Long Trips With Bass Boats

[Shewillbemine]

I know that any road trip is possible towing a bass boat with a reliable vehicle. But I wonder how many of us take long road trips and how often it happens. My immediate fishing locations are within 1.5 hours of my house. 

 

So for the sake of this thread, let's assume that "long distance" is 2 hours or more. 

 

How often and how far do you take your bass boat on "long distance" trips? Where do you keep it stored if it's overnight? How do you keep the batteries charged if it's overnight? 

[war-eagle]

The pros pull their rigs all over the country.

Probably thousands of miles.

I have pulled my War-Eagle aluminum from N.Mississippi

To Table Rock in Mo.. That's my farthest trip so far.

[Fishing Rhino]

My answer would be three or four times per year, and two or three of those would be long hauls of about 1200 miles each way.  A couple of times a year to our daughter's home, plus the road trip. 

[Sam]

You have to locate a hotel or RV park where you can plug in your battery charger.

I have run an extension cord out of a window to the boat to recharge the batteries while at a motel.

Most of the guys back their rig into a spot by their motel rooms and run the cord out of the door if necessary.

We also call the various motels and find out if it is OK to charge the batteries or if they have a special place to park the rig and hook up the battery charger. You will be surprised at the number of motels that will allow you to do this or the ones that have hookups.

The motels with the electrical hookups are usually located near a favorite fishing body of water.

And don't forget the marina's. Some will let you park the boat overnight and hook up to their electrical charging stations for a fee.

Sorry to reply that the farthest I have towed my boat is about 2 hours. No problems. Will do it again at least two times this year, maybe three. So I am totally no help with your query.

I take a small jack with me in the SUV in case I have to change the tire but so far I have been very lucky and never had a tire problem.

Be sure to have the wheels greased and the bearings checked. Nothing more exciting than to have one of your wheels start to overheat while driving 65MPH.

And check your trailer lights. State police love tralers without lights in addition to dragging the chains creating sparks.

I also use elastic ties to keep the cooler's top secure. Only lost one cooler top so far before I learned this trick. I also lock all compartments.

Have a safe trip.

[BassnChris]

I bought my boat last spring and it was my first.

I only went to one lake 45-60 minutes from driveway to ramp. Made about 10-12 trips last year with one trip for a week. So I voted never.....

But this year.......I will travel more. Starting with the Bass Resource Roadtrip to Pickwick. I imagine that will be the farthest for me this year. I would like to make it to Table Rock, Bull Shoals maybe.

Alas it will all come down to money and finances.......and Our elustrious el Presidente and the congress has already reduced the money I will be getting each payday.

Sorry, a bit off topic.

I would plan on using the RV type locations to charge the batteries......I usually like to camp on long trips so I would find a campground site with electric and just plug it in at night. Staying in a motel I would follow the advice to call and ask if they allow the charging from the rooms or have rv elec hookups as sugested earlier.

[slonezp]

I take a trip south every spring and a couple to Door County every year. When I have gone south, the hotels and resorts I've stayed at have electric hookup in the parking lots. I always bring the tackle and gear inside. I don't trust anyone.  I did get ripped off once. Happened at a yacht club parking lot in Door County. They got a large bag of assorted soft plastics a net and a bump board. The only things I left in the boat. Bring a spare tire. I know from experience that getting a flat on the trailer without a spare is frustrating.

[Long Mike]

I tow my boat on trips lasting four hours or more at least a half dozen times a year.  If I have to stay overnight while traveling, I don't worry about electrical hook-ups.  The batteries will not discharge in one night.  My destinations are obviously near a lake so most all hotels and resorts are boater friendly and offer, or at least tolerate, hook-ups.  Just make sure that you have at least 100' of power cord with you.  On these trips I carry  200.'  Make sure your wheel bearings are well greased and your tires, including the spare, are properly inflated.  On my trailer, that's 50 psi.  I don't remove my rods or other gear if staying over night, but lock my hatches.  I NEVER leave my electronics on the boat at night.  Oh, and I carry insurance that includes coverage for theft and vandalism.

[Nitrofreak]

I normally don't go too far from the house, by that I usually do not travel out of the state, since I am located centrally I have most any lake within 4 hrs from my house, I have no need to travel out of state with tons of great water to fish, several big lakes as well as lots of rivers and tidal waters.

 

Most all the time the boat travels with me and the family, we spend our vacation on the lakes here in Va. the jeep tows the boat and the truck tows the camper.

 

A lot of times the truck and the boat are together for a two hour ride to fish tournaments on my favorite lake, it made 29 trips with me 4 years ago, but now that the economy is in the tank we have not been out much so once or twice a year is all it gets towed that far anymore.

 

Any lake we go to, we always make sure there is enough space to include the boat along with the travel trailer (Camper) I take a long extension cord with me and charge my boat batteries from the camper each night, the longest trip is South of my house to Kerr lake, it's just over 4 hrs, the toughest trip is roughly 3 hrs to a place called Lake Moomaw, we cross 5 mountains to get to that one, but the lake is worth the effort.

 

If it were not for the economy, we would be going almost every weekend somewhere to fish, 2 hrs or more for every trip.

[J Francho]

I have so many lakes around me, it's worth making a trip two hours or more to hit them at least once.

 

http://goo.gl/maps/88BUC

[Teal]

I try to plan trips outside of my immediate area about 3 or 4a times a year. Normally taking no longer and 3.5 to 4the hours, going to Smith Mountain Lake or Lake Wylie in opposite direction. My wife and I normally plan on camping and we look online for state parks or camping areas. I am very weary of mainstream hotels. However, when we go to smith mountain Lake we found a lake front hotel that is fishermen and pet friendly, we go back there yearly. (West Lake Inn, Moneta Va)

As for taking care of the boat normally have a 100 foot cord in my boat storage. Since i dont leave my boat in the water, we charge at the site. We treat these trip just like any other trip, can check and top off fluids in tow vehicle, make sure tires are ok, check bearings and grease them if needed. And any time we ride, we have a spare trailer tire that is ready and a spare for the truck. And the last thing on my list is if you have a set of tools and jumper cables, take them.

I do want to invest in those electric locks for compartments.

[Glenn]

We're constantly traveling 2 or more hours to various lakes, often staying overnight at local campgrounds.  Never had a problem with hookups or vandals.  That said, I always lock all the compartments, remove all electronics and store them in the truck, and always put the cover on the boat.  Most crimes are crimes of opportunity, so making it a PIA to even get inside the boat, let alone fiddle with locked compartments - all while the boat is hooked up to the very camper we're staying in - seems to be enough of a deterrent.

 

As for traveling long distance - yes, ensure the bearings are in top shape.  Stop every 1-2 hrs and feel them to see if they're too warm.  It could save you a disaster on the road.

 

Also - and this is critical - never rely on tread depth to determine whether or not a trailer tire is "good".  They can be well past their prime and still have plenty of tread on them.  Instead, go by age.  Tires need to be replaced every 6-8 years, regardless of tread depth.  The rubber gets old, and the sidewalls wear out.  I know many guys who've had blowouts that said, "And there was plenty of tread left!  I don't get it."  And when I ask them how old the tires are, they almost always state longer than 8 years.

 

I replace my tires every 6 years, and have new brakes installed every 10 (and I mean a complete break overhaul with all new parts, not rebuilt).

 

I also always trailer with the cover on.  I know many guys with cigarette burns in their seats from OTHER motorists tossing their lit cigarettes into their boats while going down the road.  Plus traveling with the cover keeps the boat clean.