Crosslake, Minn. – Still so much we don’t know about what’s really happening beneath the surface.
Interesting to consider that beyond water and oxygen itself, perhaps the single most important fish-locating factor remains the least understood. Water temperature is so vital to fish that each species’ existence depends on an optimal range. Locate the ideal temperature at the right depth, and you’ll almost always land on gamefish gold.
But how to put these key pieces together and solve the puzzle?
Sonar screens display water temperature on the surface, but what about temperature at the depth of your target species? Might read 72 degrees on top, but at 10, 15 or 25 feet, it’s a whole other ballgame.
The best way to quickly discover this essential fish-finding data—summertime, salt- or frozen water—is to drop the optics of an Aqua-Vu® underwater camera. The gold standard in subsurface surveillance, Aqua-Vu’s new Micro™ DVR-DT series (Micro 5 Plus DVR-DT and Micro Plus DVR-DT) is the most complete handheld underwater viewing system ever engineered. Here’s why:
The simple act of dropping the lens of the Micro DVR-DT to any depth instantly reveals three critical clues—water temperature, depth and a real-time, real-life video image of the underwater world. No other high-tech tool brings together such decisive fish-finding data and displays it so clearly on a single portable LCD.
“When fish move offshore, you’ve got to find that key depth zone that’s holding bass,” says Bassmaster Elite Series pro Ott DeFoe. “The Micro DVR-DT camera helps me find the precise level of the thermocline; this is nearly always the depth range where baitfish and gamefish set up. This Aqua-Vu provides one of the quickest, easiest shortcuts to putting together a game-winning pattern. The beauty of finding these key depth-temperature zones is that you can then go to other areas of the lake that intersect with that zone and find more fish.
“Not only does the camera immediately show you temperature, it also shows any fish in the area and the exact depth holding them. Remember, just because you see fish on sonar, you don’t know what species they are. Drop the Aqua-Vu down there and it removes all doubt.”
Further north, where lakes freeze, another group of enterprising anglers have recently begun to unlock the secrets of water temperature below the ice. “We’re finding that even a two or three degree difference in temperature below the ice can be the absolute difference maker,” says Brandon Newby, who, along with partner Ryan Wilson, claimed three consecutive North American Ice Fishing Circuit (NAIFC) Team of the Year titles. “At the 2015 NAIFC Championship on Mille Lacs, Minnesota, we found a break in 14 to 22 feet that held a bubble of 37- and 38-degree water—just a few degrees warmer than the surrounding territory. This little zone held some of the biggest crappies in the tournament.
“There’s no way we would have found this sweet spot without the Micro DVR-DT camera.”
