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Anchoring in a Tidal Estuary


Don Silsbe

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I have a basic anchoring question, and I’d like to see how you all handle the situation.

 

When cruising in the coastal marshes of the Carolinas (and elsewhere), the tidal current reverses every 6.5 hours or so.  This phenomenon does a fabulous job of pulling out your anchor, right about the time you’re getting into a sound sleep.  How do you all manage this situation?  A Bahamian Moor?

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  • 2 weeks later...

@Aphers— Good point!  Two questions to all:

 

1) What do you think about Danforth/Fortress-type anchors?

 

2)  What type of anchor do you prefer on your boat?  (Please state the size of your boat and anchor.) Is this a personal question???

 

My anchor is an 8# Danforth-type (w/15’ of chain).  That’s what I used on my BRS 15 when I had my one experience.  I didn’t wait for it to reset.

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So, according toGoeff Kerr and Maynard Bray of Offcenterharbor.com, the best anchor to have is a Herreshof/stock/fisherman/yachtsman anchor.  I found two.  

 

The first one is made of tarred steel.  BA753DF0-F678-4DD5-961C-0F28C6133358.thumb.png.84f203a3cd5cd8c9574939098e0a757f.png

 

The other is of manganese bronze.  089C91EE-3319-4FC5-B25F-038492B831CA.thumb.jpeg.47eeba1a989c08a0c951d7a53c879442.jpeg

I like the bronze, don’t you?

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Don,

 

I think that you are way overthinking it. When I did my first EC, I was busy getting the my CS17 ready and the anchor was an afterthought. I scratched around and the lightest anchor I had was a 4# Danforth copy. As I was not planning on anchoring I dispensed with chain to save weight. I used 5/16" for the rode.

 

I used that  rig on all of my EC's and rode out a couple of wicked thunder squalls and never dragged. I think that the key was giving it lots of scope which is easy because we can anchor in very shallow water and using thin nylon. In the gusts it would stretch like a rubber band and absorb the shock load. 

 

Danforth used to say that you could go down one anchor size if you used thinner line. 

 

I got conservative and used an 8# Danforth and 3/8" nylon rode on Carlita. While visiting Gordie on Drummond Island he insisted on giving me his 11# Bruce because the Danforth fitted the bowsprit about as well as your Danforth fits your anchor sprit. I had never been a fan of the Bruce but when we tried it on Carlita, it fit like a glove. I gave him my danforth. I have had good success with both anchors and I am still not using chain.

 

I know, if you live in New England you have to have a Herreshoff anchor. They are basically a fisherman with a bit more fluke area. The pull tests that I have seen show they drag much sooner than good modern anchors. As the only rocks that we have in our area have been carried here and there is no kelp and not much weed, I cannot think of any reason that I would want one.

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Thank you, Graham.  I had already put the 4# Danforth(ish) back on my Bay River Skiff.  Avocet will carry my 8# Danny, as well as Ted’s.  I think the scope is the key.  Some chain will be involved.  But when you watch enough videos from Brooklin, ME, it’s easy to accept everything they say as gospel.  
 

I’d love to try a 8# Mantus M1, but that’s $170, and my boating budget is rather small.  Besides, my requisition for the 7.5 pound bronze beauty was rejected by the War Department.

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Don- If you want to totally geek out on anchors this guy has done tests on lots of the modern anchors.  In years past I have used CQR, Bruce, Danforth and a 65LB. 3 piece Herreshoff for a storm anchor.  Always with a minimum of 5:1 Scope.  They were the best available back then.

 

Fast forward to the newer designs.  I currently use a Sarca Excel (galvanized steel) on Rosie and it is an amazing piece of gear.  Sometimes in crowded anchorages I am lucky to get 3:1 scope and have enough swing room.  This anchor sets very quickly and with the strong tidal flows we have in this part of the world it has reset every time with the tide change.  I can’t say enough good about it.  There are others out there that are probably as good but I switched to this one based on the tests that the owner of SV Panope has done.  If you want to feel like a real nerd, spend some hours watching videos of anchors dragging and being reset. I can’t make fun of my wife for watching knitting videos anymore!

Next we can watch a series on paint drying and grass growing.  Fun stuff.

Ken

 

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I've got a small (7lb, I think) Manson Supreme as my dinghy anchor. It's a brilliant little thing. Use it all the time as a stern anchor at dinghy docks. It's broadly similar to the Mantus and Rocna, i.e. concave fluke with a roll bar.

 

Fun story: a few years ago I was anchoring my 33ft yacht and she started dragging her 16kg anchor. With not much room left, I threw down the little Manson and it bit and held instantly. A 7lb anchor holding a 6t 33ft yacht!

The reason it worked was because it bites so quickly. The bigger anchor (which was a very badly made copy of a delta) had just dragged along the bottom picking up weed until it had no chance of ever setting properly.

 

I've also tried using a folding grapnel anchor on the dinghy, but with very poor results, even when it was plenty heavy enough. Design matters!

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So, yesterday evening, we went for a motor in Local Honey.  I brought along a Lewmar 2.2# (2 kg) plough anchor I bought some time ago, because it was cute and cheap. We also had my 4# Danforth-ish along.   I did an anchor drag test on both in the foothills sandy-mud-clay (listed in least to greatest percentage) that we are blessed with.  I set them in about 12” of water, with about 2’ of chain.  Neither anchor was able to set!  Granted, this is not coastal Carolina pluff mud.  BUT NEITHER WOULD SET!!!   I’ll bring them both to the Messabout, for coastal testing.  I had always considered the baby Lewmar a toy, and this test confirmed it.  The Danny was a surprise, however.

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