Stern anchor- overkill?

[zachduckworth]

Hi,

I have a 1984 Islander Bahama 30. I have been anchoring a lot recently but only with a bow anchor. I had to cut a stern anchor free awhile ago- long story. Anyway, I previously had a 25 lbs claw in the bow, 260’ of all anchor road, and a 15 lbs Danforth stern.

Now I upgraded the bow anchor to a 37 lbs Sarca Excel (it’s awesome) and in theory I use the 25 lbs claw as a stern anchor. The problem is storing the 25lbs claw anchor. It really takes up a lot of room and my lazarette doesn’t have a good place to store it. I have a bracket on the stern pulpit for a Danforth. Would it make more sense to just go back to a danforth or even a fortress over the claw? Is a 25 lbs stern anchor excessive in a 30’ boat anyway?

Thanks,
Zach

[bergius]

Our 31ft boat came with a 15kg Bruce that we now use as the stern anchor. At bow we have a 15kg Vulcan.

The stern anchor stows nicely hanging from the pushpit, with 5m of 8mm chain in a bucket followed by 45m of webbing on a reel. We use the stern anchor primarily for "Scandinavian mooring" where you anchor from stern and then tie the bow to trees.



Since it is always easily deployed right from the cockpit, we also consider it the "emergency brake" if engine were to fail in a tight marina or whatever.

As the pull is always in one direction, we could likely do with a smaller anchor as well. But we already had this one, and there have been some thunder squall situations where I've been happy to have it. Once the two boats next to us dragged their anchors, which meant three boats leaning into our anchor. Thankfully it held.

[zachduckworth]

That is pretty cool, I had not thought about that. Great idea! I’m going to go try that out..

[thinwater]

What is the stern anchor for, in your case? Most people, I wager, go years without using one. Narrow channel? Tying bow-to (but I would go stern to).


It's not for storms; a stern anchor will probably lessen your holding by increasing the forces.

[Sdpaddler50]

Originally Posted by thinwater

What is the stern anchor for, in your case? Most people, I wager, go years without using one. Narrow channel? Tying bow-to (but I would go stern

It's not for storms; a stern anchor will probably lessen your holding by increasing the forces.

I am not a fan of using a stern anchor for various reasons but we have to use them in the Northern Channel Islands, CA in the smaller coves during the summer when they get crowded. If one person puts one out, we all have to.

[barnakiel]

I used the stern anchor any time in Scandinavia when anchored bow to a rock.


And as much in Polynesia with a line either to a palm ashore or else to keep the stern to the wind.


Any time in the Caribbean, we always have a stern anchor ready to deploy. If just in case. Any time it blows real hard I simply row the stern hook off to windward and keep the two in a "V". Limits sailing and gives me a sound healthy sleep too.


So, in my book, the stern anchor stays.


barnakiel

[zachduckworth]

Originally Posted by Sdpaddler50

I am not a fan of using a stern anchor for various reasons but we have to use them in the Northern Channel Islands, CA in the smaller coves during the summer when they get crowded. If one person puts one out, we all have to.

I’m in San Pedro and will be heading to the northern channels shortly, hence the need for a stern anchor.

[Sdpaddler50]

Originally Posted by barnakiel

I used the stern anchor any time in Scandinavia when anchored bow to a rock.


And as much in Polynesia with a line either to a palm ashore or else to keep the stern to the wind.


Any time in the Caribbean, we always have a stern anchor ready to deploy. If just in case. Any time it blows real hard I simply row the stern hook off to windward and keep the two in a "V". Limits sailing and gives me a sound healthy sleep too.


So, in my book, the stern anchor stays.


barnakiel

It’s also common practice in the PNW, using a rock cliff with provided hardware and loop through it, or a tree if allowed. Works great.

OP is referring to a second stern anchor in the mud/sand. They can be a pain for various reasons that I won’t go into because someone on here will tell me I am wrong. Anyway, it’s part of the deal and 90 percent of the time they work well, until they don’t and it happened to me once and it was not a pleasant evening.

[Don C L]

I anchor bow and stern all the time (Channel Islands.) For your boat a Danforth 12H would be ideal. A 13S is ok too or a Fortress. Those are the best for pulling in one direction IMO. I use a Danforth 20H on the bow and that is pretty much overkill for our size boats. There will be times at the Channel Islands when you’ll be glad to have the 12H or similar Fortess on the stern for tide or wind shifts, they hold really well; but the 20H or other 25 lb is unnecessary.

[zachduckworth]

Originally Posted by Don C L

I anchor bow and stern all the time (Channel Islands.) For your boat a Danforth 12H would be ideal. A 13S is ok too or a Fortress. Those are the best for pulling in one direction IMO. I use a Danforth 20H on the bow and that is pretty much overkill for our size boats. There will be times at the Channel Islands when you’ll be glad to have the 12H or similar Fortess on the stern for tide or wind shifts, they hold really well; but the 20H or other 25 lb is unnecessary.

By Danforth 12H do you mean a 12 pound hitensile one?

[Dockhead]

Originally Posted by thinwater

What is the stern anchor for, in your case? Most people, I wager, go years without using one. Narrow channel? Tying bow-to (but I would go stern to).

It's not for storms; a stern anchor will probably lessen your holding by increasing the forces.

Not for storms, of course.

In the Baltic, most boats have stern anchors, and many have stern anchor rollers and even stern windlasses.

That is for berthing bows-to to a quay or pier or to a rock, which is common in the Baltic. Rather than stern-to as in Med mooring. I prefer the Baltic way, personally -- better control going in, especially if you don't have a bow thruster.

Stern anchor is also good for a kedge in various situations. At the ready near the cockpit also makes it great for an emergency situation -- losing main engine power, for example, like what happened tragically to the Cuauhtémoc last night in New York Harbor.

For the OP: A Fortress is the perfect anchor for this. Not only is it easier to store, but it bites faster and more reliably than that old claw anchor. You can get a bracket to keep it on your pushpit, where it won't be much in the way.

[Fore and Aft]

Zachduckworth we have a FX23 Fortress for our stern anchor which is an overkill for a 32-foot yacht. But for a $100 I thought what the hell and it mounts nice on the toilet bulkhead.
The anchor is used all the time as we like to sneak in real shallow around 3 feet and then use it to keep the stern to the beach for swimming.
Cheers

[thinwater]

Originally Posted by Dockhead

Not for storms, of course.

In the Baltic, most boats have stern anchors, and many have stern anchor rollers and even stern windlasses.

That is for berthing bows-to to a quay or pier or to a rock, which is common in the Baltic. Rather than stern-to as in Med mooring. I prefer the Baltic way, personally -- better control going in, especially if you don't have a bow thruster.

Stern anchor is also good for a kedge in various situations. At the ready near the cockpit also makes it great for an emergency situation -- losing main engine power, for example, like what happened tragically to the Cuauhtémoc last night in New York Harbor.

For the OP: A Fortress is the perfect anchor for this. Not only is it easier to store, but it bites faster and more reliably than that old claw anchor. You can get a bracket to keep it on your pushpit, where it won't be much in the way.

Lots of good points. I wanted the OP to clarify what it was FOR.


a. I agree a Fortress is a great anchor for bow-to tie-ups. You want an anchor that does not drag in far while setting, or you will lose tension and position. The Claw is poor about that. In fact, the Claw is a disappointing copy of the Bruce in every way and thus 25 pounds is not too big.


b. A Fortress for an emergency stern anchor is probably a terrible choice. They plane and do not drop to the bottom if the boat is moving at all. Additionally, I question, based on experience, whether dropping a stern anchor for engine failure is valid. At least 95% of the time you will have some way on, and the best plan to kill that speed is a quick turn into the wind. The boat will nearly stop, you drop the bow anchor, and set it during the drift. I've done this once for engine failure and once for a rope on a prop, and in nether case would a stern anchor have worked. Both times I was singlehanded and both times I had ample time to walk forward.



I get it for quays.


I have always had shoal draft boats and I have anchored very shallow near beaches many times. I want to urge caution. Sand (beaches) is hard, and if there is ANY chance of a wake or of waves coming up, it's a bad idea. You can pound. Over the years I've learned that even in protected water anchoring with less than ~ 18 inches under the keel is a bad idea unless the bottom is soft mud. Obviously, there is also the tide.

[Don C L]

Originally Posted by zachduckworth

By Danforth 12H do you mean a 12 pound hitensile one?

Yes. And a couple of caveats. 1. I do not trust copies of any anchors so I'd say stick with Danforth. 2. I paint mine white because I like to see them set, or at least watch how they are falling because it is important that the chain lay down away from the anchor. If the chain is allowed to just fall on top of the anchor it is likely it will catch on the stock and try to pull the anchor around and it won't set. My usual routine is to drop the bow anchor and let the breeze drift me back and I'll let out double the scope I want, usually about 200', plus a little more to account for the distance the anchor needs to set, which is usually just a few feet, until I am where I want the stern hook. Then I'll drop the stern being careful the chain is not falling on the anchor. It's ok if it is in a pile off to the side, so if the boat is swinging at all you can wait to drop more chain. Then I go to the bow and pull in the 100' or so (in 20' of water.) This is singlehanded; if someone's with me, all the easier. Then I pull the two anchors against each other to set them. It is easy to feel then if one of the anchors is not setting. For a Danforth in sand it will set unless it is fouled on kelp or it's own chain. Now if there is no breeze I'll usually drop the stern first and motor up to where I want the bow. Of course this method requires you have available double the rode needed at each end. Many folks choose to drop the stern hook from a dinghy. For a number of reasons I find that very unappealing.
Using a stern anchor has, surprisingly to me, become a point of contention at times. I've been anchoring like that since I started sailing around the islands here almost 50 years ago. Once you are there (and maybe you've been there before) you'll see why it makes sense. First, many good anchorages are small; there's not much room for even one boat to swing on one hook. And why would you want to? Often the night breezes will turn a boat broadside to the swell and it's hard to sleep. Second almost all of them do not have breezes or currents that move all boats in the same direction at all times of day. In fact in one anchorage, a fairly large one where folks like to swing on one hook, I have seen the swirling tidal current cause boats to swing in opposite directions making it hard to predict where anyone will end up. But if everyone is on 2 hooks, it's peaceful, calm and everyone can sleep through the night without drama. If you are set up well to set two hooks you'll find more very good small spots available and you won't be taking over an anchorage where 4 or 5 boats could fit comfortably. Some say it is disappointing to come to an anchorage and find others on 2 hooks. I find it disappointing when I come to an anchorage where there is a boat on one hook, especially if he's got 10:1 scope out.
ok enough of me.

[zachduckworth]

Originally Posted by thinwater

What is the stern anchor for, in your case? Most people, I wager, go years without using one. Narrow channel? Tying bow-to (but I would go stern to).


It's not for storms; a stern anchor will probably lessen your holding by increasing the forces.

Hi,

It’s specifically for anchoring in the Channel Islands off Southern CA. As some described above, there are a lot of interested but small anchorages there and putting out a stern anchor has been a common practice there going back to at least the 1970s when there was a classic cruising guide for the area published (Brian Fagan’s Cruising Guide to California’s Channel Islands). I’m going up there for the first time this coming weekend. They’ll sometimes get 100 boats in popular anchorages from what I’ve been told. And some of the most protected ones are very, very small.