tips for finding ledges?

Saltwater Offshore Discussion
1

i have a couple buddies at the fl/ga border that recently got boats and are very much wanting to take part in fishing nearshore reefs/ledges with both rod and reel and dive gear. looking at florida and georgia i was able to find DNR provided maps with numbers of shipwrecks, rubble piles, and other artificial reefs, but none that had numbers for ledges. i know at least 1 boat doesnt have the most amazing and detailed fish finder (atill suits the purpose) and am unsure of the other. anyone more experienced with driving the boat offshore have any input? my ideas are as follows:

#1: find reefs on the map that are close together with a big difference in depth and troll/drift in between them to try to figure out where it is.

#2: during surface intervals for diving, drift around with lines on the bottom, pay attention to the fish finder, and check out areas that we either start catching numbers of fish or get snagged on the bottom.

#3 spot bait pods offshore, check if cover below them, troll around between pods to see if anything else is on the bottom that may have drawn bait/predators in.

can anybody confirm if im on the right train of thought or is there a better way that i didnt mention? if something is suspected to be found, a dive buddy and i will go down to confirm what is on the bottom and figure out the best parts of it to go back to later. thanks for any input!

2

1 find a depth chart or topo map or any navigation app and look at your area.
2 find depth difference that stand out. Some are low some are high. If everything is 50 ft but 1 spot is 60. Mark it to check it out.
3 focus your electronics on the bottom so its better detailed
4 find out what your looking at. Electronics show things differently so if your using differnt ones know what things look like on it. Mud, sand, hard bottom, bait.
5 dont over look the little things a 1ft ledge can be productive.

3

A Maps Unique chart is a good start. It shows live bottom area and bottom contours with associated coordinates.

http://offshore-fishing-map.com/store.php?crn=221&rn=433&action=show_detail

Pioneer 222 Sportfish
Yamaha 250

4

Fishing status.You can get a single reef at a time free by writing them down or pay $50 bucks a year for unlimited access. No other source is even close.

5

Try this… It’s been a huge help to me: http://www.dnr.sc.gov/artificialreefs/index.html

6

Always keep one screen on the sounder keep a eye on it anything will appear really small above 20 mph so go back and check. Watch the inshore weed/ debriefed line stuff tends to congregate around areas of live bottom provided it’s been calm enough for a couple dats