Best Idaho Lake Maps Card

[Walleyewacker007]

I use a Lowrance with an included Navionics card that only has a handful of Idaho lakes with depth lines helping to identify structure. I believe it is called Lake Insight Pro. Anyone here have a better maps card that is compatible with Lowrance/Navionics? I appreciate your help!

[hooknhunter]

The Hummingbird Lake Master card (the better one, forget what they call it) is pretty good IMHO. Some lakes (HD) have 1 foot contour lines.


I don't think you will find one that is "really good" for Idaho. We just don't have the population to support the mapping of our lakes.

[rjd007]

It will be interesting when Garmin takes it's Lakevu and combines it with Navionics.  Hoping for a better mapping for Idaho but like hook stated, Idaho is low on the list of states.  What would be nice is a forum where people could post their maps that are made so others could use them.

[hugeinchina]

I've never used a lake contour map before, but it is definitely something I am interested in using. Is there any one tool that is superior to the others?

[massNtrash]

I have the same problem here in Wyoming. Very poor if any lake maps are available. My new Helix 10 on the boat has something called autochart live built into it which allows me to drive around and create my own maps which has proven to be one of the best features of this new unit. I can then take the chip out of that unit and drop it into my ice unit and have all the maps I made in the summer out there to use on the ice.

I am going to be up at Cascade for the first time this weekend and plan on using a combo of the navionics on my phone (the app version) as well as my western states lakemaster chip in my ice unit. Hopefully between the two I can get on a break that is holding some fish.

[Walleyewacker007]

Kinda what I thought, not enough fisherman here in ID. I will look into those options mentioned, and keep the posts coming.

[rjd007]

hugeinchina, I downloaded the Navionics for my iphone.  You get two weeks free and it has some of the lakes that I fish.  After two weeks you can purchase the app if you like it for $9.95 a year. I am sure it is available for the Android.  I have used it more than I ever thought I would on BF Res. and A.F. Res.  Try it for free and see if you like it.

[Vandal78]

Yeah it doesn't have a hardly any of the lakes up north. Has CDA lake a little, Ponderay, and Dworshak is about the limit on the app.

[hugeinchina]

hugeinchina, I downloaded the Navionics for my iphone.  You get two weeks free and it has some of the lakes that I fish.  After two weeks you can purchase the app if you like it for $9.95 a year. I am sure it is available for the Android.  I have used it more than I ever thought I would on BF Res. and A.F. Res.  Try it for free and see if you like it.

Thanks! I will have to check that out.

 

[panfishman13]

my plan is to buy a humminbird helix with the autochart feature. then i can spend my summers mapping the lakes and ponds that i fish, and then modifying the Helix for use on ice.

if i can figure out a way, i'll try and print off depth charts once i get that ball rolling.

[idahohunter1]

Sounds like a good way to make a little money panfishman!

[rjd007]

Sure wished that bird would release a Helix 7 mega with the flasher software in it also.  Then it could be used year around for hard and open water.  Helix 9 mega doesn't have the flasher mode and the 9 is to big for me to want to hole hop with.  Autochart would be great and if they only had a forum where we could share our maps at.

[massNtrash]

I'm planning on getting a Helix 7 G2N to use as my bow/ice unit and throwing it on the marcum lithium shuttle. Then you can just take the zero lines chip out of the helix 10 and drop it into the 7 for ice season. Also if anyone else is wondering about doing this I talked to Humminbird and if you buy the G2N model so you can network it on your boat (ice model wont do this) you can send in the included XNT 9 20 T transducer and exchange it for the XI 9 1521 chirp ice ducer for free you just have to pay the shipping. That makes sense for me to do that because I will just hook it to the US2 sonar in my minnkota on the bow and then I'll be able to see the SI readings off the Helix 10 that are being shared over the network so there is no need for a regular transducer that comes with this unit. Just a thought for those who are pondering doing the same swap as I am.

Side note I doubt that a Mega Helix 7 will ever come about because that is a higher end feature that they are going to make you pay for. Also I don't think you'd get the most out of it in a 7" screen unless you are extremely close to it. Even on my 10" i catch myself moving closer to it from time to time to distinguish if something is a fish or not. Just my 2 cents worth.

[Ice-A-Holic]

I have one of the modern paper lake maps with topography but it didn't prove very accurate last year in locating drop-offs at Cascade.  Don't know if the map is just not accurate or if topography changed.  I was common on Midwest reservoir lakes to change topography every few years.  Especially after floods whole channels would move.

I usually resort to drilling about 50 holes 50 feet apart in a line to locate drop offs.  Not bad with a power auger.  It would be pretty cool if you could create your own topo maps in the summer - or at least just waypoint the drop offs. 

Anyone wanna sell some drop-off coordinates?  LOL 

[massNtrash]

Anyone wanna sell some drop-off coordinates?  LOL

I've got a waypoint on a hole that a 16 1/2" fish and a 15 3/8 came through in the same day last weekend. Lets start the bidding at $100 lol.......

[bullpine]

I used the Navionics phone app on lake Fernan here in N Idaho and followed it out to the deepest hole on the lake and it wasn't any deeper than anywhere else.