Interpreting my fishfinder - please help

[Volitan]

Hi. I recently purchased a Garmin 301c fish finder for use with kayaks and a dingy. Surprisingly, it didn't come with a manual on how to interpret what you see on screen. I've Googled, didn't learn much.

So I've taken a few snaps of the screen with my phone - and was hoping experienced users could advise on what these images mean.

1. For the first photo, I'm wondering whether this is very dense weed over a muddy bottom ?? That would make it 1.2metre high weed over a soft bottom - I'm not sure whether that's plausible or not ?

2. This next one looks like weed too - somewhat straggly weed - is this right ?

On the same photo, I'm wondering what can really be relied upon with the fish icons. It looks like the machine is trying to tell me there is 3 small fish and 2 larger fish. Is this really the case - or is it just 3 weak signals and 2 strong signals ?

3. In this photo I'm wondering if this is baitfish ?? It seems to stretch 8metres up from a muddy bottom at 14 metres - is that so ?

4. What are these isolated outcrops ??? There were a few of these - usually wedge shaped and incomplete.

5. and finally - in this one what is the object on the bottom on the left hand side ??? Is it a rock ?

cheers, and thanks for your response.

Arron

and by the way, none of those little fish icons was hungry today.

Edited February 6, 2015 by Volitan

[Chopper 57]

DGarmin echo 301c Manual

https://www.manualowl.com/p/Garmin/echo-301c/Manual/214325

Manuals and user guide free PDF downloads for Garmin echo 301c.

[Chopper 57]

Hope this helps

[Volitan]

Thannks chopper. Actually, the Garmin does come with printed versions of those manuals, but they just tell you how to use the keys, menu items etc. There's nothing that tells you what you see on screen means - nothing that tells you how to tell a rock from a fish.

There are a few generic manuals from garmin and lowrance etc which do address this question which look good but are very shallow when you get into them.

Its an odd oversight really - youd think they would want you to get the best outof their products.

Thanks anyway

[Holls]

Its an odd oversight really - youd think they would want you to get the best outof their products.

I agree, Volitan. I have a good Garmin 350C, but I'm only guessing as to what it shows me. A lump of seaweed floating below the kayak can look exactly like a fish, it seems. Structure VERY hard to interpret. My FF has only been helpful finding holes and dropoffs in the lake. No doubt FFs are more useful finding reef and very large fish out off shore.

[Zacnoel]

Hi

In the picture 1 , its not soft weed but a soft bottom. The sounder is powerful enough to travel through the various bottom subtrate and then return the signal to the sounder

In picture 2 , you are correct the sounder is only converting a signal hit to a picture of a fish . As you say this could be three pieces of weed or three fish

In pic 3 , what I think you are seeing is the bottom profile. The change from a purple bottom to a yellow bottom is just a change in bottom density, that is it may be the difference between silt and sand. To the left you can see what looks like weed growing on the sandy bottom then the bottom coming up a rise.

Pic 4 , really hard to say

Pic 5 , again you are correct , it is bottom structure and due to the darker colour it is slightly different density from the rest of the bottom

Interpreting sounder info can be realy difficult. as Chopper has pointed out most manuals are available online

Good luck

Edited February 22, 2015 by Zacnoel