Marking your anchor location

[PassportJoy]

I recently deployed small yellow fender attached to my anchor with a bungee cord. The fender remained directly above the anchor. It was interesting to see my boat in relation to my anchor as the wind shifted and died. The end result after staying on this anchor for over a week, the bungee wrapped around my prop. I had to dive, cut away the tangled bungee and retrieve the fender from under the boat. It was an interesting experiment and I wouldn’t do it again.

[boatpoker]

Originally Posted by PassportJoy

I recently deployed small yellow fender attached to my anchor with a bungee cord. The fender remained directly above the anchor. It was interesting to see my boat in relation to my anchor as the wind shifted and died. The end result after staying on this anchor for over a week, the bungee wrapped around my prop. I had to dive, cut away the tangled bungee and retrieve the fender from under the boat. It was an interesting experiment and I wouldn’t do it again.

Which is why when I do use one, I use string almost as light as thread.

[Dockhead]

Originally Posted by boatpoker

With 100' out on a 40' boat your anchor can be anywhere within a 280' circle as the boat drifts around with wind and tide changes. Unless you have incredible eyesight and crystal clear water how do you know where your anchor is ?

Umm, by dropping a waypoint on the chart?


If it's even a little windy, you will also see exactly where the anchor is by the arc which your track makes on the plotter.


I am puzzled why some people find it challenging to know where the anchor is. And also -- why you really care all that much.

[Dennis.G]

Put out a anchor buoy once where bottom was very rocky. Wind died to zero at night. In the morning I was riding stern to a slight breeze with the anchor buoy line snagged on my prop. I had drifted directly over the buoy during the night. Was lucky no serious wind had come up as I could have easily drug the anchor with the short scope of the anchor buoy line.

I have never used an anchor buoy since then.

[boatpoker]

Originally Posted by Dockhead

Umm, by dropping a waypoint on the chart?


If it's even a little windy, you will also see exactly where the anchor is by the arc which your track makes on the plotter.


I am puzzled why some people find it challenging to know where the anchor is. And also -- why you really care all that much.

I don't leave my plotter running for a week ot two at a time. I don't have enough solar after my refrigerator and freezer are taken care of

[Don C L]

WHEN I go far afield and have to hang on only one hook, AND IF then I feel the need to attach a trip line, I probably would not use a buoy, (though I personally don't have a prop to snag,) but for the others who do, I would instead employ whatever system is reliable to run the trip line back to the boat.
I know we in this tiny little corner of the world are the outliers, don't curse us when you visit and find everyone on 2 hooks! IT's not bad when you try it, no one swings into anyone else and there is room for everyone.

[Tonali99]

Originally Posted by PassportJoy

I recently deployed small yellow fender attached to my anchor with a bungee cord. The fender remained directly above the anchor. It was interesting to see my boat in relation to my anchor as the wind shifted and died. The end result after staying on this anchor for over a week, the bungee wrapped around my prop. I had to dive, cut away the tangled bungee and retrieve the fender from under the boat. It was an interesting experiment and I wouldn’t do it again.

You're bungee was alive?!?@! It did that all by itself?
[as Spock] Fasinating captain ....

[Mystic38]

they waypoint, just like your anchor, doesn't move or disappear just because you power off a plotter..

totally bored, OCD and quizzical?.. turn the plotter on and play find your anchor..

or, just get about the day..lol

Originally Posted by boatpoker

I don't leave my plotter running for a week ot two at a time. I don't have enough solar after my refrigerator and freezer are taken care of

[Tonali99]

Time to get a better system then. My inverter can run the A/C, TV and make coffee too.
All from my solar panels. Oh, the small (A/C) fridge is on all the time.
What I need is a water maker, besides catching rain I mean. But the cost ....

[Tonali99]

Which brings me to a question I pondered, well aince the movie.
Could you really live like Costner did in water world?
I love seafood. But what would go with it? Finding the right seaweed used in sushi be'd nice. But I don't know which one it is or where to find it. How about rice and beans?
Gonna need dirt somewhere...

[Don C L]

Originally Posted by Tonali99

Which brings me to a question I pondered, well aince the movie.
Could you really live like Costner did in water world?
I love seafood. But what would go with it? Finding the right seaweed used in sushi be'd nice. But I don't know which one it is or where to find it. How about rice and beans?
Gonna need dirt somewhere...

Well..... people have lived on sushi and rainwater for weeks or months... but they ordinarily don't really look like the young Kevin Costner when they are found. Rice and beans are good side dishes... and multivitamins...

[lonesoldier0408]

Just a small observation.
If one attached a fishing line to the trip, one could keep the trip, on the vessel.
Route the fishing line through a block attached to the anchor, then through anther block, on the float. Then terminate at the anchor trip attachment point.
Feed fishing line, “Small float,” would surface, retrieve to submerse.
Attach 550 cord or other appropriate rode to the opposite end, knotted at the bitter, so as to prevent passage through the first block.
At night float is with anchor, to prevent entanglement.
In the morning, release the float, allowing the, “actual trip line,” to be sent through the block on the anchor.
Once the bitter reaches the block, retrieve the hook.

At this point, one would say, “Just my two cents, if one wished to mark their anchor, and not run afoul in the night,” but that would disregard inflation. [emoji848]🧐[emoji19]

Fair winds and following seas.

[Denny Vitton]

I live on the Florida’s gulf coast and most anchorages are 10 to 20 feet deep. I use all chain on my 34 Morgan and many times I use a yellow plastic ½ gallon detergent bottle with my boat’s name on it attached to my anchor. I use flooding type line and always put only enough line out to keep the float directly over my anchor. Excess line is stored in a nylon bag attached to the float. I do this in crowed anchorages because on numerous occasions because of no winds and/or tides I have had other boater drop their anchor on top or across my chain not knowing where my anchor is. Using the float with my boat name on it resolve almost any concerns.

[Dockhead]

Originally Posted by Denny Vitton

I live on the Florida’s gulf coast and most anchorages are 10 to 20 feet deep. I use all chain on my 34 Morgan and many times I use a yellow plastic ½ gallon detergent bottle with my boat’s name on it attached to my anchor. I use flooding type line and always put only enough line out to keep the float directly over my anchor. Excess line is stored in a nylon bag attached to the float. I do this in crowed anchorages because on numerous occasions because of no winds and/or tides I have had other boater drop their anchor on top or across my chain not knowing where my anchor is. Using the float with my boat name on it resolve almost any concerns.

Except that the boat name does not make the float any less a hazard to navigation, or reduce the risk of your anchor being pulled up by another boat's getting tangled in your float line. Likewise the boat name does nothing to solve the problem you create for other boats who now can't even swing over your anchor without a tangle so are forced to anchor further away.



If you insist on using an anchor float, please at least do NOT do this when the anchorage is crowded. It is not a big issue for one anchor chain to cross another if you know what you're doing, and have an "anchor thief" on board as you should. Rope in a prop is a far greater issue; don't take on a big problem to solve a small one.

[carstenb]

Originally Posted by Dockhead

Except that the boat name does not make the float any less a hazard to navigation, or reduce the risk of your anchor being pulled up by another boat's getting tangled in your float line. Likewise the boat name does nothing to solve the problem you create for other boats who now can't even swing over your anchor without a tangle so are forced to anchor further away.



If you insist on using an anchor float, please at least do NOT do this when the anchorage is crowded. It is not a big issue for one anchor chain to cross another if you know what you're doing, and have an "anchor thief" on board as you should. Rope in a prop is a far greater issue; don't take on a big problem to solve a small one.

"Anchor thief?" don't know this expression...................