Most Sailors Can't Anchor Properly!

[CarinaPDX]

Regarding marking the anchor with a float: just don't. I bought a small float for that purpose, and the first time I used it someone tried to pick it up and use it as a mooring! There might be times I would do it to provide a trip line if in an area known for trapping anchors, but then would have to watch it like a hawk. It seems to me that for general use it adds more risk than it reduces.

[Edit: if your own boat swings back over the float you risk snagging it and tripping out your own anchor. All these risks just to tell other skippers where your anchor is. I find simply telling them when they come in works well.]


Greg

[barnakiel]

And why assume all those who own a boat are sailors?

Actually, few people are.

If they are ignorant, then that's not that much different from people who send 12 MP pictures from their iPhone X.

b.

[Montanan]

Originally Posted by CarinaPDX

Regarding marking the anchor with a float: just don't. I bought a small float for that purpose, and the first time I used it someone tried to pick it up and use it as a mooring! There might be times I would do it to provide a trip line if in an area known for trapping anchors, but then would have to watch it like a hawk. It seems to me that for general use it adds more risk than it reduces.

[Edit: if your own boat swings back over the float you risk snagging it and tripping out your own anchor. All these risks just to tell other skippers where your anchor is. I find simply telling them when they come in works well.]


Greg

Very good point as to the float line causing your anchor to trip if your boat swings across and your rode loops and snags the float as the scope of the rode is much longer than the scope on the marker. That is a very real possibility I had not given consideration to. Dang and I was so looking forward to coding Morse messages for the light on the top of the float. I have seen a boat pull up to an orange ball apparently thinking that it was a mooring ball to find out that it was a hazard marker and they proceeded to bash their hull hard onto the barely below the surface rock that one would not know was there except for the big orange ball attached to the rock. Nota bene: Not all things that appear to be moorings are moorings.
Kind of like when a boater cruises up and lifts a Diver Down float, curious and not knowing "what's the thingy in the water is?" and then promptly gets chewed out by the snorkeler or scuba diver when they surface adjacent to the boat. Seen that more than once, pretty scary, hoping to not see the water turn into red chumming. Again there being no requirement for boaters to know what certain signals mean and of course to confuse matters worse that the diver down signal has two versions, the red with white stripe and the Alpha flag [blue and white], which means there are two ways to be ignorant.

[Montanan]

What's wrong with this picture? Everyone has their circle and they are sticking to it. Either called a cluster [insert four letters here] or a circle of soon to be close buddies.
Just so long as your are outside their radii it is time for
Let the show begin! Bumper cars on land, bumper boats on sea.

[Mike OReilly]

I only use an anchor float when I deploy a trip line. And I only do this when I'm pretty confident the bottom is littered with debris that could snag my anchor. IOW, I rarely do it.

My opinion is that you should almost never use a float just to mark your anchor. Most especially NOT in a busy anchorage. Not only does it creat all sorts of possible problems for you, or for passing boats. It also unnecessarily blocks out a larger area for your boat.

[Suijin]

Originally Posted by Montanan

What's wrong with this picture? Everyone has their circle and they are sticking to it. Either called a cluster [insert four letters here] or a circle of soon to be close buddies.

Just so long as your are outside their radii it is time for

Let the show begin! Bumper cars on land, bumper boats on sea.

Hmm been in lots of crowded anchorages where that is the default for simple lack of space. Either shorten up and live with someone swinging over your anchor, or move. In fact your diagram does not look too bad for anyone but the little red fella.

[sailorboy1]

This all seems so complicated. I must be doing it all wrong.

[senormechanico]

Originally Posted by JPA Cate

It's not for the faint hearted, but if you can bear it, anchoring on a lee shore ahead of an expected 180 deg. wind shift, puts you in sheltered waters AFTER the change. It will be lumpy when it is time to go to sleep, but that's why you set the anchor carefully [using ranges], right? And then, when the change comes through, it's sweet, and the rest of your sleep goes soundly. It is a strategy we use often.

Ann

We did that several times in the Sea of Cortez.
Once, we moved back and forth in San Juanico three times in one day.
Everybody eventually followed us after conditions deteriorated.
It finally got to be that people were calling us on the VHF wondering what the heck was going on, and how did we know ahead of time?
It was all based on a nearby early tropical storm with wfax stuff via my HAM rig.
The anchorage kept getting rolly from 90 degree directions ahead of our movements.

[senormechanico]

OT Alert....





[QUOTE=Suijin;2692991]




A bunch of years ago I totaled a car at night hitting a deer that almost seemed dropped by aliens in front of me it was so unavoidable. I now see deer lurking behind every tree when driving after dark. That anchoring experience was my maritime equivalent of hitting a deer.
QUOTE]


On Whidbey Island, most roads are 50mph limit, although that's a "suggestion" if you know what I mean.

At night, especially in deer rutting season you would be an idiot to drive more than 40 !

[Barbaria]

Well the idea is NOT to use a massive tripline that will lift your anchor, or that someone uses it as a mooring, or danger to blind skippers. Use a small line that breaks easily, no harm done to anyone or to boats. The point is not a tripline, but to show where the anchor is and how long scope you have. The worst that can happen is that you loose the buoy to a blind skipper.

It seems to be ok for many here to swing over someone’s anchor. I am sure it’s fine if you know the people, but if not it could be a serious problem to raise the anchor if somebody (a big one) is in top of it and they are ashore.

If a anchorage is crowded I can’t see any reason to lower the security when anchoring, maybe the opposite should apply.

[john61ct]

Originally Posted by Barbaria

Use a small line that breaks easily, no harm done to anyone or to boats.

Big balloon on a length of fishing line?

[Mike OReilly]

Originally Posted by Barbaria

Well the idea is NOT to use a massive tripline that will lift your anchor, or that someone uses it as a mooring, or danger to blind skippers. Use a small line that breaks easily, no harm done to anyone or to boats. The point is not a tripline, but to show where the anchor is and how long scope you have. The worst that can happen is that you loose the buoy to a blind skipper.

It seems to be ok for many here to swing over someone’s anchor. I am sure it’s fine if you know the people, but if not it could be a serious problem to raise the anchor if somebody (a big one) is in top of it and they are ashore.

If a anchorage is crowded I can’t see any reason to lower the security when anchoring, maybe the opposite should apply.

I disagree. First off, how do I know what line is hanging down from your float? And regardless of what type of line you use, you’re saying it’s OK for me to pass over it under power, and risk getting a prop wrap, or to swing over it at anchor, and risk getting my rudder or prop or whatever, fouled?

Basically your option is great for you, at the expense of everyone else.

There’s nothing wrong with someone swinging over your set anchor. As long as boat are all anchored the same way (single, reasonable length rode), then this works great in busy places. Yes, there’s a chance you may face an issue when wanting to leave, but as anyone who anchors a lot knows, this is very rare, and can usually be managed with goodwill and a little patience.

[Suijin]

Originally Posted by Mike OReilly

There’s nothing wrong with someone swinging over your set anchor. As long as boat are all anchored the same way (single, reasonable length rode), then this works great in busy places. Yes, there’s a chance you may face an issue when wanting to leave, but as anyone who anchors a lot knows, this is very rare, and can usually be managed with goodwill and a little patience.

Agreed. The chance of them being precisely over your anchor are very small. I think it’s only happened to me once. Far more often I’m coming up beside them as the anchor comes up. Even 10’ is fine depending on conditions.

Where I am now, in Block Island. Everyone is over everyone’s anchor (who is over who’s changes with the wind) a good chunk of the time. It’s not an issue.

The only time I ever put a buoy on my anchor is for a trip line and that’s very rare. Either rocky bottom or bottom foul with junk/snags.

[Mike OReilly]

Originally Posted by Suijin

Agreed. The chance of them being precisely over your anchor are very small. I think it’s only happened to me once. Far more often I’m coming up beside them as the anchor comes up. Even 10’ is fine depending on conditions.

The only time I ever put a buoy on my anchor is for a trip line and that’s very rare. Either rocky bottom or bottom foul with junk/snags.

Originally Posted by Suijin

Where I am now, in Block Island. Everyone is over everyone’s anchor (who is over who’s changes with the wind) a good chunk of the time. It’s not an issue.

Attachment 175235

Holy Kamole! That’s one tight anchorage.

[sailorboy1]

I’ve never put a trip line with float out, but see little difference between swinging into one over the lobster pot floats.