BigBendFishing.Net

Hi guys - I read the "2 anglers killed in boating accident" article and wondered how much sooner they would have been rescued if they had had a GPS for an accurate position...

As I am continuing to outfit my 20 ft. cabin cruiser for (up to 10 mi. !!) offshore, and now that I have an ICOM M402-S VHF and a good antenna, I am evaluating GPS units to hook up to it for DSC emergency position data, along with getting to known fishing holes.

I am settling on a Magellan Meridian Gold handheld GPS. It is not color, but I just can't justify the cost of color. But, it appears to do everything else I need and will hold at least 64mb SD cards, and I have heard that they will hold bigger cards.

There is a whole lot of mapping software out there available, and if it anything like buying tax, game, or any other, it sure is usually worth trying before you buy.

I will be able to load from my PC to the SD card, or I can purchase pre-loaded cards of charting software.

I would surely appreciate any recommendations for software/cards from those of you who have found charting/mapping software that covers the Big Bend area.

Thanks,
KarstRanger

Have you already purchased the GPS. If not will you use it for other than fishing, if not the handheld screen is so small, a fixed mount would be much friendlier for fishing, like a Garmin GPS MAP 162 or 172, with bluechart software.

No, I haven't purchased yet, but I also do metal detecting, so I would want a handheld unit for that too. I was gung ho on the Garmin GPSMAP 76, but this Magellan Meridian has more what I feel I need at a better price too. They both appear to be first class manufactuers.

I have the GPS MAP 76S and swear by it. That device has saved my arse more than once...



For a dual purpose Marine and Land Navitation, I'd go with the GPS MAP 76S

http://www.gpscity.com/gpsmap-76-series.htm

If you get a garmin mapping unit you can get the Mapsource Bluecharts to go along with it. Bluecharts in my opinion are the best map software going today. If you plan on incorporating a NMEA connection to your VHF then I would suggest getting a cheaper fixed mount like a 162. It comes with everything you need to hook it to your VHF. If you go handheld you'll have to buy anohter cable and have a mount for it.

Thanks Tom - I took a close look at the MapSource BlueChart and it does look like the best available right now. A lot of people are selling ver. 6.5, but there is a ver. 7.0 out that goes for the same price (best so far is $105 for the Americas CD).

A question - when you buy the CD, can you only unlock and use part of the maps on the CD? I would want the Gulf sub area, but what if later I wanted to unlock some other sub area on the CD - pay more?

And since I need a Garmin to run it, and want portability for metal detecting, then I am going for a GPSMAP 76C rather than a fixed unit - and I plan to start mowing lawns after regular work to pay for it...

[quote]A question - when you buy the CD, can you only unlock and use part of the maps on the CD? I would want the Gulf sub area, but what if later I wanted to unlock some other sub area on the CD - pay more?

When you get the cd you can only unlock one region ( gulf, from chandulear islands L.A. to tampa bay.) you can however download two two gps units, and buy just a unlock certificate for less than the cd and unlock for any other regions you want. You will also be able to get the

Thanks for all the advice on getting a GPS to hook to the VHF/DSC. The BlueCharts mapping software for Garmins is what swung the deal for me. I bought a Garmin GPSMAP 76C.

Got it for $336.06 which includes a $50 rebate that Garmin is offering until July 5. Only $6 shipping too. If you are in the market for one right now, I really researched this and this is a heck of a deal on a handheld color GPS with 115mb internal RAM.

Here's where I got the 76C:

http://www.bestoptionsdirect.com

Now I'm off to find the best price on the BlueCharts CD.