sure if save feature is the correct term. Mine came out before that became available. Mine is a 987c.



This is only looking out the right side, I was going down the edge of a bank.


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## 1gr8bldr (Jun 2, 2012)

T.P. said:


> This is only looking out the right side, I was going down the edge of a bank.


Ok, now I understand. Mine can do that, I just seldom take the time to change it. Do you get more clarity by doing this?


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## Lanier Jim (Jun 2, 2012)

Good Choice Rondv - no need to discuss further.   As for user friendly...jump in a Bird boat and then a Low boat and you tell me which is more user friendly!   

Not everyone majored in computer science or trained to be an astronaut in buttons to push to get to a different screen.  Yeah - I'm talking to you Chase 

LJ


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## XtremeBowhunter91 (Jun 2, 2012)

rondv said:


> Wow! This thread took a u-turn but after doing some more research I think I like this one.
> (Humminbird 597ci HD DI Down Imaging Internal GPS Combo)
> It's over kill for what I want in the river, I think, but I will be on the lakes some.
> Any comments on this choice?



I just bought one of these the other day. It works great so far. Only been fishing twice since I installed it. Very user friendly, everything is easy to find and is pretty much self explanatory.


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## Chase Simmemon (Jun 2, 2012)

What can I say, its that Georgia edumacation hard at work .


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## T.P. (Jun 3, 2012)

Lanier Jim said:


> Good Choice Rondv - no need to discuss further.   As for user friendly...jump in a Bird boat and then a Low boat and you tell me which is more user friendly!
> 
> Not everyone majored in computer science or trained to be an astronaut in buttons to push to get to a different screen.  Yeah - I'm talking to you Chase
> 
> LJ



Sooo......... are you saying Lowrance is more suited to the educated fisherman?


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