The mouth of the Mississippi River is a long way from where Bassmaster Classic anglers will launch, but those who make the run should find winning stringers waiting for them.
Q: I am looking for the true coordinates to the “Quida Rocks” or some name close. There was an article in Louisiana Sportsman that gave coordinates for it in the Vermilion 200-block area, but I went to it and the coordinates are for the rig in Vermilion 200 block.
Dwayne Sonnier
Dear Dwayne:
I checked the story and could not find any of the “rocks” shown on any of the typical marine charts for the area (11340 and 1116A). It looks like they will be a little difficult to actually find.
To quote the story in the Sportsman:
One of his most productive areas is called the Quida Rocks in Vermilion 200 about 50 miles out of Southwest Pass.
…. a series of geological formations that dot the block in 110 feet of water.
“I don’t know what it is, It’s not corals. It’s some kind of mud lumps.
Dr. Phil Bart with the LSU Department of Geology & Geophysics said the charts didn’t show the exact composition of the rocks.
“It could be mud lumps, and it could be carbonate reefs like the Flower Gardens,” Bart said.
The formations are scattered across the Gulf’s floor in the block, but a good starting point would be coordinates 28° 46.270N and 92° 32.870W.
Whatever the formations are, they hold snapper.
Elias said the lumps can be seen on bottom machines as peaks, but he cautioned anglers not to look for towering humps.
“They’re not big coral formations. They might only extend 10 feet above the floor,” he explained. “Really, it’s an irregular bottom that you’re looking for.”
While most other anglers like to look upcurrent of structure for the biggest snapper, Elias said current isn’t a deciding factor around the Quida Rocks.
Evidently you should start around the rig you mentioned and conduct an underwater search with your depth-finder. The rises should be only about 10 feet above the normal flat bottom in the area.
Q: I own a 6-year-old Magellan hand-held GPS. The back light has gone out as well as the on/off button, and thus it is inoperable.
Is the case such that given these problems, it becomes a throwaway like most all else in today’s time, or is it economically feasable to have it repaired. If so, where could I take it?
Nick Siener
Dear Nick:
I had an older Magellan unit that was not showing the full screens. I contacted the Magellan support people. As the unit was no longer in production, they offered me an upgrade for a modest cost. I took the upgrade.
Contact Magellan at magellangps.com or at (800) 707-9971. I am sure they can best advise you on the repair possibilities of your unit.
If you send your unit in for repairs, etc., be sure to record and save all of your waypoints and routes as they will probably all be lost.
Q: I am shopping to upgrade my GPS. I have considered the Magellan Meridian Color. My concern is whether the color screen will hold up and/or have any problems as compared to the good old black screen. Any comments would be appreciated.
Thanks, Andre’ Vige’
Dear Andre’:
I remember that same concern when television was converting to color. We had a very reliable black-and-white set with a real good picture. Then came the time when we had to replace it, and color TV was available. We took the color option. Now color, of course, is the standard.
The color screens in the Magellan Meridian Color unit are a far cry from what the original Magellan ColorTrak looked like. The older ColorTrak unit is a non-mapping GPS unit.
I have a Magellan ColorTrak, and the “color” was three different colors — red, green and blue. You could adjust the intensity of each of these colors, but they appeared as separate colors in the screen.
Official U.S.G.S marine (NOAA) and topographical maps and charts are all published in a 16-color format. Sixty percent of all data on these charts and maps comes from what the different colors represent on the maps/charts. Color is used to indicate water depth, type of land terrain, types of marine channel markers, roads, creeks and rivers to name a few.
Some of the new-model GPS, depth finders, radios and cell phones use a film compensated super twisted nematic (FSTN) crystal. It appears to be an improvement over the LCDs in display both in characteristics and reliability. This type of crystal provides a better contrast, but is also more costly.
The major benefit is the improved contrast ratio, and it is not quite as sensitive to outside heat sources. The contrast ratio is better than the LCD in that it offers a much-lighter color background and darker pixels.
The Magellan Meridian color GPS is described as the first full-color hand-held GPS receiver. By full color, Magellan means that it has a FSTN crystal display type screen with a 16-color feature.
This is a very reliable configuration. It allows the Magellan MapSend mapping software, which duplicates the official charts and maps, to be displayed in the GPS unit with all of the official colors shown as in the hand-held Meridian Color GPS.
Part of the presentation in my seminar discusses color. Your question is almost always asked.
Color in a chart plotter or mapping GPS gives you a big advantage when viewing the maps on the GPS screen. Your decision comes in weighing the additional cost of the color to the advantages offered by color.
I would opt for the color features in purchasing another GPS mapping unit for my use.
