Using side-scan technology to focus fishing efforts is becoming a more widely used tool in many fishing situations. Sam Tabacaru describes how valuable his side-scanning capabilities are when it comes to targeting roaming local pelagics.
Learning to use new electronics can be a daunting prospect, but by better understanding the benefits to be gained, the incentive to select certain technology and learn how to use it can be quickly garnered. For myself it was simple, I wanted to pursue avenues such as chasing line burning pelagic’s, micro jigging as well as casting shallow water soft plastics for big snapper. For this type of fishing, side scan and mapping capabilities were a must. After much market research, I found that Lowrance, Humminbird and Garmin all had side-scan capabilities. The added features of the Lowrance product such as Insight Genesis attracted me to this technology and as such I have learned how to use it to its full potential. Once I actually attempted to use the functionality of my sounder as it was designed, it opened up a whole new world in fish finding, recording and the creating of maps that are more sophisticated and detailed than any other map on the market. The benefits of this new technology has enabled myself to locate and target species faster, allowing me to also record and create maps of the grounds I’m consistently fishing. Let’s take a look at some of the ways I have honed various techniques with the aid of improved sounding technology to record some impressive catches.
Side Imaging Know How
Side-scanning bounces sonar out to either side of a boat and then creates a 3D image of what is running through the path of the sonar. The side-scan image has obviously proven itself on the bream, barra and bass circuits, but its time to shed some light into the capabilities that this new technology has on the offshore fishing scene. Side and down-scan imaging is allowing anglers to distinguish exactly what is below a boat or out to the side. For example, wrecks, trees and pylons are seen exactly as they would be if you could see them through a snorkel and mask. With this technology you can accurately pin point where the fish are sitting and sometimes what would previously look like screen clutter, now reveals what really lies beneath and either side of your boat. Structure scan is simple to understand and use but when you start recording the information it captures and start creating your own sea maps you will open up a whole new understanding and knowledge of the type of country that you are fishing and why the fish are congregating in specific areas.
Side Image Applications
Side imaging has the capacity to enable anglers to distinguish between particular species of fish: good sounding technicians are now able to identify species from bass, barramundi to trevally by scrutinising the shape of fish showing up on sounder screens: all species can be seen in their true shape if you scan over them in the correct way. With these capabilities, it is allowing us to consistently target specific pelagic fish instead of getting distracted with schools of mackerel tuna or other undesired species. This technology means we can spend less time searching waters that are not holding fish and more time trolling and casting big lures in prospective looking areas. I personally don’t let anyone put a cast out of my boat until we have sounded our target species. It makes sense that you don’t wear yourself or your buddies out until you find fish and when you do, focus on that area because when the fish begin to feed, they find it hard to resist effectively trolled baits or big poppers and stickbaits put into their feeding zones.
There are added benefits of using side scanning technology when cruising in search of pelagics: the capabilities of structure scan means I have been able to find new ground and random rocks that are holding large snapper that I never would have previously found.
Slow-Trolling and Pelagics
Side-scan has enabled me to catch my fair share of Spanish mackerel in a season that is gradually drawing to a close: the upside is the possibility of the odd XOS sized mackerel that hang in local waters through winter. The fact that I can slow troll and have a wide beam either side of my boat while searching for these fish is ideal for all anglers that prefer to troll. Anglers are given the opportunity with the side scan transducer to see as far as 76m on the left and right sides of the boat. The capabilities of a good side-image unit means you can slow troll a rigged slimy mackerel or bonito in your favourite mackerel spot, find them on side-scan, mark a waypoint in the location where you see them and automatically you can focus your trolling in that area because you know the fish are there. Not only do I find slow trolling effective in our chosen areas of focus, but also casting big GT style poppers and stick baits in these patches can prove very successful. With this technology, it allows me to find the fish I’m looking for quicker and the advantages of the Lowrance units mean being able to record and upload to Insight Genesis. By creating these maps we have been able to find snapper spots that I would normally never think of fishing.
Side Image technology makes it easy to identify structure, bait and larger fish positioned to the sides of the boat (Top and bottom left and bottom right). Fish show up as bright lines. Down scan technology makes it easy to identify mid-water bait and predators (top right).
Sound Tactics
I target pelagic and reef fish predominantly by using my sounder with the side-scan. A typical morning consists of searching expansive reef systems in 10 to 30 m of water off the NSW coast. It can be tricky sometimes, but with the ability we have to map the reefs out with Insight Genesis we can place marks and keep track of the locations we have been catching pelagics species. Another habit I have developed when documenting where specific catches occurred, is to also note the direction of current and obviously water colour and tide. This information becomes vital on future trips as it saves you lots of searching time if you can go straight to the spots on the reef where you know the fish are more often than not. The key technique when targeting roaming pelagics is to slow troll large dead baits while prospecting to the sides of the boat with occasional cast and retrieved big surface and sinking hardbody lures. Baits we rely on consist of rigged bonito or slimy mackerel that are rigged on 7/0 chin-rigged systems that are very effective and easy to use. The alternative includes a rig such as the TT troll bait rigs which have proved very effective: the 60 gm rigs with the 8/0
Retrieving surface hardbody lures while slow-trolling productive water produced this speedster.
A dead bait rigged with a TT chin-weighted rig. The bait above was a near miss!
have been the rig of choice when using bonito. The TT rigs come in a range of sizes and colours to suit garfish and slimy mackerel baits. Don’t shy away from using big baits, we don’t hesitate to use baits up to 30 cm in length and most times if a bait hasn’t been hit in 2 minutes you have most likely been stripped without knowing. Spanish mackerel can be super-sneaky and sometimes a bite consists of the smallest of rod movements where other days the Tiagra 30 will just start screaming. Trolling for these fish on our boat includes a spotter always paying attention and constantly watching rods while slow trolling and checking baits. Once you have located a group of schooling mackerel try to continue to pay close attention to the sounder and work the baits around the area where you have marked fish. The trolling speed that has been most effective has been 1-2 knots and the majority of hook-ups occur when motoring into the current. We always slow-troll with two rods and depending on the fish around, use Shimano Tiagra 16 two speeds and Tiagra 30’s in order to get those bigger fish in the cooler months. Remember trolling isn’t just motoring around aimlessly. By using your side-scan and generated maps everything becomes calculated and further allows you to better target your desired species.
Large slow-trolled dead baits are a great way to tempt sizeable mackerel.
Side Benefits
Slow trolling has enabled me to create maps and better understand the geometry of local reefs. The overlay functions on my sounder allow me to place vegetation layers and density of the sea floors on to my maps; from this point you can start to work out the other types of fish that will be around these reefs such as snapper, spangled emperor, grass emperor as well as identifying some great squid grounds. This added layer of information has become invaluable when it comes time to change tactics and try targeting reef species using micro-jig and soft plastic approaches.
With this new technology it has enabled me to better fish my local reefs and also reefs I know nothing about. The information my sounder unit fitted with side-scan gives me is priceless and I can confidently say without this technology my mackerel count would not be as high as it is. The side scan has allowed me to locate these schooling fish faster and concentrate my fishing in the areas they were spotted and marked. The time taken to acquire and learn how to use some new technology has definitely paid plenty of dividends.
Sam Tabacaru lives on the northern NSW coast. He loves targeting offshore and reef species but is equally at home chasing bream and jacks in the estuary and bass in the fresh. Sam is a Pro Staff member for Lowrance and EJ Todds.
