foggysail
Guru
Are you usually retrieving the anchor solo?
My wife is the anchor wench. When she is on the bow with her foot on the switch she has her arm out giving me the direction AND the horizontal line of the chain. I can then use the engines to power in that direction to have the boat come up on the anchor. As her arm starts to lower, meaning I am coming up on the anchor or the chain is too slack I ease off on the engines. When she has her arm straight down it means I am over the anchor and can push past a little to bump it off.
Doing this we always retrieve continuously.
I envy you . Wifey is not happy being at the bow during anchor retrieval. I'll try passing on your suggestions, maybe I'll get lucky.