Bow & Stern Anchoring is the Best!

[sww914]

We've been on the hook in La Cruz de Huanacaxtle for 2 weeks now, when we first pulled in there was a 2'-3' swell so we anchored bow & stern facing into the swell like we usually do here. The swell built to about 4 feet for a couple of days and everbody else was bobbing around like crazy except us. We had planned to sail out to another anchorage, Punta Mita, today but weren't able to go. In preparation i pulled up the stern anchor this morning when the wind was right. Tonight it's glassy and beautiful so the meager 6"- 12" swell has pushed abeam and now we're rolling like crazy compared to what it was with 4 times the waves! If you haven't tried it, set a stern anchor and enjoy the comfort.

[CptJ-GS50]

Interesting ..... about an hour ago we were sitting here discussing the reasoning behind using both a bow and stern anchor. Hitting on the pros and cons from experience. And you just added another Pro to the list. Thanks for the tip...

[AnchorageGuy]

Steve, this works well in an anchorage where you either have the anchorage to yourself or you can get far away from other boats. But if the anchorage is crowded or tight and everyone else is swinging on a single anchor, you become a very unpopular neighbor. We do see this often and have used it ourselves where the swell or boat wakes make it a good choice. In anchorages where everyone is on a single anchor, we rig a bridle from the stern cleat to a point on the anchor rode where we can pull the bow into the swells. This technique gets used more than a bow and stern. We also use bow and stern to keep us out of a channel if we need to drop the hook along a tight waterway. Chuck

[sww914]

Most of the anchorages in Mexico are huge that we've come across. Most people try to anchor in the middle of everyone else but we anchor away from the pack. We leave a float on the stern anchor so that the aware boater might see that we're facing a different direction and that we have something behind us. Nonetheless, even though we're a mile (exactly) from the harbor entrance and there are 45 other boats between us and the marina, somebody will decide that we have the one extra super special anchoring spot and try to anchor 50 feet away about every other day. We hail them and explain that we won't be swinging with them and that they'll need a little distance.
If that doesn't work I take off all my clothes, go outside and yell HELLOOOOOO and wave like mad.
NOBODY wants to anchor next to the boat with the fat naked extra friendly white guy.

[Mal Reynolds]

^^ That's actually pretty funny. I wonder what the next step is when the guy comes back up on deck with a camera & long lens...

[senormechanico]

Crank up the external speakers with opera music.
That ought'a do it.

[sww914]

Anybody messed up enough to want a picture of me naked deserves to own a picture of me naked!

[zeehag]

rodlmffao..so, 914, whenye coming here, eh????
got my camera ready......

[sww914]

I don't know yet, we've found a lot to do here to earn some coconuts, lots of boats need fixing.

[sww914]

Perv!

[BandB]

When I was young on the lake, bow and stern anchoring was common. Then as I moved to larger boats and the ocean, bow only anchoring was the standard. Now you're pretty much tied into it in most anchorages so everyone will swing together. I've often wondered how that entire concept of all bow and swinging together developed. It automatically means there is a distance from shore not available for anchoring. The only thing I've ever been told is the need to have the bow into the wind.

Regardless of how it developed it is here and I will personally never be comfortable anchoring in a crowded anchorage without someone keeping watch. I'm not as worried about my anchoring as I am about others. Also, I've seen as the wind shifts and boats start to swing, some do a lot sooner than others and when that happens you have issues. I know others have a much higher degree of comfort than I do. Part of that may be experience but part may also be just personality and risk acceptance.

[cwyckham]

Be very careful of bow and stern anchoring (or stern tying to shore) if there is any chance of a beam on wind. If the rodes are tight, you will put huge forces on the anchors and they will drag. They may or may not catch again once they start. I've been lightly aground once due to this mistake (ironically on a sailing course).

AnchorageGuy's bridle fixes this problem as well as the swing problem. If you let out enough rode that a beam on wind will leave about a 90 degree angle between the two rodes, that will also work. It may mean that you lose the whole point of the stern anchor, though.

Or you just accept this limitation and are ready to let out a bunch more rode on one or both anchors if the wind comes up from the wrong direction.

[noelex 77]

Originally Posted by BandB

Also, I've seen as the wind shifts and boats start to swing, some do a lot sooner than others and when that happens you have issues. I know others have a much higher degree of comfort than I do. Part of that may be experience but part may also be just personality and risk acceptance.

You will find with time that you get more comfortable with boats anchored closer.

It is important to keep track of where the anchors are located. Most problems of boats swinging together are caused when the anchors are placed close together, but the chain laid out in a different direction. In these situations the initial boat separation can appear quite adequate but any wind or current that is enough to move the chain on the seabed will cause the boats to gradually come together. It is worth keeping track of where your anchor is located especially in light and variable wind.


Beware of boats setting a multiple anchors. A common problem is for a boat to add a second anchor late in the day to avoid the possibility of swinging into a hazard, to point the boat into swell, or to increase the holding power. These boats need a considerable distance from boats lying to a single anchor. Unfortunatly boats do not always adequately evaluate the effect on needed swinging room when they add a second anchor.

In the more common situation of similar styled boats with the same scope and rode boats can anchor surprisingly close without problems.

In the photo below the boat is too close, but with the right circumstances (a similar boat on a similar rode) not a great deal more separation is needed.

What is always annoying is boats anchoring close when there is plenty of other room, but in a busy anchorage many inexperienced cruisers worry unnecessarily when there is little real danger.

Collision from dragging boats is far more common than boats swinging into each other and results in much more damage.

[gjordan]

At Cabo San Lucas we anchored off of the beach, bow and stern like everyone else other than the large boats that had 200 or 300 feet of chain. Actually had 2 off of the bow and one of off the stern. A few months later we arrived at Hiva Oha, and everyone was anchored bow and stern, so we did the same. It made a huge difference in rolling.. Later at Nuka Hiva I watched the most professional anchoring I had ever seen. A Choey Lee Offshore 40 arrived and dropped a hook and backed up about 300 feet straight as an arrow ( much to my amazement) and dropped a stern hook and took in about 100 feet of road and sat straight into the swell and not a word was spoken in the process. I later learned that he was a retired navy Commander, and had a million miles of experience. Bow and stern has its place in anchoring, but it is not (like anything else) the end all or be all about anchoring. it is just another tool in the chest. Dont discount it . _____Grant.

[Celestialsailor]

Originally Posted by sww914

If that doesn't work I take off all my clothes, go outside and yell HELLOOOOOO and wave like mad.
NOBODY wants to anchor next to the boat with the fat naked extra friendly white guy.

Some things never change...