Anybody fish the Yadkin/Pee Dee chain?

[HawgBonz]

Gettin back into the boat fishin gig.. But haven't fished freshwater in forever and never from a boat in reservoirs and rivers.
Picked up a deal on a 16' Mirrocraft Aggressor yesterday and startin to outfit it mainly for catfishing.
One thing that's caught my eye is the Spot Lock trolling motors. Seems like a great option for a lone fisherman.
The TM that's on it looks like a 45" but that was with someone standing up front. Looks like anything 50"+ may be plenty long.
My question is how much thrust do ya think I actually need in these bodies of water to hold the current?
Any insight on catfishing those waters would be appreciated as well. Looks like plenty of deep holes..
Thanks... 🤠 👍

 

[CZfool68]

IMO outboards and trolling motors should have as much power as you can afford. I never complained about going too fast with a trolling motor. If your main motor breaks down and you need to get to a ramp against wind and current rowing is no fun. Ask me how I know. And if your main motor fails and you need to troll back to the ramp more thrust is better. Ask me how I know. 😃

Enjoy the new boat. Looks nice.

 

[Desron23]

IMO outboards and trolling motors should have as much power as you can afford. I never complained about going too fast with a trolling motor. If your main motor breaks down and you need to get to a ramp against wind and current rowing is no fun. Ask me how I know. And if your main motor fails and you need to troll back to the ramp more thrust is better. Ask me how I know. 😃

Enjoy the new boat. Looks nice.

I'd absolutely go with as much as you can afford. I've had the wind blow me past fishing spots with an underpowered trolling motor

 

[Mirac]

alot of that decision is going to be how much room you have for batteries.

A 55 lb motor would be ok in lakes with moderate wind. could get by with 1 12v. battery maybe get 6 hrs runtime. ( on off like when bass fishing the shore.)
70-80 lb motor would need 24v. (2) batteries and more than enough for a light current in a river.

101 lb motor will need 36v. (3) batteries , all you'd ever need in hard conditions.

so, how much room do you have and can you carry 2 or 3 batteries weight in a location that doesnt drastically affect the boat running and safety.

 

[HawgBonz]

Thanks much for the replies, fellas.. Good points.
There's 4 batteries total as it sits right now.
Two in the back hatch.
Up front there's one to the current TM and one spare.
I'm prolly yanking a lot of it out just to clean up and replace old hardware, hoses and wiring, etc. Clean the fuel cell. The usual old boat crap.
I can say that it looks like most things up here in the fresh fare much better than the saltwater rigs I've worked on..
I bought it mainly for the hull and trailer. Prolly gonna run the old Tohatsu for a bit till I can scrounge up a decent 4 stroke.
The previous Tohatsu's I've had have been great motors. I just like the low RPM quiet and smoothness of a 4 stroke.
The price of new trolling motors was a bit of a shock.. 🤣 B.O.A.T.T.

 

[Burt Gummer]

Depends on which part of the pee dee you’re gonna fish. Below high rock around the power station the water is deeper. Down around rockingham below Bluett Falls dam the water is shallow and rocky. Very rocky. We broke Tilt bracket on a boat engine one time. When the water there is above the rocks because of rain, I’m not sure spot lock will hold in the current

 

[HawgBonz]

Depends on which part of the pee dee you’re gonna fish.

I could see ending up above Blewitt sometimes as our hunt club is not far from there at all. Could easily put in at the Grassy Island ramp if they eventually get back to holding some water.. Looked like some nice slow-ish water at the 109 ramp area as well.
If it's too fast or choppy from weather or dams I ain't gonna mess with it. Being re-tarred I'll mostly hit the water week days in fair weather.
I aim to avoid turning fishin' into work or worry.. 😎