Transform Your Kayak Bass Fishing: DIY Install Humminbird Helix 10 on Old Town Bigwater

Upgrade your kayak with top-tier fish-finding electronics and maximize your success on the water.

Follow along with my Huminbird Helix 10, DIY kayak fish finder installation. / Kurt Mazurek

It’s time to find the best fish finder for kayak bass fishing, giving me the ability to “see” into the underwater world and position my kayak in the top fishing spots. But first, to get you up to speed, earlier this summer I started with an Old Town Bigwater EPDL+ 132 as my new fishing platform. From there, I have been rigging the boat out to create the ultimate bass fishing platform.

Why Humminbird Electronics?

I have owned, rigged and modified several fiberglass bass boats in my time as an angler. Over the years, I have formed a pretty strong bias for Humminbird depth finders. I know lots of other brands make great products, but for me, it’s kind of the same as my position on computers. I’m an Apple guy. But before that turns some of you away, let me explain. If you’re someone who is into coding and/or have a full understanding of the technical side of computing and want to tinker or modify, that’s awesome. But for me, my computer and my depth finder are simply tools. I don’t need to be able to hack into them and change things. I just want them to work and include a crystal clear, super intuitive, user interface. Humminbird, like Apple, has always fit that description for me. The Humminbird Helix 10 is the perfect fit for me.

The Humminbird Helix 10 was easy to install and a huge upgrade to my Old Town kayak bass fishing. / Kurt Mazurek

Weighing in at just over 11-pounds, the Helix 10 is not small. But that bright, 10.1-inch display strikes a perfect balance between being easy to read, even with my less than perfect vision, while remaining just under what might be too big. We’ll see how it works within the confines of my kayak.

The Humminbird Helix 10 has everything I need, and more—MEGA Side Imaging+, MEGA Down Imaging+, Dual Spectrum CHIRP Sonar and internal GPS with Humminbird Basemap, plus Bluetooth and Ethernet networking for compatibility with the One-Boat Network™ family of products from Humminbird and Minn Kota including MEGA LIVE forward facing sonar.

Key Features of the Humminbird Helix 10 for Kayak Fishing Enthusiasts

For those who haven't experienced Humminbird's capabilities, here is a quick look at some the great fishing features. / Humminbird

Dual Spectrum CHIRP sonar

If you’ve used any depth finders in the past couple decades, Dual Spectrum CHIRP sonar is probably similar to what you’ve seen, but this is way sharper and more responsive. You’ll be amazed at how easily you can identify fish “arches”, bottom contours and cover.

MEGA Down Imaging+

MEGA Down Imaging+ provides the same view of everything under your boat, but shows it with so much detail that it almost looks 3D. There is no mistaking what you’re seeing down there.

MEGA Side Imaging+

MEGA Side Imaging+ presents the same level of 3D-like detail, but shows everything out to 200-feet away on either side of your boat. Even though you never even came close to that rock pile, 100-feet off your port side, you know exactly where it is and can put a map waypoint on it to fish it anytime you like.

Internal GPS and Humminbird Basemap

Plus, this unit’s Internal GPS and Humminbird Basemap provides maps of underwater terrain and surrounding points of interest. And while you can buy additional map details on SD cards, this includes charts of more than 10,000 lakes, plus coastal coverage for the continental U.S.

THE VIDEO BELOW SHOWS MY ENTIRE KAYAK INSTALLATION PROCESS

DIY Fish Finder Installation Guide

Installation of the Helix 10 on my Old Town Bigwater EPDL+ 132 was fairly easy and straightforward. Anyone with even moderate level DIY skills should be able to get this done in well under two hours. And, I created a video showing every step of the process.

The super condensed version is, I used a velcro strap to secure the battery in the kayak’s front storage compartment. Then I mounted the transducer on the kayak’s ready-made, transducer plate, located on the bottom of the boat, just under the pedal drive unit. I ran the transducer cable up through a scupper hole which is conveniently located just in front of the transducer mount. Then I cut a hole to run that transducer cable into the front storage compartment where I mounted the battery. I attached the power cable to the battery. Then I cut a second hole just under the track where the sonar unit is mounted, and ran both cables together down the inside of the boat and out through that hole. From there, I cleaned up the holes with a through-hull grommet system I found on Amazon.com.

Then I plugged the cables into the back of the Helix 10 and it worked perfectly on the first try. Again, I created a video showing the entire process. If that might be helpful to you, you can find the video link here within this story.

These are the other accessories used in this install–the YakAttack Humminbird Mount, the X2 Lithium Deep Cycle Battery, and a wiring clean up kit from Wilderness Systems. / YakAttack | X2 | Wilderness Systems

Kayak Mounting Solution for the Helix 10

In order to keep the big screen in place, I used a LockNLoad Mount from YakAttack. This track mount system feels incredibly strong, and provides infinite viewing angles. It even allows me to angle the unit back out over the water to keep everything within easy reach, but eliminate crowding in the kayak.

Battery Solutions: Powering Your Kayak Electronics Efficiently

To power this rig, I installed a 12V, 50AH, X2 Power Lithium Marine Battery. It’s about half the physical size of traditional marine batteries and just a fraction of the weight (just 14.2-pounds), but still provides all day (heck, call it two day) power. And another thing I like about this battery is that it’s sold through BatteriesPlus retail stores with over 700 locations all over the country. In case I ever have any trouble, there’s a good chance I’m near a location that can help.

This new Humminbird Helix 10 has proven itself as an important part of my kayak bass fishing gear setup. / Kurt Mazurek

Final Thoughts: Is the Humminbird Helix 10 Worth It for Kayak Fishing?

And after of summer of use and handful of abuse, this Humminbird Helix unit has worked perfectly. As expected, the images are super sharp and easy to interpret and the Humminbird interface is always intuitive. If I had to make any sort of a negative comment, the Helix 10 might be a bit too big for this particular model kayak. Although this is a big kayak, it has that pedal unit right in front of me. There really isn’t a good mounting spot straight ahead where I can still easily reach the Helix’s control buttons. So, I end up with it on the side rail, which works fine but can feel a bit in the way at times. Then again, these old eyes love the scale and sharpness of that big display. And with that as the only possible negative, this Helix 10 has been an amazing upgrade to my kayak fishing.

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