sailing on the hook

[robbie_d]

weight, windage, keel shape all will affect how much and in what way a boat sails at anchor but one thing is:
A boat will not sail unless the anchoring line/chain is taut so adding more stretch to your anchoring rig may fix the problem..
For the all chain rode add a longer bigger nylon rope snubber when the wind picks up...chain being hard has very little friction with the water and to stop sailing friction really helps..

If you use a rope rode with short chain go for a bigger rode when the wind picks up.. I've seen light 27,28' boats that sailed like crazy on 7/16 or 1/5 in rode sit totally still with 5/8 or yes it's way overkill but you sleep well 3/4 rode...and you won't drag..the gravitational pull of the rode and it's friction with the water alone absorbs almost all the force..
Borrow a rig from a friends bigger boat and try it....bit of a pain bit more work but the comfort and secuity it adds are worth it and it's only a couple hundred more unless you have a really big boat..

[capt lar]

in the process of ordering new anchor rode - planned on 300' of 5/8 for a 31 foot, 11,400# disp. boat. over the top, but as the old song goes - "better to have and don't need than need and don't have".
capt. lar

[Vasco]

capt. lar,

Get as much chain as you can handle. It'll make a lot of difference. On my boat without a windlass I have 50ft 3/8 chain and 200' 5/8 nylon. The chain isn't that heavy as you're only hauling, at the most,15-20 ft.

[robbie_d]

Several years ago I was cruising to the Bahamas on an Irwin 28 with a displacment of about 8000 lbs....while the anchors never dragged the boat always bounced around at anchor and when the wind picked up the 150' 1/2 in rode with 20 feet of 3/8 chain would go taut and the boat would practically launch itself into the air if the waves got up around a foot..
Knew I needed a new bigger rode
and I was talking to a guy with a 42 Endeavour about it and he had an older 3/4 rode he didn't trust for his 23,000 pound boat but he would sell it to me cheap.. it had some chafe but was still over 5/8 thick so although it was WAY oversized the price was right and I bought it...
Best thing I ever did on that 6 month trip..
The rode was so heavy that when the wind was light just lifting it took any omph out of boat movement and when it picked up the rode would lift and strech a bit but even when cold fronts went through at 60knt's the boat motion was so gentle I never lost sleep or worried one bit.....
Ever since then I have been a huge 2 sizes over recomended anchor setup fan and the extra few hundred bucks has been more than worth it.. I KNOW I won't drag or get bashed around in my bunk.. ..

[GordMay]

Some generally applicable advice can be found at some of the previous discussions, such as:

at the Questions and Answers Forum under the “Anchor Spring Lines” thread
http://www.cruisersforum.com/showthr...=&threadid=653

at the Sailing Forum under the “Heavy weather anchoring” thread
http://www.cruisersforum.com/showthr...=&threadid=533

at the Tips & Tricks Forum under the “anchor rode around keel” thread
http://www.cruisersforum.com/showthr...&threadid=1230

[billangiep]

This seems to keep the dancing around to a min. Riding sail, 35lb. CQR, 20' of 3/8 chain 200' of 5/8 rode. The sail was made using an old jib.
Bill,

[Talbot]

20' of chain for a boat of that size is not what I would want in a strong wind. Please dont anchor up-wind of me.

[billangiep]

Mr. Talbot,
and what would you recomend? There are several rules of thumb, foot of chain per foot of boat, weight of chain to equal anchor weight ect. Our achorages on the Florida West coast are rarely over 8ft. and always in sand or mud. I agree in anchoring in a coral or rocky bottom I would be foolish not to use more chain.... much more!!
Bill,

[GordMay]

Assuming adequate rope is also deployed (Bill’s got 200'), twenty feet of chain should be adequate for typical anchoring in eight feet over sand/mud. More chain (40' total?) might be better.
Assuming 4' of freeboard, many authorities would permit deployment of as little as 36 ft. (3:1) for an all-chain rode in 8' depths - though I'd never use less than 4:1, even for a lunch hook.

[Talbot]

chin has two purposes for anchoring, the first and arguably the most important is the prevention of chafe , and your chain is definitely sufficient for that purpose where you normally sail.

The second purpose is the assistance in holding power to the anchor. You can get by with a really heavy anchor and short amount of chain, but this vastly increases the chance of a pull out on tide change. It also increases the potential sideways forces caused by the boat sailing on the hook (a particular problem for a cat.)

A longer chain rode helps to dampen the sailing movement before any force is applied to the anchor (proven to my satisfaction by using different lengths of chain and different weights). It also considerably reduces the pull out angle due to the catenary of the chain. Thus my anchor bites first time, and holds even when the majority of boats around me were dragging even though I had a couple of large ribs attached to me as well.

I used to carry 60ft of chain, and then appropriate rope, but have just changed to 90 ft of chain as I have fitted a windlass, and the majority of my anchoring calls for less than this, thus I dont have to use the 150 ft of anchorplait.

Naturally all this is my own opinion, but I sleep very well when at anchor!

[Rick]

His points parallel my own experience with mono-marans as well as cats.

[billangiep]

I also completely agree with Talbots second responce. The Cruiser's Forum has always been a wealth of information for me and I'm sure for many others. I thank You all for that...I do try to input when I think it may help or have an alternate idea. I posted here to show of the "riding sail".
Bill,
P.S. Talbot
Currents here are nill...tides are maybe three feet I do feel ok with my 35lbs CQR ,20ft. of 3/8 chain at around 30lbs and in 8ft. would let out 60ft. of rode. total of 80ft. over the bow. But I do not disagree, more chain would be better.

[Talbot]

From my reading in the different forums, it does appear that UK particularly will use a heavier chain and a non-hernia inducing anchor, whereas USA goes with the double-hernia anchor and a lot less chain.

My wife can lift my anchor and place it over the bow, I guess your system requires a bow stowage for the anchor.

My personal requirement used to be for an anchor and chain that I could just about lift off the ground in case the windlass breaks, but have since added an extra 10m of chain (and I am older!) primarily so that I dont have to bother messing around with rope/chain and the gypsy except in extremis.

[Curtis]

I've been experimenting with some methods of controlling our sailing at anchor. First off, I use plenty of scope...probably 6:1 of all chain. Then I have a Y-shaped nylon snubber that hooks to chain, which then splits off to each of the bow cleats. By making one leg of the split longer than the other I can usually get enough of an angle to prevent the oscillation.

I don't do this during a storm because it increases windage. Stopping the swing is a lower priority than not dragging!

It also seems like our boat only swings in a moderate breeze..say 15-25 knots. In really heavy winds she kind of hunkers down and stays put (hopefully).

[rtbates]

You could rig a riding sail or anchor by the stern. Actually anchoring by the stern, especially in a big blow, actually places much less strain on your boat and gear! It's a fact. I was as susprised as most until I tried it out. It works. Read about it here http://www.jordanseriesdrogue.com/D_14.htm