Handheld GPS for ocean?

sorryhoney · 08-19-2008, 03:47 PM

Any recommendations on a handheld GPS for the ocean? Heading out Sunday got spooky when my partner says "What're you gonna do if that GPS dies"?

Any thoughts?

ps.s Good day south of the pile. A 55 lb. and 65 lb. butt, both on at the same time, two guys in the boat. What a hoot! Nothing at the Banana and west of the pile. Oh well, it;s only gas!

flapbreaker · 08-19-2008, 06:07 PM

Ya know, anything would be better than nothing but I would get one that has maps (maybe they all do now). Garmin is a good brand but there are others. You should play with them in person and choose the one that's easiest for you to use and has decent marine maps.

Reel Knotty · 08-19-2008, 06:10 PM

I have a Garmin GPSmap 76csx and love it. I posted a similar question about a year ago and there were many votes for this particular device. Waterproof, floats, and you can buy a bluechart CD from Garmin and unlock and download the charts you want onto the unit. It is pretty easy to use. I used it a couple of weeks ago while out of Ilwaco.

It does go through standard alkaline batteries faster than I would like, but a quick stop for some lithium batteries fixed that issue.

KeyWest · 08-19-2008, 06:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by flapbreaker

Ya know, anything would be better than nothing but I would get one that has maps (maybe they all do now). Garmin is a good brand but there are others. You should play with them in person and choose the one that's easiest for you to use and has decent marine maps.

sorryhoney · 08-19-2008, 07:00 PM

Great. Thanks

Chromaflage · 08-19-2008, 07:38 PM

I have a Garmin GPSMap 76C - Fantastic little unit I picked up on Ebay for about $200 last year. In addition to my fixed/mounted chart plotter on the boat, I also keep my handheld on and keep it on the dash. Extra batteries on board in the ditch bag as well.

puffins crew · 08-19-2008, 08:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sorryhoney

Any recommendations on a handheld GPS for the ocean? Heading out Sunday got spooky when my partner says "What're you gonna do if that GPS dies"?

Any thoughts?

well, it;s only gas!

I have a basic garmin etrex hand held that has made many trips on the salt. I play with it a lot and it is easy to use. I leave it on and in a 'dry bag' around my neck with a cell phone.

I have taken the time to put in many way points of the ports that we go out of. Like the marina entrance and channel marker buoys, the jaws and the entrance buoys.

Peace, Tom

Bait O' Eggs · 08-19-2008, 08:50 PM

As long as it says Garmin on it you will have a good one

BigWaterBigFish · 08-20-2008, 08:51 AM

I have a Magellan Marine and have been pleased with it's performance so far, screen's a little small but for handheld, waterproof (proven), drop proof (proven) ... takes chip.

Elkiller · 08-20-2008, 09:14 AM

I have a garmin rhino. Radio feature is nice when backpacking. Go garmin.

Legend21 · 08-20-2008, 09:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Elkiller

I have a garmin rhino. Radio feature is nice when backpacking. Go garmin.

I have a Garmin Rhino as well that we use for backups. Tons of maps you can add to it and the extra radio feature is always nice in a pinch. Gotta love em...good luck in your search.

sorryhoney · 08-20-2008, 10:00 AM

Thanks for the feedback. Think I'll go with a plain Jane Garmin.

Be safe out there! >((())) ' >

Undertaker · 08-20-2008, 11:28 AM

Another useful feature to keep in ming for your backup choice... can you transfer waypoints from your main to your backup?
Not necessary since you can manually program them in, but if you have a lot of waypoints, it's nice to be able to do it.
I have 2 handhelds, both Garmin and my fixed mount is Lowrance.
It was easy to get the Garmin's set up. A little more involved for the Lowrance, but still possible (gpsbabel is what I used to convert from Garmin to Lowrance).

fishbait · 08-20-2008, 02:07 PM

I just upgraded my Garmin E-Trex Legend handleld to the E-Trex Legend C for a couple of reasons. Both units are waterproof down to 6 meters

1. The screen is color.

2. The back light for the screen can be turned manually turned on and brightness adjusted and the light will stay on till turned manually off.

3. Supposedly lower power consumption. Uses 2 AA batteries and spares are easy to carry.

4. Ability to download Garmin Blue Charts into the unit. I did this and nice to have the charts in a handheld.

Couple of trips and so far I am very pleased with this new unit.

SecondSeason · 08-20-2008, 04:10 PM

i use the garmin astro with the frs/gps dog collar stuck on one of the Grady boats so that i know where they might be fishing.

Garmin with a map works great be sure to have it on when you cross the bar so you know your track on the way back

crossroads · 08-20-2008, 05:06 PM

I guess I need to upgrade to a dash mounted gps, I have 3 handhelds 2 Garmin and 1 magellen and I carry all 3 on every trip. Oh, the Garmins seem to be more user friendly in my opinion.