Sonars takin the fun out the hunt?

[WRB]

I consider sonar units as a critical tool when fishing for trophy bass on deep structured California reservoirs. Even though I have photos of these lakes during construction and know the bottom contours very well, I can't know if big bass are in the area without fishing for them or seeing them by sight or using sonar.

Camping out on a spot you know big bass are using doesn't require a sonar unit, if you can locate the spot.

I meter more then 50% of the giant bass I catch. You may not catch the big bass on that outing, but you know a big fish is in nearby. I often meter the area I'm fishing when I leave to see if any big bass are suspended nearby and waiting for me to leave.

Tom

[Raul]

Sonars are tools and it also takes time to learn how to read it and interpret what it 's telling you, I see a lot of guys that purcahse a sonear and imediately think they are going to catch more fish, it doesn 't take too long for them to learn the lesson that no matter how sophisticated your unit is, just like a rod/reel/line/lure, the pus is where it 's always beeen ---> behind the rod handle. At least for me, the sonar only helps me narrow improductive water from productive water, heck, I don 't even pay attention to the fish icons.

[WRB]

Sonars are tools and it also takes time to learn how to read it and interpret what it 's telling you, I see a lot of guys that purcahse a sonear and imediately think they are going to catch more fish, it doesn 't take too long for them to learn the lesson that no matter how sophisticated your unit is, just like a rod/reel/line/lure, the pus is where it 's always beeen ---> behind the rod handle. At least for me, the sonar only helps me narrow improductive water from productive water, heck, I don 't even pay attention to the fish icons.

Never trust those icons! (turn them off)

The guy who started this thread didn't know how to read his flasher, other than bottom depth and is not unusual. Most bass anglers don't know how to set up there sonar/GPS units or interpret what the see on the screen and that is whole new topic.

Tom

[Fish Chris]

Actually guys, Intrepid pretty much hit the nail on the head, > sight fishing ! But not neccessarily bed-fishing. I have sighted big fish first, then stuck them later, about 10 months out of the year, and obviously, they don't spawn for 10 months.

One of my favorite things to do, to find big fish, is just to get out on a lake, and fish all of the obvious spots.... main lake points, humps (which are hopefully marked... most shallow ones will be, and deeper ones are often not as good anyway) ususally throwing a 9" MS Slammer > Loud and obnoxious, and even if they don't eat it, they just have to come look at it.... And once I see them, the battle is 90% won ! (always wear polarized glasses)

Senile1

Hypothetically, do you think you can stick 14 - 19 lb'ers on a regular basis in a 50,000 acre lake without electronics and without expert knowledge of that lake?

If the lake in question has a decent number of 14-19 lb'ers in it, yes, I think within a few weeks or months, I would see enough big fish with my own two eyes to put together a solid rout. And once I had done that, I'd start sticking them regularly.

BTW, I often see guys fishing some "secret" off shore humps, or ledges or whatever..... and these are certainly spots that don't get fished too often at all.... so they should stick some good ones, right ? I almost never see it though. On the other hand, I consistently stick big ones, at the same spots that get hammered by everybody and their grandmother every day.

The biggest reason for their failure... or my success, depending on how you want to look at it, is that 1) they are usually throwing little fish / numbers types of baits, and 2) they pull up to a point, or hump, and park their boat, right where the big fish were hanging out ! By the time they make the first cast, those fish have locked their mouths tight, and are swimming away.

Heck, I will either come up right beside the point and cast out past the point of it.... even acrossed it sometimes, or even, beach my boat, and fish from the point itself !

How many guys in a flashy $50K bass boat are willing to run it up on the gravel, and hop out ? Yet I've caught many of my biggest fish this way. Just another reason a high performance bass boat would be detrimental to my success.... unless maybe it was a beater, and I just didn't care about scratching it

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

But hey now, don't get me wrong, I do believe electronics could be a big help for me if I knew how to use them. I also know their are a handful of guys who know everything I know about trophy bass fishing (and more) + they are fantastic with electronics, and I know these guys will consistently kick my but ! Jerry Rago, and Mike Long to name a couple of them.

But seeing as I'm the least competitive guy on the planet, it doesn't bother me a bit to say so

Peace,

Fish

[Fish Chris]

Hey, one thing I want to add though..... Guys typically use graphs to find nice looking structure, underwater humps, baitfish, etc. The problem with this is, LOTS of nice looking structure, underwater humps, baitfish, for whatever reason, just don't attract fish ! Conversely, I have found big fish spots that a graph would not give any indication of being a good spot to fish. Why ? I have know Idea.

And as far as a graph showing you the fish themselves how likely is it that it's big bass that your seeing ? In the lakes I fish, big catfish and carp are often more common than big bass.

But if I see a big bass with my own two eyes, their is nothing to second guess ! I'll go back again and again, until I stick those fish !

Peace,

Fish

[FD.]

IMO It doesn't take the fun out of the hunt, It is part of the hunt.

Personally, I fish with my eyes glued to a graph all day. I would feel naked without it. It not always about seeing fish as much as it is about staying on structure. It optimizes your time on the water by keeping you in key areas.

X2 - I fish 100,000 acres (toho, cypress, hatch, and kissimmee) and use it to eliminate water mostly,  to tell how hard the bottom is and find the outside edges of the submerged grass.

[WRB]

Hey, one thing I want to add though..... Guys typically use graphs to find nice looking structure, underwater humps, baitfish, etc. The problem with this is, LOTS of nice looking structure, underwater humps, baitfish, for whatever reason, just don't attract fish ! Conversely, I have found big fish spots that a graph would not give any indication of being a good spot to fish. Why ? I have know Idea.

And as far as a graph showing you the fish themselves how likely is it that it's big bass that your seeing ? In the lakes I fish, big catfish and carp are often more common than big bass.

But if I see a big bass with my own two eyes, their is nothing to second guess ! I'll go back again and again, until I stick those fish !

Peace,

Fish

Chris you are a lot like Bill Murphy, except Murph knew how to read a sonar.

If you know how big bass relate to structure and bait fish it is easy to separate other big predators with large air bladders from giant bass. How you approach a spot is the difference between a good day and being blanked. Knowing where the big bass is located is golden. Good luck, it's pre spawn and time to find a few and play with them.

Tom

PS; Butch Brown is on top of his game now and wouldn't be surprised if he doesn't post a 20+ this year.

[Fish Chris]

Butch Brown is just a big bass stud ! + he's in the best place in the world to catch the biggest bass that swim !

Fish

[senile1]

Senile1

Hypothetically, do you think you can stick 14 - 19 lb'ers on a regular basis in a 50,000 acre lake without electronics and without expert knowledge of that lake?

If the lake in question has a decent number of 14-19 lb'ers in it, yes, I think within a few weeks or months, I would see enough big fish with my own two eyes to put together a solid rout. And once I had done that, I'd start sticking them regularly.

You and I are saying pretty much the same thing then. Without aquiring expert knowledge in some form or fashion such as spending the weeks and months to locate the fish, you wouldn't be able to stick the fish. Electronics helps to shorten this period in my opinion.

[bayouXpress]

i think if you can afford it you should have it. 

in any sport.. if there is a tool that can legitimately make you better why not use it.  But as said before you still need to know how to fish.

and i think they now do have deer-dar.. its called trail cams

[Fishing Rhino]

I get a kick out of the is this sporting type of threads.  Should you use a landing net, or this or that piece of equipment.

I suspect these type of questions have been around since man started fishing with a pointed stick.  When we graduated to hooks and bamboo poles, I suspect there were those who wondered if they were taking the fun out of fishing.

Heck, they probably asked the same question when someone discovered a pointed stick was better than catching them hand, though probably not as much fun.

For me, the more gizmos the better, and the more fun I have, and not necessarily because they help me catch more fish.

I'm curious about what lies beneath the surface of the water, and out of sight.  Fishfinders, sounders, sonar, whatever you call them, help to satisfy my natural curiosity. 

They educate me, and therefore they actually increase the pleasure I get from fishing.

Are they fair and sporting?  As fair and sporting as the pointed stick, the first fishing pole, the first revolving spool reel, spinning reel, composite rod, lifelike plastic bait, etc.

[Fish Chris]

Electronics helps to shorten this period in my opinion. 

Senile1, for many fishermen, I totally agree. But with my AADD, I'd get so totally sidetracked with my electronics, that I'd forget to fish !  I guess it's just a personal issue.

Peace,

Fish

[CAdeltaLipRipper]

I almost never use electronics. In fact, all I have is a little portable graph.... which I sometimes use for Sturgeon fishing.

Actually, I do believe a good graph can help, but I'm so clueless with using one, it would only serve as a distraction for myself.

Do you guys think if I started using more electronics (and learned how to use them better), I might finally start catching some big ones ?

Fish

Yup definitley. You'd start culling dinks like that puny smallie in your avatar ;D

[CAdeltaLipRipper]

i think if you can afford it you should have it.

in any sport.. if there is a tool that can legitimately make you better why not use it. But as said before you still need to know how to fish.

and i think they now do have deer-dar.. its called trail cams

Well said.You should use advantages. That's just like not using lighter, better cleats for football because it'll improve you're skills

[Big Fish Rice]

Fishing is probability. If you can afford it, a baseline sonar can help you identify critical aspects like water temp, depth, and structure.

Why not help you, help yourself?

[Fishes in trees]

whoever started this thread, and right now I forget who started this thread, bust out a few c-notes and get yourself some sonar and find out for yourself if it takes the fun out of the hunt or not.

If you're trying to justify not buying a fish finder by  insisting that it takes some of the fun out of the hunt, well - that's just short sighted.

Either buy a sonar - or don't - either way you don't need to justify it.

Boys and toys   -  my 2 cents worth.

[Glenn]

Blast from the past!  Over 12 years ago.

 

The technology changes, but the debate lives on!

[Nelson Delaney]

FFS

[Bird]

Rarely look at mine other than depth running up a lake.

Like casting vs starring at a screen. ?

[thediscochef]

On 2/13/2011 at 11:50 PM, Fishes in trees said:

whoever started this thread, and right now I forget who started this thread, bust out a few c-notes and get yourself some sonar and find out for yourself if it takes the fun out of the hunt or not.

If you're trying to justify not buying a fish finder by  insisting that it takes some of the fun out of the hunt, well - that's just short sighted.

Either buy a sonar - or don't - either way you don't need to justify it.

Boys and toys   -  my 2 cents worth.

this is the final word on this topic as far as I'm concerned. I was a bit shocked when I saw the date though...LOL I woulda guessed this thread started yesterday ?
those who are griping about FFS the loudest either can't afford it or can't figure out how to use what they can afford. It changed my view of a boat into merely a platform for FFS 

[LrgmouthShad]

Electronics are a tool and I thoroughly enjoy using mine. I fish structure and reading the structure and observing life in the lake is a huge part of the fun for me. I don’t have any desire to get FFS but I’m not convinced that I wouldn’t like it if I tried it. 
 

Whether structure fishing in big lakes or fishing small ponds… I love bass fishing!!

 

Note my age (big influence on this discussion IMO): I am 23

[greentrout]

I watched a Bass Tournament a couple of weeks ago I believe was on ESPN on Lake Champlain. There were young Bass Pros catching mostly nice smallmouth bass in deep water using sonar to locate them. One of the commentators commented the young Pros were changing bass fishing because of their comfort and use of electronics in bass fishing. Things change.

 

 

[LrgmouthShad]

^ If you listen to the Bassmaster Elite circuit, the commentators will claim that to succeed at the highest level today, you must be competent with FFS, electronics generally, and versatile with many techniques 

[Swamp Girl]

I'll never use sonar simply because it would be one more thing I'd have to carry. I'd have to carry the battery too. I do wonder what the screen would show me because I fish water choked with weeds. The photos at post at BR don't really convey what I see a foot or two below much of where I fish. I found this statement from a Google search:

 

"Forward facing sonar will not display fish buried up in heavy cover such as weeds or thick brushpiles."

 

So, even if I had the strength and energy to carry sonar and the battery to the water (I don't and never will.), if the above quoted statement is true, it wouldn't show me much. Anyway, my fishing budget for the past two years has bought me stouter rods and reels where the gears aren't losing their 40-year old teeth and I know that's money well spent. The stronger, longer rods are helping. 

 

I often admit that I can't remember the names of lures, but when it comes to where I've caught and lost big bass, I remember everything, so my mind is kind of mapping where big bass live on its own. Sometimes, when I cast to a new spot, my hair prickles because that new spot reminds me of another place where I caught a big fish. And many times, the water erupts. 

[Pat Brown]

I use a 150$ Garmin unit to get a feel for what's going on but my knowledge of the lake and it's contours is about all it's been useful for.  Bait in an area can be good and bad.  Impossible to unquestionably tell if a fish is a bass or not.

 

Mostly it's just helpful because you can find key fish holding areas that would take a lot of time to identify with a heavy bait and you'd lose baits which is expensive.

 

I've always caught big fish on main lake structure that everyone hammers.  It's definitely more about timing and presentation than having electronics.

 

I actually have a form of big fish superstition.  I tend to believe that the really big fish get conditioned to the clicking that the transducer makes and I turn it off when I'm going to an area where I know I might catch a big one and I turn my trolling motor off.  ?????

 

Yeah.  Stealth is more important than electronics.