When neighboring boat disagrees

[Simi 60]

Originally Posted by Dockhead

!



I generally anchor further out than the crowd -- with 100 meters of heavy chain, I'm OK in deeper water than what most like.

We are the same but you always get some wanker want to park beside the big white boat in the middle of nowhere.

Today was the perfect example.
We leave an anchorage for a bit of privacy so I can make some power tool noise and anchor on the edge of a sandbank with strong tidal current in about 15 knots of wind and some chop.

Sandbank dries at low and has 20 ft of water about 30 ft from bank and thats where I anchor, tidal current keeps us off bank, all good
Not a boat for 2 miles in any direction.

Boat turns up and drops anchor between us and sandbank, could have parked anywhere but nope, on top of us was the spot.

We finished what we were doing around 5:30 and went back to the now empty anchorage (Sunday night) and left knob end out there by himself to enjoy the now, 25 knots of wind.

[Pete7]

Originally Posted by Dockhead

Where possible, though, of course, boats should anchor away from boats unlike them. Tris and cats can often anchor in places monos can't even go! Lucky guys!.

I like parking on the beach wasn't even worth using the outboard for the 20 yrds to shore. What you can't see in this photo is the huge flat rock under my yacht. The sounder was saying 1.4 metres and there was still a couple of hours of falling tide to go. Looks like I forgot the anchor ball Anchor isn't doing much, seems to be lying to a few metres of chain. Could probably have walked ashore with a rope instead of anchoring.

Pete

[boatman61]

Originally Posted by Pete7

I like parking on the beach wasn't even worth using the outboard for the 20 yrds to shore. What you can't see in this photo is the huge flat rock under my yacht. The sounder was saying 1.4 metres and there was still a couple of hours of falling tide to go. Seems I forgot the anchor ball

Pete

Flat rock.. Bilge keels..
No worries..
Is that at Studland.???

[Dockhead]

Originally Posted by Pete7

I like parking on the beach [emoji2] wasn't even worth using the outboard for the 20 yrds to shore. What you can't see in this photo is the huge flat rock under my yacht. The sounder was saying 1.4 metres and there was still a couple of hours of falling tide to go. Looks like I forgot the anchor ball Anchor isn't doing much, seems to be lying to a few metres of chain.

Pete

God, I love bilge keel boats [emoji76]

[Pete7]

Originally Posted by Dockhead

God, I love bilge keel boats [emoji76]

Yep, just find somewhere flat and park up. A river bed will do just fine.

Pete

[Pete7]

Originally Posted by boatman61

Flat rock.. Bilge keels..
No worries..
Is that at Studland.???

Bit further down the coast, Babblecombe Beach half way between Brixham and Dartmouth. I don't even think there is a footpath down the cliff so we had the place to ourselves, just a few new age hippies in the next cove along.

Pete

[senormechanico]

Originally Posted by Dockhead

Tris and cats can often anchor in places monos can't even go! Lucky guys!

It's not luck, it's a decision made before purchase !

[Jim Cate]

So in practice, conflicts are very rare, even in very crowded anchorages.

Try anchoring in La Paz bay, Baja California, DH! In the cruising season there, the tidal flow through the anchorage is fast and has lots of eddies, and the wind is gusty. The result is locally known as the "La Paz Waltz" and boats just go crazy. When we first arrived there and anchored at what seemed a reasonable distance from a neighbor, he came over and kindly explained the situation, and we moved to a different spot wiht more room. He was far more experienced as a cruiser than we were, and we appreciated his mentoring... especially when we witnessed more than a few collisions over the next weeks. Mostly they are not hi speed events, but awkward at best... better avoided!

I believe that nowadays there are several additional marinas there, and the anchorage is less crowded, but in 1986 there was but one and it was always full. And the crowds were largely novices like us, off on our first long term cruise!

Jim

[senormechanico]

What Jim said about the "La Paz Waltz" has to be experienced to believe.
I'll never forget being anchored there during a big flood current flowing in from the East with a hooting Westerly. We were fairly stable in our Lord Nelson with its 5' 4''draft and full keel, but it was pretty shocking to see the boat facing South with about four knots of current going under the starboard side and exiting on the port side.

Lots of boats were zooming all around on their anchors, then stopping and just sitting for a bit and taking off again. Really bizarre to watch.

[Paul L]

Originally Posted by Jim Cate

Try anchoring in La Paz bay, Baja California, DH! In the cruising season there, the tidal flow through the anchorage is fast and has lots of eddies, and the wind is gusty. The result is locally known as the "La Paz Waltz" and boats just go crazy. ......

Its not just waltzing boats, here's a picture of the #23 channel buoy cruising through the La Paz anchorage with the current.

[Dockhead]

Originally Posted by Jim Cate

Try anchoring in La Paz bay, Baja California, DH! In the cruising season there, the tidal flow through the anchorage is fast and has lots of eddies, and the wind is gusty. The result is locally known as the "La Paz Waltz" and boats just go crazy. . . .

As a matter of fact, I have anchored in La Paz Bay!


But I was in a friend's Swan 90, and we were anchored a bit further out than the crowd, so not much affected. There are surely some places which require a bit more room than others, but I guess that a bit more than a rode's length should be enough space even here.

[Sojourner]

Originally Posted by senormechanico

It's not luck, it's a decision made before purchase !

Give me my mono with 120 meters of chain and a fast dinghy parked in deep water outside of everyone over jostling fenders out for beachfront property any day of the week!

[In The Mood]

Only the person there can assess who is right and who is wrong. Generally the first person there is given the benefit of the doubt. It is always a good idea to ask how much anchor rode the other boat has out to assess how the boats will move. There is one interesting consideration that is seldom considered. We sail in Southern California where anchoring is often is 40-70 feet of water. Always try to assess not only how the boats are anchored (one hook or two, spacing etc) but consider if they are on an all chain or chain and line. The dynamics of an anchored boat on rope is considerably more active even in relatively benign conditions. A boat on chain may use a 4:1 scope and a boat on chain/rope will often use 6 or 7:1. Just some food for thought.

[lifeofreilly57]

Just been on the other side of this issue.
In Key West waiting for a weather window for the Bahamas we were on the hook for 1.5 weeks in the same spot. The power boat beside us would swing within 25 feet of us between strong tide/wind cycles so we pretty much knew our comfortable spacing.
Late one evening a cruising boat came in and dropped anchor between us, despite having a large anchoring hole just a few hundred feet ahead of his chosen spot. That evening in very light conditions he came within 15 feet of my boat at 3am, I know because I had to get up to check. With a strong northely front coming through the next evening I dinghyed over to his boat and politely offered some advice and a request to just move up a hundred feet or so. He gave me a kind of wave off and said he'd move. He never did.
He was a short guy with a short guy tude.
The next morning I again dinghyed over and politely asked if he could nicely move just a little, he became belligerent and started to lecturing me, my wife was ready to jump on his deck and give him what for, so I turned around and left. I did however let him know that he really didn't want to deal with me on the deck of his boat at 3am in a collision situation. His short guy attitude would not allow him to judge that probability.
Needless to say, the front did come through, he was off the boat at that time, his wife, who was on the boat pretty much scorched him to get his ass back and move pronto shortly before we collided.
Long story short, ask the people around you what the characteristics of the Anchorage are, anyone who's been there through s few tide and weather cycles will have a dead read on what is doable and what is not. Although a space may appear big enough it may not actually be.
In this case I had 140 feet of chain out in 23 feet of water due to the nature of the strong currents and unprotected fetch from the north, if this guy had 60 feet out I'd be surprised., Just no common sense. The risk of an unpleasant meeting was high.
I've been on the water 45 years and still don't assume anything, this is only the third or fourth time I've had to forcefully insist a boat move for safety sake.
There's always more to the story than meets the eye. Sometimes it's just not obvious.
Sure, there's always going to be some thin skinned Territorial types, but don't discount their concerns out of hand without first asking why in a dignified manner.
I'm the most reserved and dignified person when dealing with an issue but you really don't want to meet up with me at 3 am when your boats carreening into mine. It won't be a pleasant experience..

[Pelagic]

Originally Posted by lifeofreilly57

.....He gave me a kind of wave off and said he'd move. He never did.
He was a short guy with a short guy tude.

Sure, there's always going to be some thin skinned Territorial types, but don't discount their concerns out of hand without first asking why in a dignified manner.
I'm the most reserved and dignified person when dealing with an issue but you really don't want to meet up with me at 3 am when your boats carreening into mine. It won't be a pleasant experience..

Very good balanced advice...

I imagine the boat anchored on the other side of Napoleon had equal concerns.

Sometines discussing with that skipper first and going over together as bookend neighbours, reinforces the point.

Also when someone tells me they are going to move...
.....I always ask them WHEN?... just to be sure our chains are clear but really to make them commit (Franklin Planner training[emoji4] )

The always difficult part with some late coming bozo, is deciding when you need to move if they remain stubborn [emoji35]