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My son and I returned home about 2 hours ago from our trip to Toledo Bend (I'll post the story in Whaler tales later). I purchased the Garmin 440s gps/chartplotter about 2 weeks ago along with the inland lakes and rivers for my area. It showed Toledo Bend, but I couldn't get the boat lanes to come up. For those who have been, you know the boat lanes are crucial.

I managed to find routes using a conventional map of the area, however, yesterday, my son and I made an afternoon tour. When we pulled out of a deep cove to the main reservoir, I was stunned at how the water had changed. The wind had picked up and the swells made it a game of peek-a-boo in finding the lane markers. Needless to say I got turned around finally found my way back, in the dark!

All I could think was how nice it would be to see the boat lanes on the screen. Long story short, my question is can any of you guys suggest a good book on how to use a gps, along with explanations of terminology? The garmin directions are lacking. Should I just bite the bullet and buy "GPS for Dummies"? I'm thinking their is a better book out there. And if any of you have the quick answer to bringing up boat lanes, please share!

Hope everyone had a nice holiday weekend.

CES, didn't see you out there. Did you break the fishing streak?

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Hey there nvacarro. I had company come in from out of town so that's why I didn't make it. So with that said, I'm still basically still fishless lol. I hope to make it out to Toledo Bend soon though. The next time you head out there, let me know and I'll try to break away and head out to Toledo Bend.

As for your GPS, I'm kind of old school. I use charts and points of interst to navigate for now and haven't moved into he 21st century as of yet. I too hope to have a GPS chart plotters soon. MattGieger (WC member) has a sweet Chartplotter depth sounder. I've seen it work in action and it's a sweet setup.

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CES:

I'll let you know when we go back. I swear, if I could squeeze it in, I would go back before Christmas. Fin and Feather is a great place. They are all very nice there. My cell wouldn't work, so the lady running the show offered the office phone in lieu of the pay phone outside.

I didn't want to leave. Perfect weather. Perfect fishing. What can I say? Back to work in the morninng...

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I just replaced the 440 Garmin that came with my Montauk with the 788ci Humminbird a purchased a while ago for my 13.

I like the Humminbird more than the Garmin, the screen is better and the menus and quick view buttons are much easier to use IMO, also the sonar seems hold and react better to me, although I did relocate the transducer.

As far as the charts I paid quite a bit more to get the Navionics Gold charts built in as I wanted the detail. Those charts seem much more detailed than what is in the 440.

Also the Navionics charts look more like the paper charts to me than the Garmin ones.

Now granted the Humminbird 788ci is probably not directly equivalent to the 440 probably closer to the 540 series in price and features. I paid about $700 online for the 788ci nvb.

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jharrell:

Thanks for the response. I'm happy with the Garmin screen and detail. My father has a Hummingbird and I agree, its a nice unit. It was a little out of my price range. I have always had Garmin products and used them with success. That is why I think it is something I am doing and not the unit itself. Maybe I have to turn a feature on or something. Does your Hummingbird show boat lanes? The guy that sold me the inland lakes and rivers software said that the boat lanes would come up. I can see I am probably going to have to go back to the store I bought the chip from and get some input.

Thanks for the input. More is welcome.

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nvaccaro, I have considered buying a GPS, but will wait till my kids are old enough to show me how to use one. I have come to grips with my weaknesses, electronics is at the top of my list. I wish I could find a class that conducts a demo of how GPS units work. I am more of a "hands on guy" and tend to learn things if someone shows me how it works. I have a West marine store nearby. I think I will suggest to them to offer a class on GPS operation. They might sell more GPS to guys like me.

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Harley FXDL:

You hit the nail on the head. A hands on class would be just what the doctor ordered. I'll have to tell the boys at West Marine the same thing.

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Here are some snapshots from my Humminbird over Toledo Bend Reservoir. Was surprised to see so much boat lane detail, but looks like what you where looking for.

Note this is actually from the HotMaps Lake Charts not the Gold which is for open water. Both Chart packs are included in the 788ci nvb.

Also note I blurred out my coordinates on purpose they are actually readable on the device ;)

[img]http://www.whalercentral.com/images/ppimages/15066/S00001.jpg[/img]

[img]http://www.whalercentral.com/images/ppimages/15066/S00002.jpg[/img]

[img]http://www.whalercentral.com/images/ppimages/15066/S00003.jpg[/img]

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That's what I'm talking about!!!! That would have been so helpful this weekend!!!

I called Garmin this evening and the tech rep told me that the Inland Lakes and Rivers won't show any boat lanes. Of course, the kind gentleman at the local Bass Pro Shops told me otherwise when he sold me the chip.

Can I get that chip you have, but for Garmin?

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I've been on a Lake ( not the one you speak of) with a friend that had a garmin and his displayed lanes...........You might want to check under options menu and make sure you have it set to show maximum detail

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ioptfm:

Thanks for the advice. I'll have to check it out tomorrow. It's pouring rain right now and I have to watch the Saints run the Pats out of the dome (hopefully).

I agree with checking options. I figured it was something I was doing wrong. I'll let everyone know what I find out.

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Correct me if I'm wrong but I believe Garmin does not offer support for Navionics Map Cards. The only mapping available for Garmin units is Garmin's own map products. Is it possible the feature you're looking for is not included in the Garmin map data? If so, a unit that supports Navionics cards would be/have been a better choice. Sorry if this is indeed the case.

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Garmin used to support Navionics at some point but now the use something called Bluecharts? I have heard Bluecharts g2 is supposedly just as good as Navionics Gold, but I have only heard that in reference to Open water, never heard a comparison to Navionics HotMaps for lakes.

Note my Humminbird didn't come with cards, I paid an extra $150 for the "Navionics Value Bundle" which included all North American regions of Navionics Gold and Hotmaps lakes built in to internal memory, leaving both card slots open for other things. Seemed like a great deal since just one Navionics Gold card for one region was like $125-$150