Power Pole Boat Anchors
Dr. John Woods 04.25.18
The technologies on every day fishing boats these days is simply amazing. What with the full bore electronics of sonars, depth finders, temp gauges, fish action patterning, and trolling motor controls operated from your iPhone, it is almost like trying to fly a private airplane. Well, almost.
Now, back home after a week fishing trip, I thought I would report on the sort of new power pole boat anchors I saw in action for the first time. I suspect these have been around for a while, but it was my first time experience seeing dozens of crappie tournament anglers on the lake with their boats all equipped with this new technology.
Bolted on the rear transom just beside or onto the engine mount itself on both sides are metal arms called blades that extend up five or six feet above the motor. Upon activation from the control panel or a mobile control unit, these arms are lowered down into the water allowing an extended pole to be released to be pushed down into the bottom of the lake to act as dual fixed anchors.
These power pole anchors are activated by hydraulics via an electrical motor. They drop slowly under control of the operator. They don’t just swing down free from the boat. The action is controlled and deliberate.
The anchor poles or spikes are also up to six feet long and perhaps an inch in diameter. The spikes sink into the lake bottom to hold the boat in a steady position even more effectively than a conventional weighted anchor or even a drag sack. When the blades and spikes are down the boat is then held in a locked position. But why?
This is the cool part. When we were fishing we used a trolling motor to offset the drift being driven by a 20-30 MPH wind that was white capping the lake surface. As we passed by one boat several times, we noticed it was never moving at all against the strong wind. Then we noticed the mechanisms at the rear of the boat and inquired of the boat operator to learn they were power poles.
The power poles allow fishing into the wind or current on a river at a pre-determined waypoint or noted fishing structure location without being moved off target. If the fishing action is hot in one spot and the water is pushing you off course, just drop the power poles and the boat is held fast in place. Some even have fabric “wind wings” attached to the blades to further aid in holding the boat. It’s an amazing technology for sure.
