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Posts: 1458
Location: Kronenwetter, WI | Hi—I’m running a Helix 12 3rd gen and wondering what mapping chip to get. I messaged Lakemaster and got this reply:
Thank you for contacting Humminbird. We appreciate your support of our products.
The lakemaster map card covers lakes and rivers we offer the Ontario Lakemaster map card but it doesn't cover the bays you will need to contact Navionics at 1-800-848-5896.
If we can assist you further on this subject or any other Humminbird related questions please feel free to email us again.
Good Boating and Fishing!
So….am I better off not getting Lakemaster? Does anyone use Lakemaster Ontario and does it work for what a musky fisherman needs?
Thanks,
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Posts: 633
Location: Madison, WI | That reply is weird. Lakemaster makes a Woods/Rainy specific chip. We ran that chip side by side with Navionics back in 2018 when I was up at tamarack and the Lakemaster was significantly better. Showed reefs that weren’t even on the Navionics chip. Found a few high spots with the trolling motor while casting that weren’t marked, but at least the reef was there |
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Posts: 390
Location: Selkirk, Manitoba | I believe the newest Ontario and Manitoba versions cover the entire Lake of the Woods. The previous versions that were specific to Woods/Rainy didn't cover up past Big Narrows to Kenora, but I believe did cover Sabaskong and all the southern portions of the lake
I have the card but don't travel that far south.
Edited by Angling Oracle 5/28/2022 7:19 PM
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Posts: 354
| Ditto to what dan said. There’s a good chip.
For all Lake wide: A good canadian friend has been there running around a lot recently and,knowing i run quite a bit in the dark,cautioned me about the high water hazards. Its not only the now hidden reefs etc but there is lotsa debris floating around due to the high water. Hopefully that will stabilize a bit before 6/18 but…??? |
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Location: Athens, Ohio | Never just rely on a GPS mapping system for navigation up there, be sure to also have an up to date Canadian hydrographic (paper) map, as GPS can be off by ten feet sometimes. m |
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Posts: 163
Location: West Central WI | It used to be a Lakemaster "Woods/Rainy" chip, but I bought a new chip (Ontario V2) for my Helix 10 last year for our annual trip to Sabaskong Bay. The new Ontario chip and the older chip cover same area. They work great, but you need to remember that they only log the high-def grid that the survey boat mapped plus other data Lakemaster incorporated from other surveys. They could have missed something between tracks. Bays are surveyed but the further you get toward shore, the more risk you take. Safe transit is a combination of following chip guidance and conservative boating. Going full speed is only safe in the designated channels which are depicted on the Chip maps as well as the Canadian Hydrographic chart #6214. To maximize safety, I reduce speed off the channels and even to the point where I approach less trusted bays with my motor in a raised position or operating only my trolling motor. No system is 100% foolproof, but the Lakemaster chips have been very good so far. Even with this, I've bumped rocks not charted, but always at a very slow speed and closer to shore where I want to be fishing. |
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Posts: 1458
Location: Kronenwetter, WI | Weird that HB would basically tell me to buy naviaonics. The old woods/rainy chips it sounds like is the only option? I found a woods/rainy V2 chip for $50–anyone used that? Not sure if the v4 is that much better. |
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Posts: 390
Location: Selkirk, Manitoba | Woods/Rainy chip does not cover the northern parts of the lake but does cover Sabaskong and all of the southern portion of LOTW and Rainy. That's all it covers, so if that's all you ever intend to fish then it will work. I cannot speak to the updates, but obviously HD covered areas are what you want
Ontario V2 covers all the LOTW + Rainy and Kenora area lakes and those on Wpg River. It covers all the stuff out east as well if you have that need (ie all the way out the St. Lawrence).
Manitoba covers all the same LOTW and Kenora area lakes plus Manitoba stuff as per V2 Ontario. It may not be of interest to you, but would be for anyone that is interested in fishing giant walleye on Lake Winnipeg for ice fishing, or for Red River channel catfish or Pine Falls fall walleye - generally this would be more of the Minnesotans crowd (and suprisingly a lot of Iowegians for channel cats).
FYI - the Manitoba rep is the the fellow who mapped all of the northern LOTW stuff in the past few years - the previous Woods/Rainy chip stuff was done presumably by some folks from MN.
Edited by Angling Oracle 5/30/2022 10:36 AM
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