Use of a GPS as a back seater?

[11InchBeard]

I am looking into purchasing a hand held GPS to help me log my catch when fishing from the back of the boat and would like some input on the Pros and Cons of doing this. I especially would like to hear the opinions of boaters on this subject. How I intend to use the GPS would be as follows:

Currently, I get home after a tournament, pull out a map, and try to find those areas on a body of water where I catch fish in order to build a log from memory. This gets pretty difficult, especially if I am unfamiliar with that body of water. I found that at times I really had no clue as to where I had been that day and it ended up being guesswork. A GPS certainly would not help as far as bait and technique were concerned, but the location would without doubt help me to remember. The waypoints would make it a lot easier to log and get to know the bodies of water that I fish.

My question boils down to how I can use the GPS ethically? Can it be used as a learning tool without compromising the boater?

All opinions would be appreciated.

[Jig Man]

I have a hand held with lake mapping that I take with me in other guys boats. I use it for wpts and trails to help me navigate back up stumpy or shallow areas at a later date.

If I were in the back seat in a tournament, I'd talk to the boater and tell him why I want to have it on and if he objects, leave it in the bag.

[SDoolittle]

If I were in the back seat in a tournament, I'd talk to the boater and tell him why I want to have it on and if he objects, leave it in the bag.

X2

Most of the time, I wouldn't care if a non-boater brought a GPS onto my boat. I fish public waters, and chances are good that I share all of my "secret spots" with hundreds of other fishermen. The main exception would be if we were fishing a multi-day draw tournament. If I'm on fish today, I don't want this guy showing up with his new partner the next morning.

[backwater4]

X3

If it's a steady partner and a team tournament, no problem.

If it's a draw tournament, ask, but don't be surprised if the boater says no. Some anglers spend a lot of time and money prefishing. Just my .02 though.

[boneil]

I would be a little offended.  I've spent alot of money on electronics and alot of time finding these spots.  I would feel as though you are going to be fishing these spots at a later time with another boater that doesn't want to take the time to find these spots himself.  IMHO that makes you and the other boater a lazy fishermen.  Now I know gps waypoints get shared all the time, but thats just my opinion.  Youll become a better fishermen finding these spots on your own and you don't want to become dependant on other peoples waypoints.

[GTrombly]

i don't think its a big deal you could just use your cell phone to do it and they would never know.

[Bassn Blvd]

I'm kind of on the fence.  I agree with the first couple responses by asking the boat captain if he minds.  Then again, if it's during a tournament, then I'd probably say no. Especially if it's a draw tourny and we're complete strangers.

I consider myself a pretty good fisherman and can usually find fish, even in lakes I've never fished and I have never used or owned a GPS. 

[GTrombly]

I'm not saying bring your other partner back there during a tournament.  But if your in the back of the boat and trying to learn, you can bring your boat back and study the structure and learn from the experience.

[NorcalBassin]

It's sort of like copying the guy's paper sitting next to you in class. Sure you could do it, but you'd actually learn a lot more if you put the time in yourself and kept with your old method of mapping it out. Like it's already been said, it's a different story if it's your regular tournament partner.

Just using your phone or being sneaky warrants being backseated followed by a swim back to the ramp.

[Carrington]

i do not usually like my backseater to have a gps unless they are a good friend that i can trust.  If the person does have a gps, i will never take them to area i know work well.

[bassnleo]

If you're my drawn co-angler for the day, and we do not know each other, and I take you to fish or areas that I have located, no way in heck are you GPS'ing my stuff.

If we go to your stuff, no way in heck am I GPS'ing it.

Now if each gives permission to do so, then it's a little different.

It comes down to ethics.....

[Fishes in trees]

Back a few years ago, when I was fishing BFLs as a co-angler, I had a Garmin E-Trex, that I turned on the first thing in the morning and left it on all day  Should I come across a point of interest,I'd mark the waypoint.

It only became a point of discussion a couple of times, primarily because none of the boaters I ever drew finished very high.

There are good reasons for doing it, primarily should anything happen to your boater, you know how to get back to the ramp.  I can't imagine that a boater would be so paranoid about his "secret" spots that he wouldn't go to them during a tournament for fear of you marking them.

The boater should realize that as a co-angler, I get to these lakes maybe once or twice a year and should respect me enough to believe that I'm not going to broadcast his fishing areas to the world.

The GPS is a tool to help you get the most out of a tournament experience on a lake you're probably not all that familiar with.

A boater with a bad attitude about your GPS is something you might want to discuss with the tournament director.

I could go on and on on this subject, but I probably should stop now.

[Carrington]

Back a few years ago, when I was fishing BFLs as a co-angler, I had a Garmin E-Trex, that I turned on the first thing in the morning and left it on all day Should I come across a point of interest,I'd mark the waypoint.

It only became a point of discussion a couple of times, primarily because none of the boaters I ever drew finished very high.

There are good reasons for doing it, primarily should anything happen to your boater, you know how to get back to the ramp. I can't imagine that a boater would be so paranoid about his "secret" spots that he wouldn't go to them during a tournament for fear of you marking them.

The boater should realize that as a co-angler, I get to these lakes maybe once or twice a year and should respect me enough to believe that I'm not going to broadcast his fishing areas to the world.

The GPS is a tool to help you get the most out of a tournament experience on a lake you're probably not all that familiar with.

A boater with a bad attitude about your GPS is something you might want to discuss with the tournament director.

I could go on and on on this subject, but I probably should stop now.

if you understood the money in gas and the time i spend finding my spots then you would see why i do not like co anglers have gps.  how would you feel if in school you worked for 20+ hours on an assignment and then another kid just took it and turned it in with his name.  Its called cheating.

[11InchBeard]

Thanks guys for the input. I'm pretty much in agreement with what you all had to say.

I can see why you tournament guys would be reluctant to have someone in the back using one. But, I don't fish organized tournaments. My fishing is restricted to the club level, and I don't own a boat and probably never will. Also, like someone mentioned above it may be that I see a body of water once or twice in 2-3 years. So, if used ethically and use restricted to the consent of the boater (afterall I'm a guest on their boat) I don't see myself as a threat to their hard earned spots.

Thanks again.

[SDoolittle]

if you understood the money in gas and the time i spend finding my spots then you would see why i do not like co anglers have gps. how would you feel if in school you worked for 20+ hours on an assignment and then another kid just took it and turned it in with his name. Its called cheating.

Do you really believe that you're the only one who knows about your spots?

[Carrington]

not all of them but there are one or two spots where i strongly believe very few people know about. 

[fishfordollars]

Nope it ain't going to happen. That co angler you draw may just be a boater the next time you hit the lake. Let them go find and figure out their own fish. It takes lots of time and money to figure out a lake. You never know who they know or when they may offer up the cordinates to someone else.

[Carrington]

Nope it ain't going to happen. That co angler you draw may just be a boater the next time you hit the lake. Let them go find and figure out their own fish. It takes lots of time and money to figure out a lake. You never know who they know or when they may offer up the cordinates to someone else.

this is the exact same way i feel.  i spend so many weekends, hours, and dollars to figure out a lake so why should they get to save this info when all they paid was an entry fee.

[Red Bear]

im pretty sure i could remember most spots you took me too without a GPS and using my own memory, and im sure others can as well, so i dont see the real issue with someone else saving the coordinates. no one owns those coordinates. if some of you are so worried about someone else fishing 'your spot' later then dont even take them there. if its that good of a spot, i will get back there if i want without GPS coordinates and i will fish it. people can often associate landmarks with fishing spots probably just as well as punching them into a gps. i really dont care about the gas and time and money you spent finding one spot, thats on you. bottom line, if youre so worried about someone else fishing your spots then dont even bother taking them to the spots

[Carrington]

im pretty sure i could remember most spots you took me too without a GPS and using my own memory, and im sure others can as well, so i dont see the real issue with someone else saving the coordinates. no one owns those coordinates. if some of you are so worried about someone else fishing 'your spot' later then dont even take them there. if its that good of a spot, i will get back there if i want without GPS coordinates and i will fish it. people can often associate landmarks with fishing spots probably just as well as punching them into a gps. i really dont care about the gas and time and money you spent finding one spot, thats on you. bottom line, if youre so worried about someone else fishing your spots then dont even bother taking them to the spots

yes i do not own the coordinates, but i do own the boat. 

[Red Bear]

im pretty sure i could remember most spots you took me too without a GPS and using my own memory, and im sure others can as well, so i dont see the real issue with someone else saving the coordinates. no one owns those coordinates. if some of you are so worried about someone else fishing 'your spot' later then dont even take them there. if its that good of a spot, i will get back there if i want without GPS coordinates and i will fish it. people can often associate landmarks with fishing spots probably just as well as punching them into a gps. i really dont care about the gas and time and money you spent finding one spot, thats on you. bottom line, if youre so worried about someone else fishing your spots then dont even bother taking them to the spots

yes i do not own the coordinates, but i do own the boat.

thats irrelevant. because regardless of any spot you take someone too(assuming its public waters), theyre free to come back and fish it anytime, whether they store gps info or if they remember it by landmarks. dont open your boat up to others if youre going to be a ****** about it. dont take others to your most productive spots if you dont want them to come back another time. since its your boat you have those choices of where you go to fish and if you choose to have someone else aboard. but if you do take someone to one your hot spots, remember its then that you essentially shared it with them so theres really no harm in them making note of it at that point, whether electronically or mentally...

[Lund Explorer]

im pretty sure i could remember most spots you took me too without a GPS and using my own memory, and im sure others can as well, so i dont see the real issue with someone else saving the coordinates. no one owns those coordinates. if some of you are so worried about someone else fishing 'your spot' later then dont even take them there. if its that good of a spot, i will get back there if i want without GPS coordinates and i will fish it. people can often associate landmarks with fishing spots probably just as well as punching them into a gps. i really dont care about the gas and time and money you spent finding one spot, thats on you. bottom line, if youre so worried about someone else fishing your spots then dont even bother taking them to the spots

yes i do not own the coordinates, but i do own the boat.

thats irrelevant. because regardless of any spot you take someone too(assuming its public waters), theyre free to come back and fish it anytime, whether they store gps info or if they remember it by landmarks. dont open your boat up to others if youre going to be a ****** about it. dont take others to your most productive spots if you dont want them to come back another time. since its your boat you have those choices of where you go to fish and if you choose to have someone else aboard. but if you do take someone to one your hot spots, remember its then that you essentially shared it with them so theres really no harm in them making note of it at that point, whether electronically or mentally...

Well said! I sure do miss the good old days when we had to blindfold the backseaters so they couldn't triangulate their positions from reference points on shore!

[Fishes in trees]

A few more observations on this topic:

The money & time you've invested learning a lake are in the past.  Don't live in the past.  It isn't a good idea.

There is alot of sharing that goes on in draw tournaments.    Should a boater have issues with sharing, maybe draw tournaments aren't for them.  The co-angler isn't in the boat for the boater to have someone to bully for 8 hours.

Basically, in my opinion if a boater is worried about a co-angler "stealing" his spots, there is an unhealthy level of paranoia present.

Could go on, but I probably ought to stop now.

[Carrington]

and for these reasons i dont fish draw tournaments.  i just feel that people should find their own spots and not use someone else's spot unless that person found the spot on their own.  its kind of like cited works.  If you go out and ifnd the same spot i use on your own then i am completely fine with you fishing it whenever you like.  you found it the same way i did.

[fishfordollars]

If you bank beat during a tournament sure, go ahead and let them mark all they want. My offshore humps, ridges, creek bends, offshore grass, are private knowledge until someone else takes the time to locate.

Again, these are locations I have spent the time and money to figure out, you are not welcome to them. Go spend the money for your own boat and electronics and have at it. Otherwise, stay away.

The only boat i ever protested in a tournament was sitting on one of my locations that a coangler showed him the second day of a tournament. My first day coangler went out in the first flight, I was in the second flight the second day. They were sitting on a hump I found in practice exactly where we put over 25lbs. in the boat day one.  It held up and they lost their weight for that day.