Anchor away

[eric3a]

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[delevi]

Amazing you were actually able to retrieve it Eric. Good work What's your experience with a stern anchor used on the stern. I just have a Danforth that I use off the bow which holds great but would be nice to keep the boat in one place, rather than being in orbit around the anchor. Would a light anchor wok on the stern and does the 7:1 rule still apply or is it differnt?

Leon

[eric3a]

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[James V]

On my anchor I use a small plastic tiewrape. I have some of the SS wire but it a little to hard to undo.

[DLT]

On my anchor I use a small plastic tiewrape.

I use a plastic zip-tie too (assuming this is what you meant).

Things to understand, though:
- most of the zip ties are not UV stable, which means that they will weaken over time with UV exposure. But, with my anchor, its either in the locker or on the bottom, so it doesn't get much UV...

- They are not as strong as SS wire. But, I try to make a point of checking it before deploying, just to make sure its still there...

After stabbing my fingers too many times, I strongly dislike the wire. I know it has its advantages, but its alsways snagging something (like my finger or the rode). So, I prefer the zip-tie approach.

[eric3a]

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[Highlander]

I heard of a guy who once throwed his anchor away I think his ex was on the other end of the rode you'll need more than 2ft of water though Eric or was this just a practise run
Anyway I'll remember not to have you throw an anchor in any boat thats off a reef
Nice to see your both enjoying your mac at last Eh.

Soon to be sailing John

[Paul S]

As you may know I tend to be a proponent of "all chain" or "lots of chain" for the main anchor(s) because I value my sleep. But that's not needed at the stern in my view. Just enough to get some catenary works fine.

My main anchor is a FX11 Fortress, 10' of SS chain and 200' of rode.

From reading Practical Sailor a bit back, they mentioned that too much chain on a danforth style anchor can cause more issues..digging a channel in mud..which the shaft will follow into the mud..causing the flukes to rise (and potentially coming loose). I think they suggested an all rope rode in mud.

I have had no issue (other than grass) with my setup. In rocky and hard bottoms, all chain, or lots of chain rode will be perfect....but if you are in mud/soft mud..be careful.

Just something to think about

Paul

[Sloop John B]

Forget about a stainless shackle between rode and anchor. Get a big cheap one. Plastic tie (black). Toss it into salt water. It is now encrusted to where nothing will allow it to 'slip' off.

Dragging a little 13 lb. mushroom back and forth off the stern slows things down.

Frank's bridle configuration of having the rode play out from around the back of the pulpit helps alot.

[March]

Eric: happened to me too. I lost an anchor that way. Depth of the lake at that point was about 7 feet. I dove around for about an hour but couldn't find it in the mud. Luckily, it wasn't an expensive Danfoth anchor--just ba clone, but still....

A stupider thing that happened to me last year: I anchored in a strong cross wind, in front of the ramp, waiting for my buddy to bring down the trailer. The anchor was securely cleated (or so I thought) and I was standing at the helm watching the ramp when I noticed the boat started to drift. Heck, the anchor didn't really bite, I thought, that's OK... this shouldn't take long... the trailer is almost in the water...

Before I knew it, the ranchor rode that was coiled in the anchor locker started unravelling... by the time I rushed to the pulpit to grab it, it was gone! I had forgotten to attach the other end and, in the strong cross wind, it didn't take long to work its way out of the locker, even though the hatch was down (rolling through the very notch I had proudly carved out myself)

Since I had anchored quite a way from the ramp, making room for others who already had the trailer in place, diving for the anchor and the rode was out of the question. Someone would probably get it with their propellor, sooner or later....

Dang! It was a good anchor (the one I had replaced) with a 100 line....

Should get that metal detector... or a grapple hook to scourge the bottom

[Frank C]

If you haven't yet experienced a Mac swinging at anchor? ... it compares to taking a toddler on the Merry-go-round. I explained my stab at the underlying logic in an earlier thread, as below. But Sloop is correct, a bridle is mandatory if you want to avoid extraneous solutions, like a stern anchor or a drag anchor.

You can quickly test the concept. Anchor at the bow cleat and enjoy the Merry-go-round for a half-hour. Then go to the bow and pull ten feet of slack rode from the locker (behind where you're already cleated). Lead the slack rode outside the pulpit and tie-off securely to the aft pulpit stanchion, then release your original belay at the bow cleat. The boat will now be tethered at the aft pulpit stanchion, the bow will remain on the wind, but the swing will be reduced by two-thirds of its prior arc.

Once you've experienced the difference in anchoring on the forequarter (somewhat aft from the bow) you'll make it SOP. A dockline makes an easy bridle back to a winch or the aft cleat. Rigging a bridle is especially easy with a Montana cinch (Jeff Stagg's hint) on your anchor rode about 7 feet out from the bow cleat. All chain rode? ... then just tie the bridle into a link. To rig a bridle, see below.

The Mac's anchor-tacking in an anchorage full of keelboats is actually embarrassing. But snubbing the rode at the forequarter completely eliminates the tacking and allows her to ride just like the keelboats.

Roger's Powersailor hull "sails on anchor" because a bow-attached rode encourages the hull's "tacking" on the anchor rode. The wind creates lift across the Mac's generous freeboard, causing a swing to one side. The swing ends as the wind "sucks" this hull-lift to its stalling point. But now wind pressure on that aft windward hull surface PUSHES the hull toward the lee side. Since our very light weight hull is tethered on a long rope it swings like a pendulum. As it crosses the eye of the wind, the lee bow becomes a lifting surface, amplifying the swing in this new direction -- until it stalls again. Repeat continuously!. The hull likes to sail out to ~65 degrees, so the swing-arc is ~ 130-degrees ... makes me dizzy, especially the view through the companionway from down in the cabin~!

NOW ... attach the rode to a point 20% aft from the bow. The Mac will remain constantly on a single tack versus the prevailing breeze. The hull is now a less efficient pendulum with more aero-drag, and it cannot cross the eye of the wind. Eliminate the anchor-tacking and reduce the anchor-arc to about 35 degrees. The further aft you set the rode's attachment to the hull, the smaller her hunting arc becomes ... to a point. The hull will ride bow-to-wind with the anchor rode holding at about 35 degrees off-wind, keeping wind waves on the bow. Obviously, a bridle permits tweaking the anchored position, like trimming an upwind jib sheet.

An anchor bridle helps to keep the rode's attach point lower to the water, but a bridle is not essential to my solution. You can just tether the hull at either fore-quarter, rather than the bow, by having a line chock at the quarter-rail. Rode led through this line chock will be fore-quartered regardless of location of the cleat, or even use mast itself. You can test the concept by tying your rode at either pulpit aft stanchion.

To rig a bridle, cleat the rode at the bow, then tie a dockline directly onto your rode, about 7 feet down from the bow cleat. Now snub the other end of the dockline-bridle with 3 wraps on the winch, and into the cam-cleat. The bridle simply permits you to "tune the arc" by changing length on the dockline. If you object to tying a loop into your rode (like me), insert a Montana cinch (Jeff Stagg's hint) onto your anchor rode about 7 feet out from the bow cleat.

Edit: Anchoring & Bridling Examples


1) It's pretty easy to picture how the anchor can "wag the dog" with a perfect fulcrum at a bow tether (first drawing). By contrast, the forequartered hull simply cannot swing as effectively.

2) When tethered aftward enough the hull simply cannot cross the eye of the wind, which eliminates the Mac's habitual anchor-tacking. Use this for testing, but it's clearly not good SOP to anchor to a stanchion.

3) There are many alternate ways to rig a bridle. I was partial to one that went from the port bow cleat, down through the boweye, then back to the Stb winch. It tied to the rode in about the same position, always with rode still slack-cleated to the bow for safety. That bridle permits more flexibility in shifting the tether. But it's very important to be able to quickly weigh anchor. This bridle approach (third drawing) adds zero-delay to making a quick departure.

[captin5317]

Frank
Id like to give your anchoring method a try! Maybe Im just brain dead today, but Im having a hard time visualizing the method. Any photos you know of? Or would it be possible to post some sort of drawing?
Thanks Much: Bruce

[Catigale]

My Bullwaga was so expensive I couldnt bear to throw it out without attaching a fender on a 25 foot dock line as a marker in case I lost the rode.

It serves a secondary purpose in a crowded anchorage of letting others know where your anchor is. I just clipped a SS carabiner to one of the holes in the blades and let a fender ride up a spare dock line for this concept.

[Frank C]

I like that idea Stephen, though I've never done that yet. I'm guessing that tides and waves will simply push your fender out to the end of the dockline by morning??? I always wonder exactly where my anchor rests, and it's a great idea to give that same hint to other boats.

OTOH, saw one article where the author strongly advised against using anchor buoys. He worried about a drunken or rogue stinkpotter (after dark), worse yet, a dragging and drifting keelboat. Either one might snag your buoy, hence, pulling your anchor ... ergo, setting you adrift or towing your boat along with him~!!
I guess one might use a "battery strobe" to mark the anchor buoy?

[March]

Frank: I like the idea! Can hardly wait to try it.

Would it work even better with two anchors at the bow, do you think?