A simpler anchoring system to save my back.

[smittypaddler]

I'm anchored tonight in Blue Peter Lake, 10 miles or so north of Hontoon Island, and off the St Johns River via a channel known as the Norris Dead River. I have a light Fortress anchor mounted at the bow, but when I'm in such a remote spot and want to be sure my anchor will hold, I drag a heavy Delta plow from a storage box in the stern cockpit up to the bow. But right now I have a bad back, due to a fall in shallow water surfing on a stand-up paddle board at St Augustine Beach a couple weeks ago (when I told my wife, her comment was, "Do you sit up nights thinking of ways to kill yourself?").
Anyway, based on comments I'd previously read on C-Brats, I tried a new anchoring system that lets me set the anchor off the bow, but only leave the cockpit once to drag a line up front. I do everything else from the stern cockpit. A description and photos is here:

http://smittypaddler.com/cds/cek/Florid ... 50316p.htm

 

[thataway]

Sorry to hear about the bad back…know about those! A stand up paddle board--at your age? Your wife is right…..We had a fellow who worked for us who had a heart attack at age 85 while hang gliding--restarted his heart apparently when he hit the ground…..went on to have skate board accidents, etc….

If you want a lighter anchor, with better holding power--consider the Boss 10 lb version….I go with a windlass to save the back...

 

[Sea Wolf]

smittypaddler-

I designed a similar system on a square ended electric and gas powered canoe I have.

It's basically a traveler rigged down the side of the canoe from the stern to the bow.

Allows setting and retrieving the anchor from the stern (w/o standing up even in the canoe) and traveling the rode up to the bow and back.

Great for what it does, but I don't think I'd plan on riding out a storm on it overnight in a canoe or a big powerboat! HA! :lol:

Still for what it does,, it does it well. Nice day or lunch anchor, anyway. :wink

Good Luck!

Tried Kite Boarding yet? :smiled

Joe. :teeth :thup

 

[rjmcnabb]

Hi Smitty,
Your wife sounds like a real hoot. Looking at your pix on an iPad2, the resolution is insufficient to let me see the line colors, etc., so I don't follow well your explanation.
I've been mulling the same problem about anchoring, and this is an idea I want to try this summer. As I see it, after set up once, the bow anchor stows in the cockpit — which means this might not be good to leave in place during a long passage. YMMV. With the anchor on the bow, run the rode through the eye of the deck cleat (in this position, it uses the cleat as a fair lead, and I would use the anchor as usual, and cleat off up forward.) To allow retrieval from the cockpit, rig a largish snatch block over the rode when the anchor is down, and bring the body/tail of the rode, and the line to the snatch block, back to the cockpit. Cleat both at the stern.
Now, one can adjust scope from the cockpit, etc., but the boat is always anchored by the bow and much strain is taken up by the deck cleat.
By tweaking the snatch block, one then could adjust the angle of hull-to-wind to reduce sailing at anchor, and by hauling in completely bring the rode back to the cockpit to weigh anchor and to stow the anchor from there. Hanging a weight off the snatch block could provide a kellet, albeit obliquely to the rode.
Have any Brats tried something along this line and, if so, what disasters lurk? Using a similar on a canoe years ago was not a real test.
Rod

 

[smittypaddler]

I've added in bold text, "Click on any thumbnail image to enlarge," to the page at -

http://smittypaddler.com/cds/cek/Florid ... 50316p.htm

I should've done this a long time ago. Sorry about that.

 

[jimicliff]

Hi Na Waga, I'm a local guy, central Fl, know all of your nice picture areas by heart not by name.
I'm in a weel chair and Segway to get around so my mobility is limited. I'll try and explain how I manage my anchor from the back of the boat. I figured this out by looking at several video's on the subject. These videos confused me just as well as your explination of what you are doing to manage your anchor. Wish me luck I'll try to explain mine because it has worked well with full tide pulling on it.
To start I'm using a 10 lb plow anchor, my rhode bitter end runs from the back of the boat to the bow just like any anchor would run, right ? Then I run the rhode, chain and anchor back along the line where it run forward back to the stearn or rear area and stored in front of the bilge, I only pull back enough to get it where I store it. Heres my method which is how I deploy and retreive my anchor. I have made up a line with 10 foot marks put on the line with sharpie you could do a number of things to accomplish this it's just what I did.
This marker line is tied to the anchor it's self. The marks tell me how much to put out depending on how deep the anchor will be set. I have two small colored marker bouys tied to the other end that tell me where I set the anchor for pick up in the morning. Again the anchor, chain and part of the rhode are stored in the stern in front of the bilge. I let the anchor let out with my desired rhode length, when I'm finished meaning set the anchor I can look forward and see the marker bouys and there's my anchor is set for pick up. It will also help so no one sets their anchor across or on my set. In the morning I motor up to my markers slowly by gliding up to them by turning the throttle on and off as I glide up to the bouys with out tangling my rhode into my prop. I use my dock hook to reach the marker bouys which is real handy depending on how I feel that morning. My marker line is small so good gloves to free the anchor from the bottom are necessary it's also nice when cleaning the crap off the anchor as well. I have added duct tape to the side of the boat where I pull the anchor up so I quit scratching the gel coat with the chain. It takes practice like any thing but I make it work. Sure hope this was a good explination. Bob Austin I have thanked you every morning I have pulled that anchor from the bottom for recomending "GOOD GLOVES" that are stored with the anchor rhode. :wink

 

[Sea Wolf]

These are great comments on how to rig your anchoring system up to allow saving your back by working out of the cockpit.

Whatever system you finally adapt, be sure to size the components up to match the expected conditions you will encounter.

As a side comment, anchoring does often (really very often) require some special variation to adapt to specific circumstances: bottom type, depth, limited swing area, tidal and current variations, wind/storm happenings, crazy things like old logging cables stretched over the bottom to snag on, etc., etc.

I have some limited mobility because of hip and back problems, so I am familiar with the problems you face.

My solution has been to simply employ the windlass adaptation, and it has been generally vary successful, IMHO.

Here are my recommendations for that solution (as an alternative to consider):

Building a heavy-duty anchoring system with push-button control.

Get the best anchor for the places you anticipate anchoring, and size it up one if not two sizes: e.g.: get the 22 lb instead of the 14 lb (even though they say the 9 lb will work with a 22 ft boat!) I use a Fortress FX-16 (suitable for a 38 foot cruiser) instead of the FX-11 or FX-7).

Add 100 ft of chain and 250-300 ft of rope suitable for your windlass.

Add a drop-nose (pivoting) anchor roller to automatically aid in launching the anchor.

Pick a quality windlass with at least 500 lbs of pull and install it properly and buy or make a remote controller wired into it so that it can be controlled from either the regular helm switch or from the wired remote that can be led up through the forward deck hatch and to the bow.

Now use the system to deploy and retrieve your anchor from the helm in at least 95% or more of your anchoring exercises.

Remember to go forward to tie (snub) the anchor rode to a suitable cleat or bollard for heavy weather or overnight security, and to take the strain off the windlass.

If you get a fouled rode or anchor, open the forward hatch and go up on the bow with the wired remote and straighten it out. You might make a boat hook available in the hatchway, as well as a cleaning/wash brush for mud removal.

Be very careful with that remote: the windlass and chain & rope rode can cut like a chainsaw! Good shoes and gloves are recommended! (No bare feet, flip-flops, serious drinking, etc. allowed).

With this, you anchoring is 95%+ done from the helm, and when you do have to go up there, the forward hatch is a safe way to get there (as it would be in any system vs walking the gunnel around the cabin).

This is not a cheap solution, nor is it perfect, but almost every solution in boating is some sort of a forced choice compromise, and I like this one best of all for my anchoring. YMMV!! :lol:

Joe. :teeth :thup

 

[hardee]

HI Joe,

If you are using the Sampson Post for securing your rode when anchored, since it is off center, are you experiencing much "sailing" from side to side? And is it more off to stbd since the post is on the port side? OR, do you run the line from the Sampson post over and through the self launcher when anchored to keep the line at midships?

Harvey
SleepyC :moon

 

[Sea Wolf]

HI Joe,

If you are using the Sampson Post for securing your rode when anchored, since it is off center, are you experiencing much "sailing" from side to side? And is it more off to stbd since the post is on the port side? OR, do you run the line from the Sampson post over and through the self launcher when anchored to keep the line at midships?

Harvey
SleepyC :moon

Harvey-

1) In light anchoring (lunch hook), I just leave it in the windlass. This avoids going up on the foredeck. (The electric motor in the Quick windlass is offset from the center, horizontally mounted, and worm drive, unlike the Lewmar Verticals, where the motor is directly below the gear case and a leak goes down directly from it into the the motor. My gear case is still waterproof after over 10 years of use!

2) Overnight, on a lake, light winds expected, I wrap it 1/2 way around the large cleat in the center behind the windlass, and then cleat it to the bollard. This takes the pressure off the windlass. Still led through the bow roller.

3) Big winds or seas possible, bay or ocean: Go up on foredeck (through hatch), secure second line to rode with rolling hitch, and cleat to bow eye, below on center line, relieving all pressure on windlass. Secure rest of rode as in #2 above, in case the lower line fails.

Make sense? Ask again if not explained clearly enough!

Thanks for asking!

Happy Hooking! (Anchoring, that is, just kidding, old wise-arse still at work!) :lol:

Joe. :teeth :thup

 

[hardee]

Thank Joe.

Clear and nice. Now that I have a bit more time I'm going to put that anchor to work. (Hope you trained it well.)

Harvey
SleepyC :moon