Algonquin Adventures / Temporary Rod Holder

**Posted by breed85** 3/27/2017 8:35 pm

Hi all,

I have a spring fishing trip scheduled for early May.
We'll only be doing a couple small portages in.
We will be renting canoes.

I am curious as to what people do for rod holders on boats that aren't theirs.
I was looking at scotty rod holders as they have a gunwale clamp system available.

I'm interested in hearing or seeing what other people do.

Thanks in advance.

**Posted by Craiger05** 3/28/2017 7:10 am

I have Scotty's I really like, and move them around between my 2 canoes and a boat . . . if you have a thwart, then you can use long bolts/wing nuts and a backer plate to straddle it like in the first image (stern station of a Winisk)

For my son in the bow, we got the "rail mount" backer plate meant to adapt for pontoon boats, and clamp around the carry handle, i don't have a great picture, but its there in the second image. Scotty has a lot of options, good Canadian company too! If you do wind up clamping, I'd add some wood shims to protect the hull . . .

**Posted by token** 3/28/2017 7:22 am

Hmm.. I've been fishing from a canoe for years but have never used a rod holder. I've never really considered it because it seems like unnecessary weight.. but now that I think about how big of a PITA it is to get the rod to rest on something (and NOT be in the way of paddling) I might have to invest in something like this for the spring.

**Posted by swedish pimple** 3/28/2017 8:39 am

go to canadian tire and and for a few dollars, (no weight) buy a plastic clamp big enough to fit over the gunwales. clip the clamp on with the handle facing up. lean your rod against the clamp. the pole will not slide down the gunwale. just set the reel on the bottom of the canoe behind your foot. fast way to grab the rod when a fish strikes. rod holders can be tricky get the pole outta the set position when a fish strikes.

**Posted by basilthegood** 3/28/2017 8:56 am

If I'm doing a longer route or a number of portages I usually leave the rod holder behind and just troll with the rod at my feet, with the rod leaning against my shin and the opposite heel on top of the handle pinning it down. Works well but is a bit of a scramble if you get a hard hit. Depending on how much you baby your rods as well, they will get a bit more wear and tear this way.

Shorter routes or base camping I'll bring a rod holder along. Picked up one of these guys from Bass Pro a while ago for under $10. Slap it on opposite my stroking side around the yoke and forget about it until the rod keels over. Makes life easier.

**Posted by ShawnD** 3/28/2017 10:02 am

i used to use the holder Basil just posted.

last year I adopted this set up from My Self Reliance who posts on here all the time.

Works really well.

https://youtu.be/-kwapnT8loU

**Posted by breed85** 3/28/2017 12:02 pm

Craiger05 - I was concerned about potential marring of the hull, I would like to LNT as it is a rental bolt. I was looking at the following Scotty products:
http://scotty.com/product/no-433-coaming-gunnel-clamp-mount/
http://scotty.com/product-category/fishing-gear-equipment/bait-caster-spinning-rod-holder/
I was also glad to see that they were a Canadian company when I began researching this.

token - Trolling for lake trout with the rod between the legs has become an annoyance for me, sounds similar to yourself. We only have a couple of portages so I'm not too concerned with the weight; just trying to keep things compact enough to enable us to single carry the portages.

basilthegood - I used one of these with my brother in law last year; it did not work as we had hoped; I suppose with some modifications we could make it work a little better how it clamps to the boat, adjustability, etc...

ShawnD - I just watched the video MSR had posted last night actually. It is a good idea; should be able to work for the stern paddler; not sure if it will adapt well for bow paddler though.

Has anyone ever used a fish finder in the Park? I got a steal of a deal on a Humminbird Helix 5 off of Amazon as part of a warehouse deal (opened package in perfect condition).
It is the portable unit with the case, battery and suction cup mount transducer; I picked it up more for ice fishing.
I'm not sure morally I want to take it into the park (is that strange?). I almost feel like fishing in the park with a sonar would be cheating?
I don't know... I'm still debating it. However, if anyone has any experience with the suction cup mount and how well they work I'd be interested in your feedback. If anyone has another transducer mount rig, I'd be interested in seeing what you've got rigged up.

Cheers.

**Posted by Craiger05** 3/29/2017 7:10 am

To clarify, I don't bring the rod holders if weight/bulk is much of a concern, or if the plan calls for primarily casting/jigging. I've also spend lots of time using the heel/shin method and it works great for the stern paddler, not so much in the bow of the Winisk though (really narrow). For a trip like you are describing, I find them one of those handy luxuries, so they're always in my "for consideration" gear pile . . .

Lots of great ideas out there I'm sure!

**Posted by jonp** 3/29/2017 8:04 pm

I use the basic holder basilthegreat posted but I use plywood shims to prevent hull damage, position against the canoe stern thwart and add a bit of electrical tape tightly wrapped to hold in in place prevent turning. On the bow I use a simple 5" piece of abs tubing lashed and taped the top of the bow handle extending slight over the edge of the canoe so it can not rotate. Not the most professional system, but sturdy, out of the way and I generally leave in place for the entire trip.

**Posted by Kurt** 3/29/2017 8:14 pm

I'd feel bad if I was in the park fishing with a gill net, not a fish finder. I've got a suction cup Hummingbird too and it's been a great addition on my fishing trips. The suction cup works alright as long as you're out of the weeds.

I've found more than one honey spot thanks to that hummingbird, places I'd never even consider wetting a line. I only use it in the summer when I'm heading into a group of lakes that I'm not familiar with and I want to find the holes, I don't bring it back a second time. I've found that there's really not much need for one in early May though, because the specs and lakers are right at the surface, pretty much everywhere....

**Posted by boknows** 4/10/2017 10:17 am

Personally I do not like rod holders as it takes too long for you to "hook" a fish should one bite.

I have my rod close to me with reel on my seat and rod hanging on gunwales of canoe with an "eye holder" on my rod beneath the gunwales to keep it from moving back and forth.

Then again, I am of the "old age" of fishing.

I also should say I always take an extra rod and reel when I am interior tripping. I ran into a party of two on Burntroot Lake one year who had their rod and reels stolen from their campsite early in the morning. Since then I always break down my rod and reels and bring them in my tent. The extra rod and reel is just in case my other rod and reel breaks and I can't fix it with DUCT TAPE!

Last edited by boknows (4/10/2017 10:21 am)

**Posted by kenny** 4/16/2017 7:11 am

we own our canoe and have used the Berkley rod holders and bolt them through a cut to size 1" x 2" , it takes me about 10 mins to set up once at camp, we find then handy on those windy days when you are constantly paddling and the rod between the heel method isn't the best for those conditions. they are handy also in that you can lift them up in their bracket and they can be fished from either side of the canoe. once you use them you'll wonder why you hadn't thought of it sooner.. very lightweight and certainly doesn't take up a lot of room.