GPS navigator for fishing – rating of the best models and price

GPS navigators have introduced a lot of new things into the process of fishing. They provide new perspectives and opportunities - to use detailed electronic maps of the area being used, as well as the bottom of reservoirs, rivers and lakes with the designation of shoals, depths, etc., they remember every point of an already laid route.

With their help, you can easily find fish sites and always return to your previous successful fishing spot. Navigators are reliable assistants in extreme situations, helping you return to your starting place or easily get to your destination.

Modern fishing tactics

Modern fishing requires the presence of quite serious equipment, including an echo sounder and a GPS device (sometimes there are two-in-one devices that combine the functions of echolocation of a reservoir and the navigator itself).

If you have a GPS navigator, you can easily find in the vast water area of ​​the lake or river chosen for fishing, and with an error of two to three meters, the very catching place already marked on the built-in map of your navigator. And if you have an echo sounder in the summer from a boat and in the winter from the ice, the angler can explore both the structure and topography of the bottom of the reservoir under the fishing point. Navigators will save in memory all the promising fishing spots you find and help you easily find them on repeated fishing trips.

Middle segment (from 20,000 to 40,000 rubles)

Garmin eTrex Touch 35

pros

• compactness
• quick satellite search

Minuses

• weak processor

From 32,600 ₽

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Garmin eTrex Touch 35 with a color touchscreen supports GPS and GLONASS satellite navigation systems. Pre-installed TOPO maps include detailed road maps of Russia. The 3-axis tilt-compensated compass provides the most accurate data when the user is standing still. Display diagonal – 2.6 inches.

Garmin GPSMAP 66st

pros

• capacious battery
• big screen
• clear controls

Minuses

• expensive battery

From 34,200 ₽

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The Garmin 66st premium GPS navigator supports multiple global satellite systems to track your location in the most challenging environments. Support is provided by a three-axis compass and barometric altimeter. For convenient work with tracks and routes, compatibility with the Garmin Explore website and mobile application is provided.

Garmin GPSMAP 64

pros

• the screen does not glare in the sun
• sufficient brightness reserve

Minuses

• difficult installation of additional cards

From 20,900 ₽

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The Garmin GPSMAP 64 navigator with pre-installed maps of Russian water bodies is an excellent choice for a tourist or mushroom picker. Equipped with a 2.6 inch color screen. Excellent images are guaranteed even in strong sunlight. Highly sensitive GPS and GLONASS receiver with quad helix antenna provides a clear signal in hard-to-reach areas.

Blitz tips

1. It is advisable to purchase a device with a large number of tracking points to obtain more accurate results.
2. Power consumption must be kept low to maximize navigator uptime, which is extremely important in the field.
3. The product must be reliably protected from moisture and shock , since it is used near water and during active activities of the fisherman.
4. The higher the price of the device, the more functions it performs. Such expensive models meet the needs of even the most demanding customers.
5. A fishing navigator should be brightly colored so that it can be easily found in the grass or at the bottom of the boat.
6. If the case protection is insufficient, you can additionally use a special waterproof case.

Due to their accessibility and efficiency, navigation devices are becoming increasingly popular among fishermen, hunters and tourists , they bring novelty and comfort to ordinary processes, they are a good assistant in achieving positive results and reliable protection in extreme situations.

Car navigator for fishing

There are car and travel GPS devices on the market. The former are intended primarily for orientation on public roads.

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They are capable of:

• give voice prompts to drivers that the desired turn is approaching
• issue warnings if the permissible speed is exceeded
• find the necessary addresses in the databases of built-in electronic maps and calculate routes to them
• calculate travel time to your destination

They have fairly large screens that allow them to display maps of the area with a high degree of detail. By changing some settings in the route planning options, auto-navigators can also be used on the water. They will regularly and accurately show the current location of the fisherman on the map of the area, record the route of his movement in memory, remember the catching places and subsequently accurately display them.

However, such devices have some operational disadvantages. First of all, they are afraid of the effects of water, and it is impossible to escape from it in a boat. The second disadvantage is the limited time of autonomous power supply of the device from built-in batteries. And not every boat is equipped with a 12 V power source for connecting a car navigator using the included power adapter for the cigarette lighter.

The Internet offers various compromise options for using weakly protected car navigators when fishing (on the water) - from making homemade boxes for batteries to placing the navigator in a plastic bag - “aquapack” for water protection.

Expensive segment (from RUB 40,000)

Garmin Montana 610

pros

• responsive touchscreen
• holds more than 500 raster map titles

Minuses

• too heavy for hiking

From 61,500 ₽

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The large and durable Garmin Montana 610 navigator with GPS and GLONASS support is designed for pedestrians, hunters and water travel enthusiasts. The 4-inch dual-orientation touch display displays images even in direct sunlight. The body fits easily in the hand and is designed to be used with gloves.

Garmin Montana 680

pros

• robust housing
• bright screen
• high positioning accuracy

Minuses

• incorrect default time zone settings

From 37,800 ₽

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The rugged Garmin Montana 680 features a unique dual power system with an 8-megapixel camera and satellite map subscription. The device supports lithium battery or standard AA batteries. Free BaseCamp software helps you view and categorize your downloaded maps. You can easily share saved information and routes with friends through the proprietary Garmin Adventures app.

Tourist GPS navigator – will it suit the fisherman?

Portable travel GPS navigators are usually waterproof. They operate either from standard AA batteries, which you can stock up on in advance, or from regular batteries, available in any rural stall. At the same time, their operating time on batteries or rechargeable batteries is up to 10 hours or more. But this is where the advantages end, since the functionality of tourist GPS landmarks is much worse than that of their analogues for cars. Their screens are small and uninformative, with low brightness and resolution. With low performance, they often “slow down” for so long that they drive even the most balanced anglers crazy.

This situation is a consequence of the policy of navigation aid manufacturers, who find it profitable to sell two devices instead of one universal GPS panel. Therefore, outdoor enthusiasts (fishermen, tourists) often require at least two devices. One is for traveling to a fishing spot or to the beginning of a tourist route by car, and the other is directly in nature (in the forest or on the water).

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Where and how often should you charge a navigator for a fisherman?

If you are going to spend a long time near a pond, then, of course, you will have nowhere to charge the device.
But it doesn't matter! Most models operate for a long period (up to a day) with just two AA batteries. And you can quickly replace them if necessary. The Garmin GPSMAP 64ST navigator will operate on two batteries for about 20 hours. It is worth paying attention to the dimensions of the device. Ideally, you can operate the navigator with one hand. Considering that even a needle has weight for a fisherman, you should choose a lightweight and compact GPS navigator - then fishing will be a joy, and you won’t have to carry too much. Choose a device whose body has a rubberized surface with special notches - in this case, the navigator will not accidentally slip out of your hand.

Garmin Dakota 10 - the best navigator for mushroom pickers

A low-cost portable device, the Garmin Dakota 10 is similar to the Oregon series. The main emphasis that the manufacturer puts is accessibility for the budget segment. The GPS receiver is equipped with a touch display, which makes operating the device easy and convenient. Despite the presence of touchscreen recording, it is almost impossible to damage the module. The device perfectly picks up the satellite signal in a wide variety of urban and forest landscape conditions. Despite its budget price, the Dakota 10 includes support for 3D topographic maps. However, only 850 MB of memory is available for this. Includes USB cable and wrist strap.

Pros *

• excellent signal reception;
• stylish design;
• support for 3D topographic maps.

Minuses *

• non-expandable memory size;
• inability to exchange data with similar devices;
• There is no magnetic compass or barometric altimeter.

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Navigator selection criteria

Receiver capabilities

• Signals to the device come from many satellites in orbit. How many of them can a particular navigator “work” with?
• Sensitivity. Not all devices that support stable communications in open areas function reliably in the forest. This is one of the reasons why navigators installed in cars, fishing or hunting are usually useless.

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Display options

• Resolution. The clarity of the image directly depends on this.
• Navigator screen size. There is nothing to comment here.

When deciding on a display, you need to take into account the peculiarities of your vision and prepare for the worst situation (the golden rule, which many people forget). For example, you don’t have glasses at hand, the sun is on the horizon or has already gone. Will it be possible to see anything on the navigator screen? And not just vague outlines of contours, but to see a completely clear picture, a diagram.

But whether the display is color or black and white is up to the user to decide. For navigation while fishing or hunting, this does not matter. A color screen is only needed if the navigator has special options for viewing, for example, downloaded files to pass the time. How relevant is this for a person who goes out into nature for a very specific purpose?

It is unlikely that anyone would exchange an evening around the fire for a film that can be seen at home on the TV screen. And considering that the cost of a “color” navigator is significantly higher, such a device is unlikely to be needed for hunting or fishing.

Duration of continuous operation

This indicates how often the batteries will have to be replaced. This determines how much battery you need to take with you.

Availability of memory card

Navigators without this service, which determine only the geographic coordinates of the standing point, will not let you get lost. But only on the condition that the person has a compass, a map of the area and is trained to work with them. For example, it is correct to “reference”, determine the sides of the horizon, and so on. Therefore, when choosing a model, you should pay attention not only to the ability to load information into the navigator (memory capacity), but also to the presence of a built-in magnetic pointer.

All of the above are nothing more than general recommendations. Manufacturers are constantly updating, introducing, and improving something, so it is unrealistic to cover all the nuances of the functioning of navigators. For example, is it possible to mount a separate device on a dog’s collar (for hunters).

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Anglers may prefer a stationary model that is installed on a boat or boat. Some navigators have an echo sounder function. For someone who goes to nature not just to sit with a fishing rod, but to return with a rich catch, this is an indispensable help. But a hunter does not need this option at all. But if there is a built-in barometer, it will be equally useful for everyone who is forced to rely on weather conditions. The same applies to multi-level screen backlighting.

And yet – which specific navigator should a hunter or fisherman choose for himself?

Not all the advantages of devices that manufacturers and sellers emphasize to buyers are tested in practice. Some functions actually turn out to be useless, others do not live up to expectations.

• Before going to the store, it makes sense to interview friends who already use navigators. Their opinion and reviews of models are more objective.
• You can learn a lot of useful things by “visiting” thematic forums. On them, fishermen and hunters openly talk about the problems that they face when using GPS devices in “field” conditions.

The author did just that. It turned out that the most popular among “average” hunting and fishing enthusiasts are navigators under the GARMIN brand. Firstly, the devices are available in various modifications, therefore, you can choose the most suitable series. Secondly, the functionality is simple, so understanding the peculiarities of the navigator’s operation is not difficult even for a person who is still familiar with modern electronics. Thirdly, the price of the products is quite affordable, and their purchase is not burdensome for the family budget.

"E-Trex" 10 series

The device is sold in a yellow-black case that meets all requirements for moisture protection and shock resistance. Screen size 43 x 36 black and white; simple menu; continuous work throughout the day. The memory allows you to store information about 1000 standing points on 50 different routes.

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Price – within 5,500 rubles.

The same 20-series device is capable of working not only in the GPS system, but also in the domestic Glonass system. 1.7 GB memory, color screen, 2000 saved routes and marked points. All this increases the cost of the device.

Price – about 9,800 rubles.

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Garmin eTrex 20x - the best navigator for hiking in the woods

Externally, the device is pleasant to look at - it fits perfectly in the hand. The front panel is equipped with a joystick. There is a rubber seal around the perimeter of the battery compartment. The case is rubberized and waterproof. Batteries and rechargeable batteries can be used as a power source in the navigator. The navigator accepts vector or raster maps. The user can create routes and record tracks. The micro sd memory slot is located at the bottom of the battery compartment. A nice addition is mechanical protection against overturning. Menu elements are flexibly customizable.

Pros *

• flexible interface settings;
• uploading satellite images.

Minuses *

• the model has a sensitive joystick;
• short operating time from an autonomous power source.