Fishing without electronics

Anyone else on the forum do things the old-fashioned way? I was thinking we could have a running thread of advice for those of us who like to keep things a little traditional. Maybe if folks have tips for identifying bottom structure or even navigational aids sans-GPS (although I admit I probably will not give up my Navionics), it would be cool to share.

at least carry a radio.

Bathymetry maps of California coast:

https://pubs.usgs.gov/ds/781/

When we used to have kelp, you could use that to locate possible spots. Wash rocks, currents, birds, flotsam all can lead to potentialy productive areas.

What’s electronics?

I used to bring my fish finder all the time, but lately I've always gone without.  It appears the the results are the same (probably because with or without, the typical traffic patterns are the same).  I've switched to Navionics on my phone, so I go after contour now.

Ive been fishing w/o my fishfinder due to prioritizing dad life over kayak rigging. I still bring radio/ hand held gps and phone JIC

I feel like this is the best source for bottom contour maps. Enjoy!

https://www.charts.noaa.gov/InteractiveCatalog/nrnc.shtml

Aloha,

Isao

Way back we used no electronics. No radio. No phones. Lol. Look at the land for structure references. The weight or the jig head telegraphed sand or rock. Then the kelp provided info as well like John said. A productive spot was stored in our own memory banks. A quick triangulation was stored in the brain. Simple.  Very simple. I caught just as many fish. Cheers.