Anchors are a Drag... Waking Up On a Beach in Our Boat

[IdoraKeeper]

We hear a lot about new design anchors (to the point it becomes a joke). We hear a lot about anchoring in the Bahamas (its the only place folks want to go?) We hear a lot about anchoring in ten feet of water and 5:1 scope or better. I would point out that many of us need to anchor in 60 to 100 feet of water in order to be in the places we want to go. I doubt that most vessel's under 60ft can carry 500 ft of all chain rode. So you gotta do what you gotta do. If your in that situation you will likely end up with 3:1 out (or less). Fact is, regardless of which ground tackle you use the chance of dragging increases. Couple that with a pure rock shoreline.....you better have a decent anchor alarm and know how to use it.
My chain locker can accommodate 230ft of chain but that must be extended by 200ft of line (to keep the weight under control). I am interested to hear from folks who succeed in these circumstances. So, who anchors in deep water and what configuration/techniques work for you?

[Kenomac]

You bring up a good point. One time during an emergency over this past summer, I needed to dump 200ft of half inch chain along with the 45kg anchor over the side in 50 meters of water in order to prevent going up into the harbor breakwater. We had an onboard electrical fire, so no electric windlass to assist in the retrieval of all that weight off the bow. Took two hours using the primary winch and tackle while we dragged a kilometer paralleling the breakwater.

Yes, sometimes we need to anchor in deep water with little to no scope.

[robotengineer]

Thanks for relating the story about the rocks
based on your exerience with the rocky bottom, I think I will go ahead with manufacturing my anchor alarm. In most cases, the GPS may work fine, considering some false positives, but the alarm will detect as little as a half foot of movement and a tidal reset reliably, without false positives. Good way to get some sound sleep.
I need to sort out a few details related to packaging and fouling the sensor in the anchor body, but that will take a short amount of time.

Thanks again for reporting your experience
Regards
Ken Lionarons
S/V SEA EAGLE

[Kenomac]

Please let us know what you come up with, and how your testing works out.

[Terra Nova]

Originally Posted by robotengineer

...the alarm will detect as little as a half foot of movement...Good way to get some sound sleep...

Huh?