How to know if anchoring is allowed?

[codefoster]

I was diving on the island of St. Lucia and the dive masters were upset with a yacht that had dropped an anchor in the bay. They said it was not allowed and was very damaging to the coral. I was wondering how a private yacht would know where they're not allowed to anchor. Is it marked on a chart anywhere? Thanks.

[stephengrem]

I was taught that a safe anchorage is 1 mile north of a mile buoy.
Local laws probably vary between states and countries.
Also a marine gps will probably show anchorages ( never had one though so I'm just guessing)

[Cheechako]

Divers dont like boats anchoring on their favorite spots, especially those taking people out for money! Doesnt necssarily nmean it's excluded by regulation. True anchor exclusion zones are usually noted on a chart as such. Having said that, it's likely up to the whim of the local Port Captain or Coast Guard type of authority..... especially in the third world.

[LeaseOnLife]

I would start with looking at a chart, cruising guides, then when checking into a country, find out more about marine preserves, other no-anchoring zones. Enforcement vaires, try not to anchor in coral!

Dirk

[Rakuflames]

Originally Posted by codefoster

I was diving on the island of St. Lucia and the dive masters were upset with a yacht that had dropped an anchor in the bay. They said it was not allowed and was very damaging to the coral. I was wondering how a private yacht would know where they're not allowed to anchor. Is it marked on a chart anywhere? Thanks.

As far as I know, anywhere in the world it's illegal to anchor on a living reef.

[Cheechako]

Yeah, I've used their "moorings". Nothing but a small old rusty chain strung along the waterfront parallel to the beach when I was there. Snorkeled all around the mooring area trying to build enough confidence in the chain to stay, all sand no coral seen. I'm imagine there must be coral out further toward the the line or near the Pitons.

[John A]

Originally Posted by Cheechako

Yeah, I've used their "moorings". Nothing but a small old rusty chain strung along the waterfront parallel to the beach when I was there. Snorkeled all around the mooring area trying to build enough confidence in the chain to stay, all sand no coral seen. I'm imagine there must be coral out further toward the the line or near the Pitons.

I take issue with your statement! From Marigot south the country of St Lucia takes great pride in the conservation of marine life, The entire west coast is a National Park. Extensive information is provided in all the Cruising Guides that I've read. You must detail to Customs your planes to traverse along the coast and pay a Park fee and the area is patrolled by park rangers. The rangers also dive on the moorings to assure that they are safe. Dive companies pay a fee and dive in designated areas.

NOBODY should ever anchor in coral!!! If you do even I will give you hell for being so thoughtless.

The moorings off the beach in Rodney Bay are private and of poor quality. In the ten times I visited St Lucia's Rodney Bay, I considered that area as a poor choice to spend the night. I always anchored at least a half mile from the beach.

[Kettlewell]

The latest versions of the cruising guidebooks are usually your best sources for this type of information. No-anchoring areas tend to be few and far between, and often do tend to be things like well-marked marine parks or reefs where you wouldn't want to anchor anyway. In popular areas you can almost always find some other boater in the anchorage to ask what the situation is, if in doubt. In out of the way places the chances are there will be very few anchoring restrictions, if any, and also nobody around to enforce them. Charts sometimes have areas designated that require you to look up the regulations in some other place--cruising guidebooks give the best perspective for most pleasure boaters.

[codefoster]

Awesome. Thanks everyone.

[rwidman]

Originally Posted by Rakuflames

As far as I know, anywhere in the world it's illegal to anchor on a living reef.

But how would you know (that you are anchoring on a living reef)?

[jackdale]

Originally Posted by rwidman

But how would you know (that you are anchoring on a living reef)?

You can look for this abbreviation on the chart - "Co".

[donradcliffe]

Originally Posted by Rakuflames

As far as I know, anywhere in the world it's illegal to anchor on a living reef.

Nice fantasy. While I would agree that you should avoid anchoring on coral, its not illegal in 99.99% of the real world. First, define a living reef.

[John A]

Originally Posted by donradcliffe

Nice fantasy. While I would agree that you should avoid anchoring on coral, its not illegal in 99.99% of the real world. First, define a living reef.

Coral reef - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

It is also not illegal to burn down a rain forest.

Nor is it illegal to discharge black water in 99.99% of the world.

You may also, if you chose, fart during church service.

[Jim Cate]

Sheesh, guys, no one in their right mind anchors on a live coral reef. Not because of any ecological or moral issues, but because it is a lousy bottom for anchoring: full of crevices and holes that will trap your anchor forever, and conversely, lots of hard and slippery areas where no anchor will hold.

There are lots of places where the bottom is certainly coral, and so marked on charts... but it is coral rubble, not a live reef. There is no reason other than poor holding for not anchoring in such areas. For instance, many of the popular coves in Baie de Prony in New Caledonia have such bottoms, and if ya wanna anchor, that is what you are faced with. Not a great prospect, but dozens of boats anchor there every week. No harm, no foul...

In general, there are few places where anchoring is not allowed. Most are marked on charts, some have escaped the cartographer's notice. If one anchors in such a place the usual response is to ask you to move. Nowadays park Nazi types may inflict a fine for an honest uninformed mistake. However, usually parks are noted in local brochures, etc, if you bother to look, even if they are not noted on navigational charts.

In our years of cruising the only worrisome prohibited areas have been poorly marked undersea cables. We spent some of our worst hours ever whilst hooked onto a fibre-optic telephone cable in Broken Bay. The cable was shown on the chart (hadn't looked at the bloody thing for a long time because I "knew" the area well), but the nearby sign was so obliterated by graffiti that we both failed to read it. My fault completely. The Telecom chap who eventually showed up informed me that if I damaged it I would be charged for replacement... a quarter of a million bucks!!. I cut the chain and buoyed it for later recovery. THAT was a prohibited anchorage with a good reason!

Cheers,

Jim

[donradcliffe]

Originally Posted by John A

Coral reef - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

It is also not illegal to burn down a rain forest.

Nor is it illegal to discharge black water in 99.99% of the world.

You may also, if you chose, fart during church service.

Eco-terrorists don't distinguish between a cooking fire and burning down the forest.

From your reference "Coral reefs are underwater structures made from calcium carbonate secreted by corals." Does that include a 2 inch underwater structure surrounded by sand? A 12 inch structure? A 12 ft structure?