T&T: Anchoring

[Rudy and Jill]

I am seeing a couple of thoughts, repeated in these recent posts, that seem, at least to me, to be counterproductive in preventing dragging. These same thoughts, we also hear repeated, by other boaters when the discussion of anchoring comes up; a discussion that usually occurs after their boat drags.

One thought that ought to be reevaluated is picking an anchor that is smaller than what should actually be used, because it is easier to recover, or to manhandle. We think this is missing the whole point of anchoring. The anchor should be sized, first, to keep the boat from dragging; getting it back on-board, thought important, is secondary, besides which, accommodations can always be made to do so, no matter the size of the anchor.

If the appropriate sized anchors that are required, are too big for the crew to manage, then serious thought ought to go to downsizing the boat, not the anchor.

Another thought that seems to be recurring, is to pick an anchor to fit the boat. We think that the anchor should be picked for the bottom, not the bow of the boat. If a particular design should do both well, then that is a plus. 

It kind of irks us, when we see a crew that spends a considerable amount of money on buying their boat, another big chunk of money on outfitting, especially electronics, then more money on their installation; then begrudges spending the few hundreds of dollars required to adapt their boat, so the boat will accommodate an anchor that will actually keep them from dragging.

Granted, this post may sound hard-hearted, but then again, may be it needs said; there are just too many boats out there dragging, or breaking loose, for all the wrong reasons. 

If anyone feels slighted by these remarks, I apologize ahead of time.

Rudy
Briney Bug, Port St Joe, Fl