Lowrance® is adding even more value to the Ultimate Fishing System with the 2021 update to the C-MAP® Contour+ mapping preloaded in HDS LIVE displays. Redefining how anglers see the underwater world and maximizing their time on the water, the updated C-MAP Contour+ charts include a major increase in surveyed lakes featuring 1-foot contours – 15,000+ U.S. lakes and 9,400+ Canadian lakes – in addition to other refinements, including reprocessed depth contours and updated functionality.
Covering inland and near-shore coastal areas of the U.S., Canada and Bermuda, C-MAP Contour+ charts include Custom Depth Shading on all lakes, subscription-free Easy Routing™ (U.S. coast/Inland only), high-resolution bathymetric 1-foot contours, fishing Points of Interest (POIs) and standard navigation data – including Tides and Currents for coastal areas.
C-MAP’s Custom Color Depth Shading functionality enables anglers to highlight specific Points of Interest, including current fish-holding depths and potential hazard areas. It also allows anglers to make adjustments to the chart display to reflect high- or low-water conditions that can affect the shapes and edges of shorelines and submerged or partially submerged structures.
The Tides and Currents feature presents the time, water level and direction of tides with easy to understand graphs and indicates predicted time, direction and strength of currents with Current Flow graphs and colored arrows. This information is vital for safe navigation and fishing. It is also a great tool to get projections of water level and direction of tides to help plan a day out angling.
Subscription-free Easy Routing automatically plots the shortest, safest route based on chart data and personalized vessel information. Quickly taking two points and generating a suggested route, Easy Routing highlights potential dangers such as shoals, sandbars, submerged rocks and other obstacles.
Helping anglers make informed navigation decisions, the enhanced POIs offer all the important navigation data as well as fishing hot spots waypoints, lake-specific fishing tips and techniques.
Previously launched in June 2020 as a significantly enhanced, preloaded mapping solution for new HDS LIVE displays, C-MAP Contour+ – now with even more charting data and a larger file size – will not be available via a downloadable software upgrade. HDS LIVE displays are scheduled to be preloaded with the newer Contour+ chart at the factory starting around March 1, 2021. Current registered HDS LIVE customers can purchase the Contour+ map card for a nominal $35 fee, starting February 1 and continuing through April 1, 2021 at www.lowrance.com/offers/hds-mapping-upgrade/. Additionally, customers who purchase a HDS LIVE display between February 1 and April 1, 2021 will be eligible for a free enhanced C-MAP Contour+ card via online rebate. Digital rebate forms are available online at lowrance.4myrebate.com.
To collect high-detail chart data, the C-MAP survey fleet uses shallow-draft boats with surface-drive motors to gather comprehensive details of every popular and important fishery. Surveyed coverage includes most of the narrowest distant creek arms and shallowest backwaters, as well as key, fish-holding offshore structure like humps and holes, reefs and shoals, ledges and breaklines, sunken islands and points. In an improvement over previous preloaded C-MAP charts, the new cartography includes a more consistent presentation of data through all zoom levels, improved icons for POIs on land and water – such as improved boat ramps and gas stations – as well as building foundations, submerged roadbeds and channel lines, which are redrawn in a new color for greater visibility.
For more information on Lowrance products, visit www.lowrance.com. For more information on C-MAP or its entire line of marine cartography products, please visit www.c-map.com.