Anchor buoy

Capt.Bill11 said:

And you still almost never see a anchor buoy in those areas and people rarely tangle.

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Must be because everyone is displaying the appropriate day shape.

Fortunately, I've only anchored with other boats well-distanced.

Poker,
You put out 150' of chain in 15' of water on the east coast w very little tide?
I can begin to see why you need to mark your anchor. I can now see why other boaters would 'nt be able to guess easily where your anchor is.
You're lible to cross state lines w that rode.
Why 10-1 scope?

Nomad Willy said:

Poker,
You put out 150' of chain in 15' of water on the east coast w very little tide?
I can begin to see why you need to mark your anchor. I can now see why other boaters would 'nt be able to guess easily where your anchor is.
You're lible to cross state lines w that rode.
Why 10-1 scope?

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I've taken a direct hit from a tornado with a 90 degree knockdown, I've been anchored through three tropical storms (even rougher than the tornado). I put out every inch of rode I have room to lay out ... I like to sleep well.

PS. I am one of only two boats I have ever seen flying a day anchor signal .... three if I count Mark

PS2. Lots of places on the ICW with 9' tides. How about Kilkenny Creek in Georgia with up to 11.5'

Remember, when calculating the scope ratio you measure the distance from the bow roller to the creek bottom, not just the water depth. If your bow roller is 6 feet off the water then the distance to the creek bottom is 21 feet so 150 feet of rode is about 7:1. Still more than you need in a protected anchorage. But it means you have the same ratio as the boats with nylon anchor rodes.

Nomad Willy said:

Poker,
You put out 150' of chain in 15' of water on the east coast w very little tide?
I can begin to see why you need to mark your anchor. I can now see why other boaters would 'nt be able to guess easily where your anchor is.
You're lible to cross state lines w that rode.
Why 10-1 scope?

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Bingo.

Because the rest have 45 feet out in 15 feet of H20 like you said.

The guy with 150 has everyone very confused.

But I hate crowds anyways so would simple pull up anchor and move if it got that busy.
If someone drops anchor within 300 feet of me i am gone.
I prefer them 1500 feet away ideally.
Where i am moving to next year several people have boats they anchor and i anchor there to.....but if i can't drop more than 1000 feet from them i back out and drop way out from shore.
Its not a difference to me if I have to travel 300 feet or 1500 feet to shore.
Law there is a regional law that says max time without moving is 9 days anyways so every 8 days they pull up and move 1000 feet and re drop.

I should add i also will not live in a crowded place.
I own an acreage so my neighbors are far away.
My new place i bought 4 lots in a row and tore the junky houses down that were on 2 of the 4 lots....the other 2 are bare Iand.

Hurrying Nowhere said:

Bingo.

Because the rest have 45 feet out in 15 feet of H20 like you said.

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I think you have to re-read my post. I said everything I have "room for"
"Room" is made by many considerations including other boats and again, if you look at my photos you will see no other boats in those anchorages.

In my NOTW, an anchor buoy might just quite easily be figured for a crab pot buoy.

78puget-trawler said:

In my NOTW, an anchor buoy might just quite easily be figured for a crab pot buoy.

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What procedure is appropriate when one snags an anchor buyoy?

Beats me, its a joke son, I say a joke!

markpierce said:

What procedure is appropriate when one snags an anchor buyoy?

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Say 6 hail marys and toss some salt over your shoulder. ......

I'd start w "oh ****" and escalate from there.

We've never used a trip line/anchor buoy yet per se, but we have slid a shackle down 10 ft with a float to keep fools from running across our anchor line in crowded anchorages like Baltimore Inner Harbor for the fireworks. If its too far away, they go between your float and your pulpit!!!

Several times I set a trip line on my anchor, using FF's method of using a weight to keep the slack out. I ended up with the line tangled in my stabilizer fins twice, and gave up. Still, it would be nice to know exactly where my anchor is because I like to drive directly over the anchor when pulling it up to reduce the strain on the windlass. When anchored in deep water (most of S.E. Alaska) after a night of swinging around, there is often times several "S" turns in the chain and following the direction of the chain when pulling in often results in a couple "U" turns. I like the idea of a milk jug and string, I may try that, thanks.

Arctic Traveller said:

Several times I set a trip line on my anchor, using FF's method of using a weight to keep the slack out. I ended up with the line tangled in my stabilizer fins twice, and gave up. Still, it would be nice to know exactly where my anchor is because I like to drive directly over the anchor when pulling it up to reduce the strain on the windlass. When anchored in deep water (most of S.E. Alaska) after a night of swinging around, there is often times several "S" turns in the chain and following the direction of the chain when pulling in often results in a couple "U" turns. I like the idea of a milk jug and string, I may try that, thanks.

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What if you used leaded polypropylene line like are used for crab pots?

Capt.Bill11 said:

And you still almost never see a anchor buoy in those areas and people rarely tangle.

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I'm with you Capt Bill. Many of our Moreton Bay anchorages are very popular and often packed on a public holiday weekend, yet no-one uses anchor floats, and there never seems to be an issue. After all, as long as one avoids the area directly ahead of the bow of an anchored vessel, while manoeuvring the rest of the rode is way below ones prop, so the chance of picking it up are virtually zero, unless someone has way too much rode out for the depth, and it's of a floating type like polypropylene. No-one seems to do that, so no problem. However, if I motored into one of those anchorages with anchor floats bobbing around all over the place, that would make me very nervous.

markpierce said:

What procedure is appropriate when one snags an anchor buyoy?

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Have knife will travel. How do you think my wife was able to decorate our shed?
Seriously though, I would cut it if I got tangled, esp if I was there first. I actually only had to cut one lobster buoy off. It got hung up on my stern thruster while I was on a mooring at Block Island. A stupid lobsterman put a trap in the private mooring field. Storm kicked up and swung me into it. I cut it so my boat could finish swinging into the wind.

Upon entering an anchorage we determine the best spot to drop anchor to avoid rocks, steep rocky shores or drying flats, as well as account for tidal range and swing radius, then "mark" the spot on the Navionics app. My wife puts Badger on the "mark" and tells me to drop anchor. I don't even get out of bed anymore to check range marks...just turn on the iPad, confirm we're still near the anchor, roll over, and go back to sleep.

Crowding isn't an issue here.

I'm not going to anchor where it will be an issue one way or another. I can't sleep with other boats so close that at any moment there might be contact. I'll head on further or to another island or the other side of this island. Normally it's pretty easy though, as so many are looking for shallow anchorages, to just move to deeper water and anchor. I've seen many times where boats were packed like sardines in 7-10' of water, but very close there was a nice area for anchoring with 50' of water and zero other boats.

Jeff (Artic Travler),
Here you are leaving Thorne Bay about 6 years ago.
Taken by my friend Shane VanOrden.

I agree w BandB here as I anchored in 85' of water avoiding a "packed like sardines" small harbor. It was the small shelf in Forward Harbour BC. There were sailboats, outboard boats, fish boats and even a big old converted tug.

MurrayM said:

Upon entering an anchorage we determine the best spot to drop anchor to avoid rocks, steep rocky shores or drying flats, as well as account for tidal range and swing radius, then "mark" the spot on the Navionics app. My wife puts Badger on the "mark" and tells me to drop anchor. I don't even get out of bed anymore to check range marks...just turn on the iPad, confirm we're still near the anchor, roll over, and go back to sleep. .

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Precisely!

Being compulsive about this buoy stuff like BP is not necessary in this century. We can be equally OC about using our plotter, laptop, IPad, smart phone or ?? But when it comes to anchoring OC rules, just look at the number of posts and threads.

As for as warding off others with a milk jug when you are using a 7:1 scope? Laughable when in many areas they are used to mark cruisers (or shore based from a dinghy) crustacean pots or even dropped anchors the owner left as the windlass broke down.

markpierce said:

What procedure is appropriate when one snags an anchor buyoy?

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Cut it and take it home as a trophy.

We're thinking about using this . Kill two birds with one stone . We drug this off the bank a while back .

To those worried about blowing around and blowing ahead towards their own anchor etc.
So what happens when you blow or current carried over your own bouy thst marks your anchor and its under you now and tangles in your props.
Best be diving in with a sharp knofe to cut yourself free ?????

Its a lot easier to look around and know that say you have out about 90 feet of chain in 30 feet of water...and that anywhere in a 360 degree circle of said anchor you will not even come close to hitting anything.

If you anchor in that crowded of a place with 150 feet out in 10 feet of water i see a hazard when the boat swings at night and you hit someone else.

No one is ever going to guess you put out 150 feet in 10 feet of water.
If you feel some need to drop more than 3 to 1 ratio maybe go crazy and try 4 to 1 or 5 to 1....but i consider anyone using 10 to 1 in a crowded anchorage to be the dangerous boat.

Nomad Willy said:

Jeff (Artic Travler),
Here you are leaving Thorne Bay about 6 years ago.
Taken by my friend Shane VanOrden.

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Thanks Eric, that's a great photo. I'm actually moving to POW, Hydaburg to be exact. I'm the new Marine operations manager for Alaska power and telephone, supporting the construction of a new hydro electric power plant at Copper harbor. Sadly, nearly everyone says not to moor my boat in Hydaburg due to security issues, so I have some decisions to make. It's either drive an hour each way, or pull her out of the water.

Second boat in an anchorage has to guess right, the first guy anchored, like in amatuer poker, chooses the game.

Move to Craig and drive to work in Hydaburg.
Craig is where you'll want to live. Everything is there ... but last time I checked they did'nt have a slip for me. Stores, resturants, the harbor, good little library .. even the court is in Craig. If we moved back to POW we'd look at Craig.
One of the nicest things about POW is that it's got more roads and places to drive to than any place in SE. Also that quarter of SE is the only part of SE that has'nt been invaded by the tourist industry. It's not very different than it was 50 years ago. POW is 145mi long and 45miles wide and no stoplight to be found.
Cheers
Eric

We too never hesitate to anchor away from the crowd if at all possible, for reasons described as well as we like to run our generator when we feel like it and want to de downwind from others. But there are times when that can't be done; Fleming Key off Key West and Lake Worth come to mind as examples.

You anchor is almost never where you drop it once it is set. Depending on the bottom, it could well take quite a few yards before it really takes hold. So I just set the mark using simple and approximate geometry based on how much rode is out, and when it comes taut in the setting process.

Here's a good example of the boat ambling near the anchor point.



I've also related here being anchored out in the islands and seeing my anchor there right beside us as we laid to the chain in fairly mild conditions.