How to have a bow mount trolling motor and anchor nest at the same time

I have been asked several times over the last couple of years, how can someone setup a bow mount trolling motor and an Anchor Caddie at the same time?

Now, we do have an option for those that won’t use the bow mount trolling motor and an Anchor Caddie at the same time. It is our Trolling Motor Adapter Kit designed for the current models offered by Minn Kota with Motor Guide adapters coming soon.

One of our good customers, Louis, out of South Carolina has shared his solution to having both at the same time, so we are sharing his installation here, along with his perspective.

One of the things to note is that the typical bow mount trolling motor doesn’t care if it is perfectly aligned at the center of the bow and will steer and track just fine, even if you are using a GPS guided system.

On the other hand, when you don’t have your Anchor Caddie mounted centered on the bow and off to the side like this bow mount trolling motor, it will want to chalk your boat to one side and the farther off center, the farther it will chalk your boat off center.

Now, if your Anchor Caddie is mounted a little off center, although it will chalk your boat, with current and/or tide influence, you may not notice it much if any, but if you have a choice, have your Anchor Caddie as close to center and your bow mount trolling motor off center and you will be good to go.

Now if you choose to have a bow mount trolling motor and anchor nest at the same time, you will want to make sure that when your bow mount trolling motor is in the stowed position, that the shaft not only clears your Anchor Caddie and anchor, it also stows off to the side and not obstructing the bow as shown on Louis’ bow below.

If you plan to have a bow mount trolling motor and anchor nest at the same time, I hope you found this information useful and as always, if you have any questions or comments, don’t hesitate to get a hold of us or post it here.

*****UPDATE*****

Louis did a followup video to show if there were any issues with the trolling motor tracking properly, being off to the side.