NOAA charts

[ronaultmtd]

NOAA charts are a great “starting point” to look for places to fish as are Navionics cards...but inshore inlets, Creek mouths, harbors, points, are in a constant state of flux...I have fished the mouth of Smith Creek, St. Jerome’s Creek, St. Mary’s River, Pax River, etc. and every year the sandbars are different, the contours have moved, the holes have filled in...grassbeds, downed trees, rip rap, all the fish-holding structure has changed...not saying the charts and cards are not worthwhile, but I caution you that accuracy of these charts can and does vary from season to season..NOAA does periodic updates and surveys...dredging harbors and inlets really affects channel flow rates that have effects...sand does move with current...and huge rain storms dumps billions of gallons of water into the tributaries and the bay...boulders the size of houses are moved by floods...docks are washed away...deep harbors silt in...it all changes...so..

We see the question asked every season by new to kayak fishermen (women)...are fish finder/chartplotters essential...no, BUT....I rely upon NOAA charts as a starting point then hone in on my electronics display of down scan and side scan combination to get a perspective of the area I am fishing...and these are areas I fish many times every season...and I am constantly seeing changes that are important to the types of lures, the presentation of the lures and the species of fish that prefer the habitat...fishing blind based upon your success from past trips is essentially giving you the same result of using electronics to locate fishy structure hidden under the water...when I have a fish slam a trolled lure I hit the waypoint button on my unit...over time you look at the pattern of waypoints and then the bottom structure on your sonar to understand what your unit is telling you...some even go as far as to keep a written log of time of day, date, lure, lure color, water conditions, trolling speed, etc. I am too lazy to do that...

[nhunter344]

Coming from someone who doesn't get out enough to know the seasonal changes, my fishfinder has been invaluable to me. I use it exactly like you said, as a base to pick out 'fishy' areas and then let the electronics give me a more in depth view. The only thing I'd like to do but never remember to do is lay a waypoint every time I hook up.

I really need to get off my butt and get out on different bodies of water with some of the more experienced kayakers here.