Google Earth for Fluke

[Crabman]

Perhaps many of you use this method but if you don't, let me explain my use of Google Earth for fluke and a few other fish. As I said in another post, I like to fish fluke in the Great South Bay. Regular drifting from the Lighthouse to Fire Island inlet inside the bay with a crowd does not excite me. I would rather catch one nice fish alone in skinny water than drift with the fleet. I use an electric trolling motor equipped with a GPS and Google Earth to find and fish my spots. For those that haven't used Google Earth, check out how I use it.

Open Google Earth and go to a favorite shoal area you want to fish. In the photo above is Steam Boat Channel by the Fire Island Lighthouse. Looking at the photo above you can see the depressions in the area. If you notice, I have a lot of waypoints plotted. What you might not see, in the lower right-hand corner of GE, you can see the latitude and longitude of your cursor when it is placed somewhere on the Google Earth map. Also, another really cool feature is: elev -10 ft. That's how many feet below sea level the cursor is sitting over. As you move the cursor, you will see the elevation (depth) change. This elevation is SB-10. Is it real accurate, no, but it's pretty close. Once you harvest the waypoints of the area, you can modify your waypoints into the depression. At times and in different areas, the Google Earth photo might be a crappy photo. Waves and sun can make the picture unusable for seeing the depressions. However, you can get around the bad photo. In the top tool bar on GE, there is a slider that allows you to change the picture to a different time and perhaps you will get a more usuable photo. "Show Historical Imagery" is the slider. Move the cursor over the slider and slide it to a different time. As you do, watch the different pictures come up from the past. Using this will probably get you the view you like. Once you have the photo that gives you the best view, start writing down the lat/long of the cursor as you move it over the depression area. There is a way to copy and download the waypoints but I don't use it. Perhaps someone else can explain it but I find having a written list of waypoints taken off the screen is good enough for me and once installed into my GPS, they are stored. I store a few spots at a time and in no time I have a lot of areas plotted to use for years to come. Good Luck and give it a try. PS: Please don't tell anyone.

 

[s.korine]

I am a bit confused. Why is this better than using the depth charts on a fish finder?

 

[Crabman]

I'm going over a "flats" area. These areas with minor depths changes are rarely shown or accurate on a chartplotter. It is much more accurate seeing the depressions. Also, you would not be able to find some of these areas. Steamboat, yes. The small drains, no. Take a look at the north part of the State Channel across from Gilgo. There are a lot of drains that hold fluke but are not easy to get to. Google Earth will show you the way. As I said, this is something I use.

 

[BennyV]

View attachment 29127

Perhaps many of you use this method but if you don't, let me explain my use of Google Earth for fluke and a few other fish. As I said in another post, I like to fish fluke in the Great South Bay. Regular drifting from the Lighthouse to Fire Island inlet inside the bay with a crowd does not excite me. I would rather catch one nice fish alone in skinny water than drift with the fleet. I use an electric trolling motor equipped with a GPS and Google Earth to find and fish my spots. For those that haven't used Google Earth, check out how I use it.

Open Google Earth and go to a favorite shoal area you want to fish. In the photo above is Steam Boat Channel by the Fire Island Lighthouse. Looking at the photo above you can see the depressions in the area. If you notice, I have a lot of waypoints plotted. What you might not see, in the lower right-hand corner of GE, you can see the latitude and longitude of your cursor when it is placed somewhere on the Google Earth map. Also, another really cool feature is: elev -10 ft. That's how many feet below sea level the cursor is sitting over. As you move the cursor, you will see the elevation (depth) change. This elevation is SB-10. Is it real accurate, no, but it's pretty close. Once you harvest the waypoints of the area, you can modify your waypoints into the depression. At times and in different areas, the Google Earth photo might be a crappy photo. Waves and sun can make the picture unusable for seeing the depressions. However, you can get around the bad photo. In the top tool bar on GE, there is a slider that allows you to change the picture to a different time and perhaps you will get a more usuable photo. "Show Historical Imagery" is the slider. Move the cursor over the slider and slide it to a different time. As you do, watch the different pictures come up from the past. Using this will probably get you the view you like. Once you have the photo that gives you the best view, start writing down the lat/long of the cursor as you move it over the depression area. There is a way to copy and download the waypoints but I don't use it. Perhaps someone else can explain it but I find having a written list of waypoints taken off the screen is good enough for me and once installed into my GPS, they are stored. I store a few spots at a time and in no time I have a lot of areas plotted to use for years to come. Good Luck and give it a try. PS: Please don't tell anyone.

This seems like an interesting method to find certain areas to fish. I think certain manufacturers are going to be incorporating this type of information into their electronics to serve a similar purpose.

 

[tjd2320]

This looks like one of the suggestions made by John Skinner in his fishing video series.
Nearly Identical tip.
I ordered it, looked it over and cancelled it for a refund.
It was interesting but it was really a re-hash of many old tips.