The popularity of pontoon boats is growing at a rapid pace thanks to their ability to accommodate several people while servicing casual boaters, water sports enthusiasts and fisherman alike. Wired2Fish’s Ryan DeChaine takes us on a tour of his extended family’s Lund LX220 Fish and Cruise Pontoon, and how he rigged it to enhance the fishing experience. This is relevant rigging content whether you’re in the market for a new or used pontoon or already own one.
The featured pontoon has built-in fishing items like tackle and rod storage, rod holders, and livewell and baitwell. Adding a quality fish finder gets you on the fish, while modern boating equipment like trolling motors and shallow water anchors bring convenience, safety, ease of use and precise control to these large boats.
We take a close look at how Ryan rigged the pontoon with a bow mount trolling motor. This rigout required a custom modification to provide trolling motor clearance of the third and centrally located tube while also providing easy install or removal of the trolling motor. Minn Kota’s Ulterra delivers automated stow and deploy coupled with the ability to digitally anchor the pontoon with Spot-Lock — this has proven a huge convenience and boat control plus. Additionally, Ryan discusses the install of dual and diagonally positioned shallow water anchors using Minn Kota Talon Pontoon Edge Mount Kits. The Talons firmly lock the pontoon in place when fishing shallow water, and provide immediate pontoon anchoring when docking, loading and unloading guests, or just playing off the pontoon — all without the need for ropes or anchors.
