I have a canoe I plan to use her best fishing. Any ideas about outfitting the canoe? Anyone ever use trolling motor? Fishfinder? Thanks fishing in Georgia

There was a similar topic that came up a while back. I saved it because I plan to do something similar myself in the next year.

Check out this link- it is a blog post that someone made as he modified his canoe. It details every step, and it turned out incredibly well

http://www.jaxkayakfishing.com/phpBB/topic30202.html

Welcome to Bass Resource!  These photos might give you a couple of ideas...

 

Boat fully rigged:

 

 

Bow area showing forward mounted trolling motor battery, 8 gauge extension cables, sonar, tackle trays.

 

 

Amidships - showing the dashboard with Scotty rod holder, tackle trays, sonar, and (partially) the transducer deployment arm. Also in view is the gray conduit for the battery cables.

 

 

View looking aft - showing another rod holder mount to the side of the seat (another has since been added on the other side), the seat, outrigger bracket with trolling motor mount, Scotty anchor lock, anchor rope can.

 

 

Stern - showing rod holders, another view of the outrigger bracket and the Scotty anchor lock.

 

 

Let me know if you have any questions about my rig.

THAT is an impressive rigging job.  Very nice!

 

Tight lines,

Bob

Thanks.  This was my studied solution to fish my 11 local lakes, the biggest of which is only 200 acres.  Modular, car-toppable, takes up practically no room in the garage. Works for me...

 

Welcome to Bass Resource!  These photos might give you a couple of ideas...

 

Boat fully rigged:

 

 

Bow area showing forward mounted trolling motor battery and extension 8 gauge cables.

 

 

Amidships - showing the dashboard with Scotty rod holder, tackle trays, sonar, and (partially) the transducer deployment arm. Also in view is the gray conduit for the battery cables.

 

 

View looking aft - showing another rod holder mount to the side of the seat (another has since been added on the other side), the seat, outrigger bracket with trolling motor mount, Scotty anchor lock, anchor rope can.

 

 

Stern - showing rod holders, another view of the outrigger bracket and the Scotty anchor lock.

 

 

Let me know if you have any questions about my rig.

This rig is fabulous.  Beyond my wildest dreams.  How much does it weigh?  How do you transport it?  Get it out of the water?  I store my canoe upside down on a trailer to keep it from bending.  

 

Do you think it is possible to take the equipment out of the canoe so that it can be used for paddling only if necessary?  

Thanks.  This was my studied solution to fish my 11 local lakes, the biggest of which is only 200 acres.  Modular, car-toppable, takes up practically no room in the garage. Works for me...

 

Do you have a picture with all the gear attached?  Do you use a trolling motor?  Anchor?

Do you have a picture with all the gear attached?  Do you use a trolling motor?  Anchor?

Holy cow!  I just realized that you made a storage cabinet to keep all the gear including the fish finder!! How long does it take to attach all the gear?  Where do you fish?

Do you have a picture with all the gear attached?  Do you use a trolling motor?  Anchor?

Pardon me completely!!  I did not realize that this was the same canoe pictured above! You must be the most organized guy in fishing

Do you have a picture with all the gear attached?  Do you use a trolling motor?  Anchor?

How did you attach the chair?

This rig is fabulous.  Beyond my wildest dreams.  How much does it weigh?  How do you transport it?  Get it out of the water?  I store my canoe upside down on a trailer to keep it from bending.  

 

Do you think it is possible to take the equipment out of the canoe so that it can be used for paddling only if necessary?

Thanks. The hull weighs 44 pounds. I car-top it. I can launch and land practically any place. You rig it lakeside, slide it down the bank, step over the bow into the boat, and shove off.

The boat is modular, you can launch with the bare hull, a paddle, and a rod if you wanted to...or add as much of the equipment as you want. I nearly always run it fully rigged.

Holy cow!  I just realized that you made a storage cabinet to keep all the gear including the fish finder!! How long does it take to attach all the gear?  Where do you fish?

It takes between 10 to 15 minutes to rig. I use this to fish my local 11 lakes. It would handle bigger water if I wanted to make a longer drive.

How did you attach the chair?

The seat attaches with adjustable straps and buckles (sourced from Cabelas). Be aware that some seats similar to this one attach with velcro straps that do not work as well as the buckles.

It takes between 10 to 15 minutes to rig. I use this to fish my local 11 lakes. It would handle bigger water if I wanted to make a longer drive.

That's an impressive rig. I used photos of your canoe as inspiration when I built mine up to fish the small water and electric only lakes we have around here. 

 

Tonight is the first time that I've seen the photos of it in storage, and I am almost more impressed with them than I am with the fully rigged canoe. Nice work!

That's an impressive rig. I used photos of your canoe as inspiration when I built mine up to fish the small water and electric only lakes we have around here. 

 

Tonight is the first time that I've seen the photos of it in storage, and I am almost more impressed with them than I am with the fully rigged canoe. Nice work!

Thanks. Minimal storage impact was one of the planning criterions. I was originally going to hang the boat from the ceiling. It was actually my wife's idea to store the boat on its side on what she calls "the canoe hutch." Smart girl...

here's a vid of a homemade trolling motor mount.  I used the same concept but made the 2x4 extend equal lengths on both sides of the canoe.  the trolling motor gets mounted port side and my fish finder transducer gets mounted with a clamp starboard side.

 

i've gone thru several canoes and i really like 14' b/c you can lay ur rods flat in front of you and have the rod tips inside the boat.  there is a learning curve w/ wind, boats wakes, circumstances etc that will have you pushed into a bush/tree before you know it with ur rods, lines and hooks tangled in branches. and i often take a friend and its much more comfortable fishing with two guys in a 14' vs 12'.

 

I've tried lots of anchors and prefer a 10 lb mushroom. the side of canoes are much higher so the wind takes them like a sailboat compared to a kayak.  the 10 lb holds you steady even in 15 mph winds (though it's not much fun being out in a canoe in worse conditions).  forget about a 2 lb grappling hook anchor unless ur always around weeds.

 

if you didn't buy ur trolling motor yet make sure you get one with variable speed.  they are much better on battery life.

 

Thanks. Minimal storage impact was one of the planning criterions. I was originally going to hang the boat from the ceiling. It was actually my wife's idea to store the boat on its side on what she calls "the canoe hutch." Smart girl...

Sounds like you 2 make a good team.