Carrying a 2nd anchor

[Turk397]

I have carried a 2nd anchor for years and now i have a better use for that lazarette, any thoughts why this maybe standard practice or was I overly prepared for nothing?

[Andreas W]

I have a Bruce as my main anchor on 100m of chain. As my spare and second anchor I have a Fortress with 10m of chain and 90m of rode.
Apart from serving as the obvious back-up, I also have used it as a stern anchor.
I like the idea of having redundancy with such an important piece of equipment.

[rbk]

We carry four. Two on the bow, one lunch hook on the stern and a fortress broken down in the bilge. Have spent a few hours unwrapping our main off of underwater fixtures. Thinking I might have to let it go I was happy knowing we had a full spare ready to deploy sitting on the bow just in case.

[atoll]

if you ever get caught out in a quiet anchorage that overnight turns iffy with increasing winds and you can't safely get out till daylight ,that second anchor might let you get some sleep.

[Cheechako]

You need two. (or more!) A Fortress stored on the bow pulpit saved my boat once, which is an option to your lazarette. If I hadn't stored it there, ready to go, the boat would have been lost.

[sanibel sailor]

It depends on your sailing. If daysailing only- one is probably fine. If cruising, two is wise. For planned extended long range cruise, I have 5, not all ready to go but on board. 45 mantus bower, 25 Mantus stern anchor, Fortress second bow anchor, a FX 55 storm anchor broken down, and a fisherman that I have never had wet, but has utility in kelp/rock

[wingssail]

Originally Posted by Turk397

I have carried a 2nd anchor for years and now i have a better use for that lazarette, any thoughts why this maybe standard practice or was I overly prepared for nothing?

You need two and you need to be able to deploy it quickly. In the bottom of the lazerette it is of very little use when you need that anchor which is usually when something has gone wrong and you don't have much time to get it down.

I don't advocate two anchors and rodes on the bow for issues of weight (in the ends of the boat) but it must be somewhere accessible and be ready in a hurry, and you must have a plan and have practiced it for deployment. This is good seamanship.

[barnakiel]

It depends on where and how you sail. An anchor (1) is not always required. Two anchors are sometimes required. Sometimes there will be three anchors on a boat too. It all depends on where you sail and how you sail.


b.

[RaymondR]

I used to have four including a monster modified Danforth style which pulled down and lived in the bilge also a large fisherman. I am now back to two claw type on the bow and a small Fortress and temporarily a Delta which I am looking for a home for.

It's a critical piece of equipment and two at least is a prudent minimum when cruising. One is probably sufficient for local sailing where one returns to moor at a jetty or marina.

[Don C L]

I have 3, well 4 actually, and 2 are always getting wet and are ready to go. But that is a local thing. Still, I'd feel a bit naked if I didn't have at least 2 good ones, ready to go, even if only one got wet for years.

[ullar]

We had 4 with us during our circumnavigation. Two on bow, one at stern and a spare one complete with 50m chain in a bilge locker ready for use if needed. Like barnakiel said, it really depends where you are sailing.

[Tetepare]

Two for the simple reason that the fortress weighs nothing so is easy to deploy in sand for lunch. And a serious anchor.

[Benz]

I have one big one for everything, and a fortress as a kedge that I can quickly attach to the second rode forward. It's very useful for impending gales and to limit swing.
Never even wished I had a stern anchor.
Never wished for a third anchor.

[Mike OReilly]

Two is minimum. I carry four. That maybe overkill for most, but it depends on where or how you cruise. But yes, if you anchor (and not all do), then two is the minimum I'd carry.

[steve77]

Originally Posted by Turk397

I have carried a 2nd anchor for years and now i have a better use for that lazarette, any thoughts why this maybe standard practice or was I overly prepared for nothing?

As others have said, it depends on where and how long you are sailing. On our S2 9.2 on Texas lakes, we had one, a Fortress. Cruising Orontes II, we have four, with a Mantus as the primary.

On a lake or for daysailing, I would say one is plenty.

Cheers!

Steve