Humminbird LakeMaster Manitoba Card Announced

by General InformationReview

Humminbird Announces the Release of the First LakeMaster Manitoba Card

Humminbird just announced the New LakeMaster Manitoba card, which builds on their already impressive High Definition ChartSelect library  in Manitoba. Now with over 100 HD surveyed waters in incredible 1′ contour detail in Manitoba and other lakes available in standard definition. The card also includes the Ontario portion of the Winnipeg River in standard definition to Kenora and High Definition charts of Lake of the Woods and Rainy River. 

Features:

  • Shallow Water Highlight: Set the shallow water offset to target areas to fish or places to avoid as you travel around the lake.
  • Depth Highlight: Once you’ve figured out the fish’s depth, set the depth highlight to zone in on the structure around the lake.
  • Water Level Offset: Adjust to changing water levels or ice thickness to calibrate the water level on the day you are fishing.
  • Follow the contour: paired with your Minn Kota equipped with iPilot Link, keep yourself in the target zone.
  • Depth Colours: Adjust the colour shading to your body of water, and your preferences. Shallow (white) to deep (dark blue).
  • Contour Interval: Available on Humminbird Solix 
  • units, you can adjust the contour intervals to clean up the lines on steeper breaks while maintaining the details.
  The card has HD surveyed lakes from all over the province; the eastern region is well represented, but much attention has been paid to popular lakes in Riding Mountain, Duck Mountain and Turtle Mountain, and with 50 HD surveyed lakes west of Winnipeg alone, it seems like a steal at $174.99, and I haven’t even mentioned Lake Winnipeg (South Basin In HD) 
The card is expected in stores at the end of November, be sure to pre-order yours from Lake of the Woods Sports Headquarters today.

Review: Humminbird Ice Helix

by Review

Humminbird Ice Helix Lineup

This review has been a long time coming, it is certainly not a first impression, and to call it long term review is an understatement.  My first Ice Helix was a Helix 5 Sonar G1 portable that I added the ice transducer to in 2016.  I am now running Ice Helix 7 CHIRP/GPS G3N All-season bundle.  These new units aren’t simply open water units with an ice transducer, they have their own dedicated operating system specifically designed for the unique demands of Ice Fishing, combined with the Low Q Ice CHIRP transducer.

Here are my thoughts and recommendations.  I loved my Helix 5.  The history the graph offers is what sold me on the Helix lineup, it allows me to learn, and more importantly it allows me to teach other anglers how the fish are responding to their presentation.  Humminbird quickly built on what the G1 Helix units offered, introducing an updated Ice Mode, CHIRP Sonar and interference rejection in the G2.  Now with the G3 units we have instantaneous response times, amazing target separation, better interference rejection and crystal clear displays.  To the point that we are running up to 4 units in our SnoBear, and each one can make out every detail that is going on below the ice.  These units are simply, clearly, better.

What to consider when buying a Ice Helix unit:

  • Are maps available for the lakes that you fish, or are you planing to map lakes using AutoChart Live? Make sure you choose a GPS enabled unit to unlock these features.
  • Do you have a boat that you’d like to use the unit on during the open water months? Look into the all season bundle if you do.
  • How far away from the screen will you be during regular use / will you be using the split screen view? The bigger the screen the farther you can be and still make out the details.

We Recommend:

Ice Helix 7 G3N All Season

Ice Helix 7 CHIRP/GPS All-Season G3N

By far the most versatile option, it provides the best bang for your buck.  As well suited for the ice as it is on your boat, the larger 7″ screen lets you take advantage of all the features the Ice Helix has to offer with great visibility in split screen mode. The most over looked feature is the networking, allowing you take advantage of OneBoat network connecting to any network enabled Humminbird units and Minn Kota products.  I use it at the bow of my boat with the US2 built into my Minn Kota Ulterra.

*The All-Season Bundle is available in a 5″ screen as well 

Alternative:

Ice Heiix 7 G3

Ice Helix 7 CHIRP/GPS G3

If you don’t need the open water capabilities of the All season bundle, the Ice Helix 7 G3 Has all the features you’ll need to maximize your time on the ice with GPS to take advantage of the LakeMaster and ChartSelect maps available, and the larger display to take advantage of the split screen views available.

Budget option:

Ice Helix 5 G3

Ice Helix 5 CHIRP G3

If you don’t have room in your budget for one of the other units, the Ice Helix 5 is still an excellent option, while not equipped with networking or GPS capabilities, the 5 Inch screen is well suited for use ice fishing where you are often closer to the screen, and it is still has the target separation, interference rejection and history that make Ice Helix such an effective tool to add to your Ice fishing arsenal.

*The Helix 5 is available with GPS as well 

This summer I was able to take advantage of the suction cup mount on a fly-in trip to a remote Northern Ontario lake.  There is no limit to where you can take the Ice Helix.  

One last recommendation is to pair it with a Lithium battery, and turn the screen brightness down to extend your runtime and go days between charges.

Lake Winnipeg ChartSelect Map

by Review

The most exciting announcement to come out for us at the 2019 Winnipeg Ice Fishing Show, was that Humminbird was set to release their ChartSelect map of Lake Winnipeg.  If you take the time to think about just how big Lake Winnipeg is, and how big the south basin that is now surveyed in 1 foot contours is, it is amazing that this map is available for just $39.59.  Not to mention that it includes the Red River south to Lockport and the Winnipeg river to pine falls, and the rest of Lake Winnipeg is included in standard definition.

I was lucky enough to be out on Lake Winnipeg with Darrin Bohonis of Johnson outdoors the day the map went live on the ChartSelect website.  We were able to download it to the Humminbird FishSmart app on his iPad mid way through the day, and start to explore the subtle and not so subtle features Lake Winnipeg has to offer.  Although we didn’t track down any big greenbacks on that day, the map lead me to some new fishing spots that have proven to be some of the best fishing I have had on Lake Winnipeg, both for size and numbers.

To put things into perspective, we now have the ability to narrow in on a location we think the fish will be before we drill our first hole, adjust accordingly throughout the day and ultimately spend more time fishing and less time drilling holes.

Choose Electric!

by Review

There’s been a bone of contension over the past few years, with the introduction if the electric ice auger into the ice fishing mainstream. We’ve seen a lot of products hit the market, some hits and some misses. I first started using a hand auger powered by a cordless drill, now, I have a plethora of options on the market, most of which are making the demise of the gas auger closer to a reality.

My first foray into electric augers was attaching a cordless drill directly to my hand auger flight. Which quickly turned into a poor decision with the thick ice we see on Lake Winnipeg, I burnt out my drill the first trip out. But choose the right drill, and connect it to a Clam drill plate designed with industrial ball bearings that absorb the load from the auger so the drill is only used to spin the auger and not support the torque and it might be the perfect choice for you.

Screen-Shot-2019-11-13-at-1.56.00-PM

My next electric ice auger experience was with the first generation Ion. I got my first chance to use it right around Christmas time on Lake Dauphin, it worked great for drilling inside a friends permanent shack, with no fumes and its ability to re-drill holes but it lacked the speed to take on its gas counterparts.

By the time we launched Icebound Excursions, we knew that an electric auger was the way we wanted to go. Our SnoBear paired with an electric auger allows us the ability to drill our holes from inside, making set-up easier, and warmer. Electric Ice augers are inherently forgiving in nature as the auger only spins when you have your finger on the trigger,  and is ready to go as soon as you slide the battery in. One feature I like is that when the auger binds in the hole the power cuts out instead of transferring all that momentum to your wrists. With some of our customers being new to ice fishing an electric ice auger was the safest auger we could choose, and the obvious choice. We choose the Ion X, the best on the market at the time, it cut holes reliably all season long (up to 3.5′ of ice) and with the exception of the blades icing up on colder days didn’t give us any grief. We weren’t as quick as our gas counterparts, but with us fishing some areas day after day after day, its ability to re-drill holes was a huge asset.

We started the 2018/2019 season with the Ion X, and quickly realized that the bite had changed, we found ourselves never fishing the same area more than a few days and never fishing the same holes more than once. This meant we were drilling many more holes per day, and speed was becoming a factor. After experimenting with different flights, we had to make a decision, do we switch augers? I borrowed a friends Strikemaster Lithium 40V and the difference was clear, we cut our set-up time down and got more holes per charge. We ran that auger the rest of the season and it performed right through to the end. (Just make sure you have a spare set of blades or two with you).

We’re entering the 2019/2020 ice season and it’s become clear that electric ice augers are here to stay, and they’re ready to challenge gas augers. New this year we have the Ion G2 which is touted as faster, lighter version of its predecessor, Strikemaster hasn’t changed their auger, but they’ve come out with a lighter flight and Clam is now entering the game with it’s 120V 8″ Auger Kit that stands toe to toe on specs with anything on the market. With 240 Watts Clam’s electric ice auger chews through up to 1800 inches of ice per charge with a planetary gear system that delivers up to 325rpm. All backed by the longest warranty on the market (5 years). I can’t wait to get my hands on one and put it to the test on one of the most notorious lakes in the country.

The pace of change in the ice fishing world has been immense, development in ice augers are no exception. Whether you’re currently using a hand auger, gas auger or have already made the switch to electric chances are there is a better version hitting the market this year. I still drill the first hole of the season using my trusty hand auger (superstition), but with the lightweight of electric ice augers, the long lasting batteries or speed the newest generation delivers, there is no reason to use anything else this ice season.

Defending Champ


Strikemaster Lithium 40V
$749.99CDN

Power: 200 Watts
Battery: 40V 5AH
Inches of ice: 1600"
Weight: 24lbs
Warranty: 2 years

Powerhouse

Clam 120V Auger
$799.99CDN

Power: 240 Watts
Battery: 120V 2AH
Inches of ice: 1800"
Weight: 25lbs
Warranty: 5 years (1year Battery)

Comeback King

Ion G2
$999.99CDN

Power: 240 Watts
Battery: 40V 6AH
Inches of ice: 2000"
Weight: 17lbs
Warranty: 3 years3