Murray Bluegill 09-22-24

[blackcloud9]

Haven't kayaked Murray in years but lazy-launched the kayak into the breeze after lunch at like 1 pm.

Headed to the west side of the lake and was surprised the bass were crashing on bait very randomly, here and there. Threw some small stuff at them, hooked one on a spoon and I got a couple solid bumps on a small keitech underspin casting at boils. Drop-shotted up a couple smaller bass but they were finicky and the meter showed some huge schools of bluegill... so I just had to bust out the bluegill rig. Found great action on d/s pieces of worm, it was wide open on 8 to 11 inchers.

Super fun time with my 6' food UL trout gear going super bent with 6 lb. braid, and drag screaming runs under the kayak till the lake closed (7 pm ramp).

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[camobass]

Niiiice

[kirkboat]

Sent you a message

[blackcloud9]

For those new to this sonar view, this is a live 2-dimensional view into the water ahead of my kayak 35 feet down and 70 feet forward, showing two bass (red marks) and three schools of bluegill (green marks). Each school of bluegill here contains about 20 - 30 fish. Schools were found in many areas.

The bass are always moving pretty fast. Bluegill and crappie are generally slow movers.

[kirkboat]

Awesome. What model is your Garmin?

[blackcloud9]

Awesome. What model is your Garmin?

Garmin LiveScope system

1. Head unit is Garmin ECHOMAP UHD 73sv
2. Processor is Garmin GLS10
3. Transducer is Garmin LVS32

Um. It's complicated and costs about as much as my kayak. Prices have gone up, full retail on the new version on Bass Pro Shops now priced at $2,700, the Black Friday Sale will save you $500+

[kirkboat]

It would be a Float tube application. Not sure about all the equipment to make that work. Be nice to just have a forward looking transducer

[blackcloud9]

It would be a Float tube application. Not sure about all the equipment to make that work. Be nice to just have a forward looking transducer

I have seen MANY float tubes with LiveScope systems! Many. Its great because they can spin the tube easily and chase down individual fish, which is difficult in a bassboat. There are lots of videos out there, here is one from 2020, I think this is the guy that slays the crappie at Hodges:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NN2POxfY3vg

I just cannot believe he went with the 10" Garmin ECHOMAP unit, way too big. The 7" ECHOMAP on my kayak is MUCH smaller and works just fine. Take a look at the Livescope Ice Fishing bundles (aka shuttles) they are the size of a tackle bag - with everything included! I built my own "shuttle", and run the transducer and headunit wires into my kayak hull to connect the (dry area) battery and GLS10 which are permanently mounted on a mobile BassKhang "shuttle", which gets disconnected and lifted out of my hatch when transporting my kayak. "Setup" takes 2 minutes.

In about 10 minutes, I can pull my wires from the hull making a mobile Livescope that can be used off a dock or rental boat or friend's boat.

[kirkboat]

Hmmmm. Thanks new project

[blackcloud9]

Hmmmm. Thanks new project

FYI - You can't just buy the transducer, because the LiveScope transducers LVS32 or LVS34 (or newer version) is actually like three high-end transducers arranged into a semicircle, facing down and forward. The readings from all these sources need to be captured, processed, and "sewn" together in real-time to make a live 2D image. Again this all needs to happen instantly to show on your screen.

Even the expensive ECHOMAP head unit cannot handle that level of processing, and that's why the GLS10 "black box" processor (a full-blown computer!) needs to be connected in between the head unit and the transducer. The GLS10 is built like a radiator to keep the processing chips from overheating. Believe me there are no shortcuts, except to buy used 'last generation'.

There is a Facebook group called "Garmin Livescope Addicts" (23K members) that you should join. They are all about explaining everything and getting the best deals on these things, stacking up all possible sales and coupons. There are also crazies that sell used ones cheap to buy the latest version, and retailers like Russell Marine Products that sell used good condition stuff

I'm happy using "version 1.0", the LVS32
'Bless your journey' ahead.

[kirkboat]

There used to be a meter that had 2 transducers. One look down and one looked forward. It was portable, Hummingbird I think.

[blackcloud9]

There used to be a meter that had 2 transducers. One look down and one looked forward. It was portable, Hummingbird I think.

Forward Facing Sonar Competitors
-- Humminbird MegaLive
-- Lowrance Active Target
-- Garmin LiveScope

Yes, Humminbird / Lowrance / Garmin all have this level of forward-facing sonar and they are all in the same price range. In my opinion, Garmin was first and is ahead of the pack. There are plenty of youtube videos comparing them.

I've owned and used Humminbird fish finders since the 80's!!

[Stringbean]

Larry,
I'm glad you had a great outing, thank you for sharing.

[Dannicus]

Nice Slabs!

[Str8t Slabaronies]

Nice outing!