Anchoring
By Sea Tow Capt. Les Hall
Basic anchoring guidelines:
- Anchors are designed for specific bottom characteristics. Make sure that you buy an
anchor designed for the type of bottom primarily encountered in your boating area. Even
with a small boat, five or six feet of coated chain is desirable. Shackle the chain to the
anchor. Put a thimble on the end of the anchor line and shackle that to the other end of
the chain. Chose your anchor line carefully. A line that is too heavy will actually cause
problems because youll loose the "elasticity" that absorbs the shock and
keeps the anchor well set.
- Pick your anchorage carefully. If there are other boats nearby, you will need to
"guess" at their potential swing. A boat on a mooring will have very little
swing but a Yacht at anchor may have considerable "scope" out and may swing
widely. A shallow draft boat will be more affected, usually, by the wind whereas a deep
draft boat will be more affected by the current.
- Put your bow into the wind or current (whichever is having the greatest affect on your
boat, power up slowly to or just beyond where you want your anchor to lie and check your
forward motion with your reverse gear. Double check to ensure that the bitter end of your
anchor line is attached to something sturdy on the boat. Most experienced boaters have
watched at least one anchor with a few hundred feet on line disappear over the bow because
they forgot to secure the end.