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  Fishin' with Capt. Gus! ~ New Fish Finder Woes
September 6, 2009
A fishing acquaintance told this story on himself the other day. It seems that he had purchased a new sonar unit because the one he had was outdated and didn’t show fish images very well. The new unit was top of the line. He was anxious to see if it was as good as the salesmen had said it would be.
As the boat left the dock, he was impressed with the unit’s clarity and color images. He saw bottom readings at cruising speed, the best he had ever seen. The trip took him up the old river channel to the State Park. Upon arrival, he slowed the boat and began looking for suspended schools of fish on the new unit.
What he saw was more than he had bargained for. Giant schools of fish covered the screen. The very proud owner now knew that he had gotten his money’s worth. The screen stayed filled with fish arches as he readied the lines. But, the next two hours passed without a single bite, yet fish continued to show on the screen. He had used live bait, worms and most of the lures in his tackle box.
Bewildered as he was, he couldn’t figure out why he wasn’t catching fish. He then noticed that the boat was close to the shore in very shallow water. In fact, the boat was so shallow that the lines became hung on the bottom. The fish finder indicated much deeper water with fish below the boat.
Upon closer inspection, he noticed that he had mistakenly enabled the simulator mode on his new sonar unit. What he had been seeing all day was a computer generated event designed to be used for demonstration purposes.
What happened to this unsuspecting angler can happen to anyone, when a new unit is used for the first time and a wrong button is pushed. This is why the menu screen on most units has a feature that allows you to reset it to factory settings. When you can’t recall which buttons you actually punched, use this reset feature to clear the unit and start again.
Read the instruction manual carefully before installing and starting a new unit. Most manufacturers provide an online tutorial with a working simulator on their web site. If you still have questions, call the manufacturer’s 800 help number. It is best to call from your boat with the sonar unit turned on. Don’t be embarrassed to make the call. Everyone has had to do it from time to time. Fellow fishermen often refer to this number as the “1-800 - I’m stupid number.” Regardless, it is the quickest and easiest way to resolve a sonar-operating question.
Tips from Captain Gus:
Fishing line has a tendency to twist and tangle. Before replacing it, try to remove all knots and terminal tackle, and pull the line behind a slow-moving boat for several minutes. The pressure from the line being pulled through the water will straighten most lines and return them to their original untwisted condition.
Upcoming Events:
Thursday, September 24, 2009 - “Everything You Want to Know About Tying Fishing Knots,” a free seminar will be at Gander Mountain, Exit 36, Mooresville, NC. Capt. Gus will conduct this ninety-minute power point presentation. Call 704 658 0822 for additional information.
Hot Spots of the Week:
Schools of white perch and spotted bass are surface feeding at daylight in large coves at both ends of the lake. Best baits are top water poppers with ice fly trailers. Stripers at the lower end of the lake are hitting baits drifted and trolled at suspended depths to sixty feet. Limits of spotted bass are being caught on deep diving crank baits over deep brush and underwater humps to twenty feet. Lake Norman’s water temperature is in the mid eighties.The water level is about 3.3' below full pond.
This week’s fishing forecast: Partly sunny with limits of fish!
Captain Gus Gustafson of Lake Norman Ventures, Inc. is licensed by the US Coast Guard, a member of the Southeastern Outdoor Press Association, and is an outdoor columnist and a full time professional fishing guide on Lake Norman, NC. Visit his web site, Fishin' With Gus! at www.FishingWithGus.com or call 704.617.6812.
For additional information e-mail Gus at Gus@LakeNorman.com
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