Navionics app on phone - North Country Lakes

[Salar4me]

Fished around Inlet a few days this week.  I know they drain down the Fulton Chain each fall but found the phone app virtually useless.  Dragged the shanty through the slush to drill some holes on large flats that displayed on the phone around 35’.  First hole the transducer pinged back at 8’.  Next spot had contour lines at 20’ and marked with the electronics to be over 45’. Got a wee bit tired slogging around to find desired depth.

The following day travelled over to Seventh Lake and walked a good distance to get to a cool looking flat around 24’. Drilled and dropped the transducer to find I was in 70’ of water.  Pinned area below maps out at 10’... knowing chart was way off... point on shoreline looked promising so drilled a hole and was in 40’ of water.  Looking at shoreline features and estimated distance from the shore - feel that the gps cursor was spot on.

First time ice fishing up north.  Ice was fine and walking got much better with lower temperatures Thursday night.  Did catch a half dozen Lake Trout - only one of legal size for 7th lake, around 20” (18” size limit).

[Arkangel]

Salar4me...

That's interesting that it would be that far off...and not the first time I've heard that...I'm not a techy - but I wonder if there is some recalibration of phone or the app itself (?)

I too have the Navionics mobile app and I've used it on Sandy Pond and SLR this year...specifically LOTI (Lake of the Isles) on Wellesley Island.

2 weeks ago - we were looking for a specific depth not too far from the launch off of DeWolf State Park launch.  Like you - we did not want to be hauling our crap all over creation...so when Navionics found our desired depth...we drilled and Vexilar flasher confirmed the depth - spot on. 

Our ideal spot was about 200 yards away but there were several hub tents fishing together and we didn't want to horn in.  When we spoke to those tent occupants a few hours later - they confirmed what my Navionics were saying about their position...and they too were using Navionics.  Out apps read alike and were confirmed by a flasher.

Again...I've heard before and from others that Navionics was "off"...absolutely...but your discrepancies are wildly off.  My app is on an Apple device...how about you?

Anyone else care to weigh in?  Is there a "recalibrate" option?  Guessing there are a lot of us out there using Navionics on the ice.  I have Lowrance Hook 7 on my boat and...and my Navionics lines right up.

[ECobb91]

1. Check to make sure you’re using the Sonar chart and not nautical/govt charts

2. Most of the lakes up there experience much less fishing pressure than the lakes elsewhere. They still get hit hard but not like the big name lakes in the state. 4th is more of a pleasure boater lake with the tourists and 7th doesn’t experience much fishing pressure since  the ramp isn’t conducive of it.

So with the lack of actual fishing pressure, the maps aren’t updated as frequently. Navionics is almost like a user submitted thing so obviously the more people who submit data, the more accurate it will be. I can say most of the lakes i fish are in the ADKs and I’ve never found the app to be accurate. It’s good enough for a guess. My typical spot on 7th shows it being 0-1ft deep when it’s actually 80+.

It’s not just there, lakes i fish around here (cando, otsego, moraine, eatonbrook, etc) are never within 5’ of what the app says. Delta is probably the worst of them all as far as accuracy goes

[Salar4me]

Thanks, indeed for the replies... most likely a combination of user error and a limited use/updates on north country lakes.  I did have it set for navigation as the contour lines seem more visible... seemed to be accurate on Oneida, but also off on Delta.  My buddy wasn’t pleased when I marked what I thought was 20’ only to have him sink his auger in the bottom.  Have to dog sit in Old Forge starting weds. So will use the sonar setting (hopefully see the difference in depth from the couch and not on the lake). 
Lakes in that region have little if any bouys in the summer to mark rocks etc.  seems a wee bit more dangerous than just being off on depth when ice fishing trusting the app - I have an IPhone

Things that work on Oneida and Delta, jigging Raps, spoons with minnow heads - not much interest.  Caught all fish on marabou jigs tipped with spikes

[Salar4me]

Did just check settings - was set correctly on sonar... paired with my IPad so I do quite a bit of off the ice farting around - thanks again for the replies!

[filetandrelease]

 Most lakes I fish the mapping is good other lakes have poor mapping , nav used a red asterisk showing the ones that had been actually mapped don’t know if they still do
 My garmin with Birds Eye has the same issues with accuracy on some lakes

[hardwaterhonkey]

Almost every lake up there is way off we fish one hump on another lake where navionics says it’s 85 feet and it’s actually 6 I kinda like that everything is off…. Makes you actually work for it and find the structure keeps people off the lakes or close to the access which I can not complain about

[filetandrelease]

 That’s how it was done before gps , had to put your time in , , compass and a note book 👍

[KingPerch]

We used a duck decoy weight and masons line to find the drop offs on Oneida.

[filetandrelease]

We used a duck decoy weight and masons line to find the drop offs on Oneida.

That’s how the original map of Oneida lake map was drawn by rope and weight and still has more info than a gps , I still keep 1 in the boat along with a compass

[KingPerch]

That’s how the original map of Oneida lake map was drawn by rope and weight and still has more info than a gps , I still keep 1 in the boat along with a compass

x2

[hardwaterhonkey]

We used a duck decoy weight and masons line to find the drop offs on Oneida.

People don’t understand these days! No navionics and they start freaking out

[WARRIOR_ON_ICE]

I am still a dinosaur that shows up on a slab of ice not knowing what is swimming below me ! I like it that way - fishing should be somewhat of a mystery to solve, not a video game where an underwater camera shows you everything happening in the water. I still find depths with a lead sounder, and own no electronics of any kind. Sound the hole, put the split shot on the line to mark where I want the line on the spool of the tipup, and drop the minnow down. When the flag goes up I know I have done it right.   

[trapper2000]

what app  would you reccomend i put in my  antroid  phone? 

other then that i  just  follow  KP and  his  decoy weight on a  string.....

[Adironzach]

Most ADK lates are inaccurate in my opinion except for george and champ. Everythng else is a crap shoot. Ill use it for general basins of the lake, cross reference with other maps like iboating, then drill a bunch of holes. as i drill ill mark my navionics with pins and the correct depth so at least i can build a bit of a better contour map of areas i like to fish. Has definitely paid off for me. Sucks initially, but the payoff of finding a good, unmarked drops/humps that isnt pressured generally means ill have productive day fishing

[ActiveTrapChecker]

I sound ever whole I drill for tip ups. Not only gives you depth but can also alert you to weed beds. Just my $0.02

[skinny4]

I run a hummingbird and use the mapping feature to create my own maps. I just chart out my hotspots I've already fished and mark waypoints that I can return to later. I have used navionics and it works most places but charting my own area is far superior. I've charted a bunch of places and have maps of a ton of places. New places I try to drill 1 hole to check ice and depth and will put a bunch of water in my bucket and use the water on the ice to let my transducer to shoot thru the ice till I find the depth I need. Then swiss cheese the area and set tipups or tip downs with the humminbird as I chart the area and go from there. When I finally find the spot I mark it and can return to the structure I need. It's nice but I haven't been out this year and wife's surgery gonna put the nail in the coffin for me. But I'm gonna crush them with the boat and my maps as I chart and search for new spots and next year I'm selling everything so we get better ice and I can start over

[filetandrelease]

 I’ve been marking areas with hand held ice fishing starting around  2004 it does narrow the search but is still a poke and hope , at least chasing perch and eyes least places I fish , eyes are little more predictable than those pesky perch 😱 been mapping with boat starting 2008
 

[tree-on]

Most ADK lates are inaccurate in my opinion except for george and champ. Everythng else is a crap shoot. Ill use it for general basins of the lake, cross reference with other maps like iboating, then drill a bunch of holes. as i drill ill mark my navionics with pins and the correct depth so at least i can build a bit of a better contour map of areas i like to fish. Has definitely paid off for me. Sucks initially, but the payoff of finding a good, unmarked drops/humps that isnt pressured generally means ill have productive day fishing

I found the same thing with both the Navionics phone app and the Lowrance on the boat. Though this winter I could not believe how far off Paradox was. Shorelines were accurate

[lowaccord66]

There are units out there that map as you move along in the boat and they are a must have up there.

[Adironzach]

There are units out there that map as you move along in the boat and they are a must have up there.

Would be absolutely worth a days time and gas to putter around and mark some of those lakes. A lot easier than drilling and marking individual waypoints too 

[XC 600]

I have a Lowrance reveal with live genesis that overlays mapping. Reasonable price and good unit can log and download map updates on their web site

[skinny4]

I can map thru the ice and the more spots I drill I get more and more details. It can be done on a $300 ish unit too so if your looking for a fish finder get one with gps. I switch from ice to my boat and back again and get great maps in the boat but on ice I can get decent maps after a trip or 2.

[deerefishyfishy]

Skinny4, I've never heard of mapping through the ice with the ducer in a bucket of water. Gonna have to try that one. I have also had mixed results with Navionics (on Android) on several upstate lakes. I still sound my tip-up holes also and use a small button laced on the line as a depth indicator that can be slid up and down the line so I only have to sound the hole the first time

[wec]

I was on a lake yesterday, navonics said 79 ft., it wound up being 29. Navonics is usually good up to 35 ft., then on some lakes it’s way off.

[Fish48]

Agree that it can be way off for some lakes.  I think on some of the larger lakes like Lake George, Navionics can be a very useful tool.  On some of the small lakes, I think it is just a tool to locate possible spots.  I have found places where it said I was standing on 30-40 feet of water only to find 10-15 feet.

[skinny4]

I just splash water on the ice to use the transducer to shoot thru.

[ECobb91]

I just splash water on the ice to use the transducer to shoot thru.

This is what I do as well. If is super clear black ice, then you don’t even need the water.

[SirCranksalot]

This is what I do as well. If is super clear black ice, then you don’t even need the water.

Does that work thru white ice?  thx