Scouting with Google Earth.

[Darth-Baiter]

I was looking at a favorite lake.  While panning around I caught a glimpse of a small lake.  I zoom in. What?
1. No motorboats

2. Low fishing pressure 

3. I found historical info with pics of HAWGS. 
 I called a few old timers and gathered info.  They used to stock w trout.  No more.   The local bait shop has only heard rumblings and rumors. 
 

im loaded to go dip my toe into the water tomorrow. I’m not even bringing friends.  Mums the word at this point.   I called and it’s free to launch my kayak there.  The nice lady had no fishing info.  
 

I found some old quarry ponds using Google Earth.  Lots of bank fishing, but I dragged my kayak and did really well.  This was last season.  These lakes don’t even have names!  I love the Google Earth pre-scout. 
 

You?

 

 

[Aaron_H]

Google Earth Pro is my favorite pond scouting tool. The access to prior satellite imagery is immensely helpful in eliminating water too new to hold quality fish and for seeing if/how the pond has changed over the years. Plus street view is nice to get an idea if there is any signage posted barring entry.

 

The ability to save pins/waypoints with specific info is fantastic, as well. I use them not only to keep a log of fishable areas and known structure, but also to track where bass over a certain size were caught, date/time, and the lure I caught it on.

[Bluebasser86]

I've found some really good spots with Google maps, also wasted a lot of time, but that's what makes finding the good spots that much more rewarding. My biggest swimbait fish was from a tiny puddle next to a public reservoir that I doubt many people ever even notice. 

 

I'd say at least 50% of being successful in kayak tournaments is being able to pick your areas on the maps because if you pick a bad area from the start, you're solidly behind the 8 ball. A lot of my pre-pre fishing is going over the maps and finding good looking areas and figuring out distances and potential backup areas. 

[geo g]

A great tool for scouting new bodies of water.  Lots of detail when you zero in.  Laydowns, depth changes, grasses, pads, launch areas, docks, culvert pipes, bridges, feeder streams, release areas, and rip rap!  Amazing stuff!

[Way north bass guy]

It’s not just for little ponds either. I use it all the time to check out new locations on larger lakes, even lakes I’ve fished many times before. Most of our lakes up here are extremely clear, many you can see bottom in 30’ of water. Google earth works great to see any tiny, off the beaten path spots like shoals, weed beds and laydowns. I also use it to see where drop offs are, especially on lakes that don’t have a depth map. I can check out certain bays, and see if they’re a shallow, sandy bay that likely won’t hold much life, or a mucky, weed filled bay ( with bonus docks and boathouses), that may be a killer spot. 

[snake95]

Agree.  Another great low budget scouting tool is Navionics Boating App for $22/year, for mapped lakes.

 

Navionics + Earth is a deadly combo.

 

 

 

 

[jbsoonerfan]

I have made a TON of waypoints using Google Earth Pro and going through the historical images. 

[garroyo130]

12 hours ago, jbsoonerfan said:

I have made a TON of waypoints using Google Earth Pro and going through the historical images. 

 

Yup historic aerials is great for anything manmade. You can get a good idea of structure. 

 

https://www.historicaerials.com/viewer

[N Florida Mike]

I use google earth for ponds and lakes in my area. Caught my 2nd biggest bass ever because I found a pond behind a target store on google map  and tried it.

[Bankc]

I use Google Earth for lakes I'm already very familiar with!  The wind here is always a factor.  So I'll often use it to see how the wind is going to effect the lake that day.  I also use GPSnauticalcharts.com all of the time.  And if they don't have the lake or pond I'm thinking of, I'll check CMAP Genesis Social Maps.  

[EWREX]

google earth is great for finding ponds. if it is a large lake that i am not familiar with and has boat or kayak access, i use both google earth and navionics web app (https://webapp.navionics.com/#boating@6&key=wjmzFfhr}L) for an in depth sonar chart for channel swings, points, flats, etc.

[TnRiver46]

Google earth doesn’t help much here. Mostly a good way to end up trespassing