I need a new depth finder for my 17’ Whaler. It is obviously not going far out of the harbor. I am looking in the $200 range, give or take. I like the Lowrance combo with the CHIRP and down look… but do I REALLY need a chartplotter for inshore? would I use it, or should I just get the Garmin with a great bottom picture?
http://www.amazon.com/Garmin-Echo-301dv-Worldwide-Transducer/dp/B00EVIVGUA/ref=sr_1_7?s=marine&ie=UTF8&qid=1435927710&sr=1-7
http://www.amazon.com/Lowrance-000-11823-001-Fishfinder-Chartplotter-Transducer/dp/B00R9X6KCS/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1435927878&sr=1-1&keywords=lowrance+mark+4+chirp
just my opinion but add the gps if you can. It can help in avoiding hazards. It helps a lot retracing your route, especially if you stay out after dark. It also is great if you find a good spot and want to return to the exact location. Experienced anglers can understand chirp, DI, SI, etc. but a basic fishfinder with gps is fine for most of us.
I agree. Get the GPS. I fished with a neighbor this past winter and had a heavy fog set up quickly. We were miles from home and would not have made it back that day without the GPS. Heard some other guys got stranded on the same day. They couldn’t find the shore, kept running in circles, and were scared they might run out of gas. They had to stay overnight on an island, that they luckily found, until the next morning when the fog finally lifted.
I had almost talked myself out of the GPS, but you have great points.
Definitely get he GPS. The trackback feature on my HDS is worth every penny. If I’m idling around looking for structure or schools of fish and find something, its not like I can stop right there and park on it. The boat keeps moving in the tide and wind and momentum takes you off of the mark that you just saw. I can scroll the screen back to where I went over the structure and put in a waypoint right where I saw it. Then I just anchor up on the waypoint and its always right on top of the structure, not somewhere nearby it.
'06 Mckee Craft
184 Marathon
DF140 Suzuki
All great points for the gps. I would recommend one with high detailing on the chart features. May not be real important in your local water where you know your way around but traveling it can be important. We take our flats boat to marathon key in Florida and the mapping really helps us out in the backcountry areas.
-Albemarle 248xf “Chella”
-Dolphin 18BC Pro
-Miscellaneous boats
x4 for the GPS Got caught in the fog and you couldn’t see 100 yds from 1/2 mile off shore and it made it easy to get in.
220 Outrage
250 Verado