If no electronics, then why?

[Swamp Girl]

If you fish without electronics, then please share why. My four reasons, with the fourth one being the big one:

 

I fish small bodies of water, so sooner or later, I'll find them without sonar.

 

I fish weeds atop weeds. I don't think I'd get the clear readings that so many of you do. 

 

It would be one more electronic device to learn and I have enough of those off the water.

 

I struggle to move all my equipment to the water already. Sonar and a battery would be two more things to carry. 

[TnRiver46]

Cuz when I fish with them it doesn’t seem to help, often makes it worse 

[A-Jay]

On 1/16/2024 at 9:48 AM, TnRiver46 said:

Cuz when I fish with them it doesn’t seem to help, often makes it worse 

Bet you're holding your mouth wrong ~

A-Jay

[gim]

 I think it’s situation or body of water dependent. When I am in my Ranger, I have an outboard and can sometimes be on bigger water. Sonar and GPS are not only features that increase odds for catching fish, but they are also safety measures. I am not throttling down without knowing the depth is deep enough for it. That’s a good way to ruin a prop or lower unit. GPS is a must on big water. You’d get lost without it.

 

I also fish out of a shallow aluminum Jon boat in a small river and the average depth is less than a foot. Some areas are inches deep, or less. I just float with the current and cast to visual targets. There is no need for electronics in this situation.

[Zcoker]

In general, the only time the Garmin comes on is when I shove off, just to get a temp reading. Other than that, it never comes on again except for deep exploration. In that case, the unit then becomes an indispensable safety feature because of its ability to trace out my exact route. I've used that feature more than once to get me back to ground zero!

[A-Jay]

I benefit from electronics because I fish substantial bodies of water.

I could find them sooner or later, but it might take a couple of years.

In fact, it actually has even with them.

I fish deep, clear inland lakes, getting a crisp clear reading is not a problem.  

There's a bit of a learning curve, but I manage. 

I do not struggle to move all my equipment to the water

because I am still in at least average physical condition.

As for space, my rig has enough for my needs.

 

A-Jay

https://youtu.be/pbdrRf2nJlQ?feature=shared

 

[Captain Phil]

Depends on where you fish.  Here in Florida, electronics don't do that much for you.  Our natural lakes are shallow dish pans with practically no bottom structure.  Electronics can help you, but there are so many fish shallow it's not entirely necessary.  There are a few exceptions like deep rock pits and canals.  When I started fishing tournaments north of the State line, I quickly learned the value of electronics.  

[Swamp Girl]

39 minutes ago, gimruis said:

I just float with the current and cast to visual targets. There is no need for electronics in this situation.

 

You've seen photos of the streams I fish. They're so narrow that a bass can't hide. Three casts and I've covered both sides of the stream and the middle too. Since you fish such shallow water, I expect you have to be quiet too. 

 

9 minutes ago, Captain Phil said:

Our natural lakes are shallow dish pans with practically no bottom structure.

 

Weirdly, the water I fish is the same. I don't have sonar to give me the depth, but I do have the Fish & Wildlife depth maps and my ponds and bogs are also shallow dish pans. When I fished for smallmouth in northwestern Ontario, there were saddles and humps and reefs and holes. On the big lakes where I musky fished, guys would lose lower units running at high speeds. They needed @gimruis at the helm.

[greentrout]

I primarily fish two relatively small bodies of water. One is 650 acres; the other is 250 acres.  I fish from the bank by choice. The lake office of both gave me a sonar reading map copies with depths and some structure. I spend a lot of time on the rip rap of both lakes and will also fish visible cover although there isn't a lot of that. I like to think of fishing the edges and any irregularities on the bank.

 

Find the vegetation and forage. 

 

Good Fishing

[Swamp Girl]

47 minutes ago, A-Jay said:

I do not struggle to move all my equipment to the water

because I am still in at least average physical condition.

 

[padlin]

Similar you you, in spring the ponds are clear enough but then they are only 10’ deep max, not going to see much with the low end Garmin I own but gave up on, think it shows a 3’ circle under the boat. Maybe side scan or similar would show something but I manage to catch enough as is, it’s not worth the $ to me. 
 

I find even the little Garmin to be a hassle for no gain, I’d rather have some leg room.

 

Summer and fall the weeds take over where I fish, other then not seeing anything but weeds the darn transducer hanging over the side is a weed magnet.

 

Maybe if I fished lakes in a power boat I’d think about it, but I don’t.

[PaulVE64]

River fishing 90% of the time. So electronics wouldnt make difference.

[Catt]

1 hour ago, Captain Phil said:

Depends on where you fish

 

Yes Sir! 😉

 

Shallow water marshes, swamps, bayous, & rivers; no electronics nessary.

 

On Toledo Bend I use a Hummingbird Helix 5 G2. I ain't even looking for fish, I'm looking for structure. I never idle over the structure I intend on fishing. 

[Swamp Girl]

2 minutes ago, Catt said:

I never idle over the structure I intend on fishing. 

 

Smart. They can hear and feel the engine, which shakes the water as it vibrates.

[Reel]

1 hour ago, A-Jay said:

I benefit from electronics because I fish substantial bodies of water.

I could find them sooner or later, but it might take a couple of years.

In fact, it actually has even with them.

I fish deep, clear inland lakes, getting a crisp clear reading is not a problem.  

There's a bit of a learning curve, but I manage. 

I do not struggle to move all my equipment to the water

because I am still in at least average physical condition.

As for space, my rig has enough for my needs.

 

A-Jay

https://youtu.be/pbdrRf2nJlQ?feature=shared

 

Same reasons ,but I fish large rivers  and river lakes ( between 2 dams ).

[SC53]

Like Phil said, here in Florida you rarely need it. 
I’ll use it sometimes to find offshore grass beds.

We mainly fish “cover”, not structure here in Florida.

[MIbassyaker]

I do use sonar for lakes that have some depth and bottom structure. I find it especially helpful for locating deep weedlines.

 

But, same as most responses above, if I'm floating a river or fishing shallow, weedy stuff, it isn't much use.

[casts_by_fly]

I'm right in the middle of the spectrum.  We have a ton of grass in our lakes here and many are natural lakes with negligible features all of which makes electronics less useful.  There is a 250 acre lake very nearby that aside from an old canal that runs across one side of it there isn't another depth change feature on the bottom anywhere.  I've mapped it before the grass grows up and its a big flat/bowl.  Electronics are pretty useless there, EXCEPT when and where the grass isn't full grown you can find the edges.  On the other end of the spectrum we have a couple reservoirs where electronics are mandatory.  One in particular (that I don't really fish) goes down to 200'.  The shoreline is mixed rock and gravel the whole way around and there is some isolated grass in a few spots but mostly its just a big rocky bowl like a lot of western lakes.  You'd fish your way around the lake for a long time before you find where they were holding.  The rest of my lakes are some where between and even on the smallest ones I've found that electronics can be useful.  Mega live picked a couple fish in a 30 acre mountain pond last year that I wouldn't have gotten otherwise- not because I saw the fish but because I could clearly see what the grass was doing and that let me pick up a bait to fish it well (which was a crankbait that just skimmed the top of the grass).  Then there are other days when I'm on one of the two main lakes I fish and know like the back of my hand.  Those days I just leave the electronics in the truck and don't even throw them in the kayak.

 

Could I fish without them?  sure.  They help accelerate the learning curve on a new lake, but you can just put in the time.  Will I ever give them up for good?  No.  For all the places I fish there is always something useful in there.

[Fishing_Rod]

Greetings All,

Thought provoking questions. I'll have a go at sharing my considerations. I am just a recreational angler so my motivations are to enjoy the experiences. As such I'm seeking an understanding of the environment which helps my goal of get better at both casting and catching.

 

Not using sophisticated electronics is a deliberate choice. I appreciate keeping it simple. I catch enough fish that I'm not compelled to see more advantage. When I'm on the water, in my kayak, or dinghy, I'm bringing only the essentials. Similarly when casting about from the shore, I only carry a limited scope of gear. Mainly I just don't want to involve too much effort when recreating.

 

Size of the water is not all that relevant to my decision to not use electronics. My approach to angling adventures remains similar. The difference on larger waters involves more considerations for safety. Always helpful to be able to reach safe harbor quickly if needed. Also I'm generally not seeking bites from deep, greater than 30 feet depths. That is just not my style of angling. Besides I don't have a long length of anchor line, which is my old school depth guage. Yeah, my decades of casting with catching has been within those lesser depths.

 

@ol'crickety I am all for conservation of energy, mine! A large number of my angling adventures are solo runs. Thus, I don't have assistance with a gear sherpa to help me convey all the gear to and from embarkation. My simple watercraft are easy to load and unload by myself. I keep all the gear in a backpack which works for both in the watercraft or when on land. This consists of my angling tackle, lunch, and hydration bladder. Oh, and a simple care kit (first aid and such).

 

Yup, I am aware of what the different electronics provide as options to enhance the catching. It is simply not something that will enhance my angling adventures. I see this as similar to all the vast variety of baits marketed out there. Sure they could be fun and interesting to try. I just don't care to add more to the kit as I would then have to remove something to make room for it. Currently my simple selection of gear is very successful and I'm reluctant to change unless I resolve a reasonable motivation to do this.

 

Over the years of goofing off, I'm usually casting within 5 to 15 minutes of arriving (with or without the yak). I'm doing what I can to maximize the goofing off. My $0.02 worth of input and perspective. Best fishes for you in the new year! Be well and Cheers!

[gim]

3 hours ago, Zcoker said:

In that case, the unit then becomes an indispensable safety feature because of its ability to trace out my exact route. I've used that feature more than once to get me back to ground zero!

This is an invaluable tool at night time.  I don't do a lot of fishing at night, but simply following the trail that I made to get out there before the sun went down is an easy, safe feature to utilize.

[MN Fisher]

If you don't have a lot of structure in a lake, then it's use is negligible...but when you got this, it's invaluable...and this is just a small portion of Tonka.

[Zcoker]

9 minutes ago, gimruis said:

This is an invaluable tool at night time.  I don't do a lot of fishing at night, but simply following the trail that I made to get out there before the sun went down is an easy, safe feature to utilize.

 

Exactly! I've used it more than once out in the everglades at night and was so GLAD I had the ability. It's, as you said, invaluable. If I didn't have it, then I'd most likely have to wait unit the sun came up to get my bearings. 

[HenryPF]

I have 3 livescopes - 2 on the boat for forward/perspective and 1 for shore fishing. I can find the fish and not waste time looking. That being said, my favorite fishing is surface/jungle/frogging and absolute lazy fishing where I remove the front seat post, put the seat to the deck, use the remote for trolling motor and kick my feet up on the gunwhale where no electronics are used at all. I look like an idiot fishing this way but don't care.

 

Electronics are good and all, but nothing beats a lazy day soaking bait. I usually stop using electronics around July til the rest of the year. I catch more fish with 2 rods with lindy rigs, a stabber and a turkey hunting chair on shore. Less work, more fun. Livescope for shore is taken sometimes so I can see fish swimming by which is better that staring at my phone or worse falling asleep and my poles gone.

[Swamp Girl]

29 minutes ago, Fishing_Rod said:

It is simply not something that will enhance my angling adventures. 

 

Our approach and ideology are the same. Additionally, I've watched the FFS anglers watching their FFS screen as they fish, reminding me of those people who miss the glories of a city as they stare at their smartphones walking down the street. If I too stared at an FFS screen, I'd miss the glories of the water. 

 

@MN Fisher: That looks like the lakes I fished in northwestern Ontario. I'd be paddling in the middle of nowhere and a high sun would reveal a hump a foot or two beneath my canoe, just where I'd expect 50' of water. 

 

4 minutes ago, HenryPF said:

Livescope for shore is taken sometimes so I can see fish swimming by which is better that staring at my phone or worse falling asleep and my poles gone.

 

Funny!

[Captain Phil]

Funny story. Years ago I was running down L67 Canal in the Everglades with my flasher on.  Normally, the bottom is as flat as a table top.  As I ran down the canal, I ran over something large on the bottom.  I stopped, turned around and cast out a 9" black Fliptail worm.  I got an immediate strike, which turned out to be huge mud fish.   I unhooked the mud and made another cast to the same spot where I caught another giant mudfish.  A third cast produced another strike only this one was different.  Instead of rolling in the line, the fish started to the surface.  That fish was an eight pound bass, the biggest I had caught up until then.  I believe that was the first fish I caught that could be attributed directly to my flasher.