I’ve written about live sonar technology in this column before, but until recently had never experienced it for myself.

It has become a valuable tool for many barramundi anglers, in particular, as it allows them to specifically target large fish and cast at them.

Live sonar units, such as Lowrance’s latest Active Target 2 system, allow anglers to see what is happening beneath the surface in real time, including watching fish move around and react to offerings from anglers.

Having heard so much about it, I was looking forward to seeing how it actually performed out in the wild on a trip to Queensland.

I had four days of fishing around Gladstone, north of Brisbane, all with local guides who specialise in live sonar fishing for huge barramundi at locations like Lake Awoonga and the Fitzroy River.

Unfortunately, the Fitzroy was shut down so we just fished Awoonga and the vast majority of the time it was using live sonar.

It was fascinating to see the technology in action, with each guide having different set-ups, but essentially using the same approach.

They watched the screen intently, which looked like an ultrasound image, and were able to pick out individual fish from the mass of marks on the screen.

One angler was then instructed where to cast, how fast to wind in and when to stop winding, all with the aim of the lure passing by the nose of the fish.

It really is game-changing technology and it was amazing to see the fish respond and often turn to follow the lure, even though it didn’t usually result in a hookup.

The second guide had two Active Target 2 screens, one that showed the horizontal view that revealed fish in front of the boat, while the second showed the depth of the fish.

We would watch the first screen and wind in until our lure was right where the fish was, and then switch our attention to the second unit, to see how far up or down our offering needed to be moved to be at the right depth.

It was very much like a video game as you tried to get the two paths, fish and lure, to intersect, and reminded me of those first game consoles where you had to move the paddle up and down to intercept the ball bouncing from side to side.

There is no doubting the power of the technology for those chasing big fish, especially like barramundi and Murray cod in large impoundments where there are vast amounts of water, as it means you are always casting at fish.

The guides said live sonar had increased their success on metre-plus barra in lakes ten-fold, while I am sure it is used a little differently in saltwater locations such as our Kimberley.

But what I also learned is that just seeing fish does not necessarily equate to catching them and it is a bit of a double-edged sword.

Like when mulloway are croaking all around you when you can’t get a touch, it can be very frustrating when you are constantly putting lures in front of fish that just won’t bite, as was the case on our outings, mainly due to some average weather seemingly.

We cast at a lot of big fish for a final result of four over the metre mark brought to the boat in four long days on the water at Awoonga.

I actually didn’t get a hit while live sonar fishing, despite numerous follows.

Live sonar is a great tool and is becoming essential for barramundi guides, but anyone who says it makes fishing for barra too easy has probably never tried it – there is still a skillset required.

The technology can certainly assist in hunting the big fish down, but it can never make them bite.

Andrew Jarvis with a metre-plus barra caught at Lake Awoonga with the assistance of live sonar technology.

Lowrance’s Active Target 2 system, showing the horizontal view (top screen) and vertical image (lower screen).