People who have fishfinders, do you rely on it? People who have fishfinders, do you think they ruin the fun for you? I am thinking of getting one for my kayak, but I am worried that I...

FS Digest

People who have fishfinders, do you think they ruin the fun for you? I am thinking of getting one for my kayak, but I am worried that I will rely on it, and I will spend more time paddling to find fish seek out individual fish, and less time actually fishing. I will be doing mainly bass fishing.

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by dominate1090

FS Digest

I fish ocean, so it’s very necessary. But I don’t think it’ll ruin the fun. You should scout out spots you think look good and the use the fish finder to see what kind of structure there is. Just supplement what you would normally do.

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by Bandito-taquito

FS Digest

Yes I used the hell out of them, my boat has 3 on it. I freshwater fish only

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by Moose364

FS Digest

For fishing deep areas where you gotta find where they are,like lakers, yes

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by coalbass

FS Digest

Depends on the type of fishing I'm doing. If I'm fishing shallow water or water I'm very familiar with I often don't even bother bringing it in my kayak. If I'm fishing deeper water or a body of water I'm less familiar with I will have it running, mainly as a means of learning what the bottom is like, finding submerged structure, making mental map in my head.

The only times I actually "rely" on it to find fish are when I'm planning to anchor up and soak bait or when I'm crappie fishing. The lake I go crappie fishing is relatively small and it seems just about every crappie in the lake will school up in one of about 4 locations, so I use the fish finder to locate where they're schooling that day and drift up and down it all day.

I can't imagine a scenario where a fish finder would ruin your experience.

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by _fnt_

FS Digest

Mainly for depth

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by ChuckFeathers

FS Digest

It's primarily used to see depth and bottom structure....I've never seen one that actually accurately identifies fish unless they are in a school. If you get one of those ones that displays a fish icon....those are called "Fish liers" not bottom finders lol. The accuracy you're imagining is not reality

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by LilPuuuma

Ron620DVS Loc: Guntersville Alabama

FS Digest wrote:

People who have fishfinders, do you think they ruin the fun for you? I am thinking of getting one for my kayak, but I am worried that I will rely on it, and I will spend more time paddling to find fish seek out individual fish, and less time actually fishing. I will be doing mainly bass fishing.

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by dominate1090

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https://www.gonefishingnw.com/why-your-fish-finder-is-a-waste-of-money/

Flytier Loc: Wilmington Delaware

FS Digest wrote:

It's primarily used to see depth and bottom structure....I've never seen one that actually accurately identifies fish unless they are in a school. If you get one of those ones that displays a fish icon....those are called "Fish liers" not bottom finders lol. The accuracy you're imagining is not reality

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by LilPuuuma

They only tell you that there's fish there. They don't make them bite.

imjac54 Loc: Waynesburg Pa. area

I use a fish finder occasionally on my kayaks. Useful for finding depth and structure more than actually finding fish when kayaking. Fishing big lakes like Erie I do rely on my hummingbird fish finder for depth info and finding fish especially schools if walleye and perch. Saves time guessing.

Schancer Loc: Hayward, WI

FS Digest wrote:

People who have fishfinders, do you think they ruin the fun for you? I am thinking of getting one for my kayak, but I am worried that I will rely on it, and I will spend more time paddling to find fish seek out individual fish, and less time actually fishing. I will be doing mainly bass fishing.

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by dominate1090

I use my old green box fish Lo K Tor. Works great for sounding the bottom for depth. Never fails me. Will it locate fish? Not usually.

Americanman28

I fish from a kayak in the ocean, and use a Lowrance. It helps me find structure, bait and keep track of depths. I can see individual fish, but mostly I fish the structure I find. I think it really helps without distracting. Also, in a kayak that I don't use an anchor with, seeing the structure on the screen helps me stay on top of it.

Will1027 Loc: Hood Canal

My Lowrance identifies fish

hacksaw Loc: Pasadena, Texas

FS Digest wrote:

People who have fishfinders, do you think they ruin the fun for you? I am thinking of getting one for my kayak, but I am worried that I will rely on it, and I will spend more time paddling to find fish seek out individual fish, and less time actually fishing. I will be doing mainly bass fishing.

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by dominate1090

I have one on my kayak and what I like best is it will track where I’ve been, and if I caught fish, it will show me the way back to wherever I’ve been. If I’m fishing in a different lake, depending on what I’m fishing for, I’ll have to rely on it to find the fish. But, before I go somewhere I’ve never been, I look up the lake and see where and how deep I should fish.
Hack 🇺🇸🍺🍺

PierRat904 Loc: St. Augustine

Bought one and found myself tagging fish instead of fishing. A true distraction.