Anchor overnight

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Scubadoo

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I often considered anchoring overnight but never had the confidence that my boat will remain in one place by the morning, although I never had a problem anchoring during the day.

Last weekend was a real delight and really did fancy anchoring overnight in a bay but ended up at the folly Inn rafted.

Seeing some of the pictures on this forum of boats at anchor is really something - especially the Flybridge with the sunset.

So to the point, what is your advice about anchoring overnight and do you simply rely on one anchor etc.

Thanks,

RM.
 
Start off in a nice safe anchorage with plenty of space, like Studland in light south to west winds, Get there early to find a good space and feel confident that the anchor is set before it gets dark. Put down plenty of chain / rope, and with the right anchor and good holding conditions you will be fine.
 
Agree - its nice if you've sat through a change of tide and have some confidence in the holding, so get there early. Also, accept the fact you're not going to get much sleep on your first night at anchor /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

Rick
 
agreed. Getting there in midafternoon for example gives many hours of building confidence that the boat will stay in the same place.

If enough room and you're concerned, put down more anchor chain rather than less - 7+ times depth or more. It does no good in the chain locker.
 
Heh, you me and Duncan with the same advice - the lakesailoring is primed /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

I'd also suggest taking compass bearings on things that you'll be able to use in the dark, so you can check if you wake up in a panic /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif Anchor drag alarm on the GPS if you can is always useful (though you may want to think about how much room you'll use swinging - 0.01nm is 18metres, so sometimes not enough if you dump all the chain out). Turn the light down on the GPS/plotter as dusk falls, so glancing at it won't destroy your ability to take bearings...

Rick
 
If you want a nice easy place to start and gain confidence, try Poole Harbour round the back of Brownsea Island by Pottery Pier. It's very sheltered, there's a pool with plenty of depth there and always a few other boats for company.
 
Have anchored overnight regularly, but only happy when:

1. Have achored there in the day long enought to ensure good holding.
2. Good weather forecast
3. Have GPS position alarm set.
4. Have depth alarm set.
 
You may see 2 anchors on bluewater cruising boats but for occasional overnighting, I'd rather have one big anchor with a decent length of chain. With 2 anchors out you run the risk of one chain wrapping itself over the other if the tide or wind changes and then potentially it could be difficult to weigh anchors in a hurry if you have to clear out of an anchorage quickly
The first requirement for happy overnight anchoring is to be confident in your equipment so check that your anchor is the correct size for your boat (they're often undersized on mobos) and upgrade it if necessary and check that the shackle is in good order. Its also worthwile upgrading the chain size to the max that the windlass can handle
Choose an anchorage with good holding (consult the pilot book) and one that hopefully does'nt get too crowded. I know the books all say put out 3x the max depth of chain but mobos have a lot of windage so I reckon 5x max depth is safer for overnighting. This also allows the chain to have more of a catenarary effect to take up snatch loading. This is a factor if you want a decent night's sleep as you wont sleep a wink if the chain is grinding away next to your head. But you need to ensure you have room to swing to this length of chain at LW. Also ensure that the chain is locked off or tied back to a cleat so there is no chance of the windlass winding out under load
 
[ QUOTE ]
Agree - its nice if you've sat through a change of tide...

[/ QUOTE ]
And remember that if there is a change of tide while you are asleep, everything will have moved when you wake up. The first time I persuaded my wife to anchor for the night, she woke me up in the early hours to say she couldn't see the land out of the window. She was alright after I told her it had moved round the other side of the boat /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif
 
I agree that normally you cant have too much chain unless you are in a crowded anchorage such as Newtown Creek where your boat may swing on the tide into another[if has less chain out]. Different boats also swing differently in the wind i.e flybridge,sports or raggie. Last w.e in N.T.C I gave myself plenty of room when along came a Fairline 33 and moored in a 'hole' that was questionably too small. He then took His family ashore in His dingy. When the tide turned His boat swung within 1m of my stern. I shortened my chain to no avail. To prevent the prosect of the famous N.T.C. 'pajama games' which usually start at about 2am especially on springs ,as the was little room elsewhere we moved out Dave.
 
[ QUOTE ]
And remember that if there is a change of tide while you are asleep, everything will have moved when you wake up.

[/ QUOTE ]

Well I wasn't going to tell this story but this prompts too much.............

Saturday night, anchored up as pictured fully elsewhere but this is the offending reef
overnight%20%282%29.jpg


My fishing partner is a salty sea dog who went to sea at 16 on the 'lissie, has run pot boats, trawled, tugs and rigs - ie been there seen it done it relative to most leisure boaters.

We complied fully with th erecomendations re alchol and boating ie got the boat settled, anchor set - then got trashed.

0130h I awake to clumping on the deck above and Dave (for want of a better name) reappears in the hatch with 'Dunk - don't panic but.............we are in open water but the anchor appears to have dragged.

Thought 1 - I will be the laughing stock of the forum and deliver proof that an all chain rode is the only thing that you can rely on.
Thought 2 - there's no bloody open water around here!

heading out the hatch in undies at speed I finally have a more sensible thought that there is no way we have dragged the hook - funny the order you think of things isn't it.

Sure enough as I get into th e cockpit I am faced through the murk with the same buff of rock 60ft behind the boat that I said goodnight to 3 hours earlier - somewhat older eyes hadn't made it out. Relief - turning fast to agression............

However Dave meekly pointed out that the reef pictured above, and another 90 degrees from it, had simply disappeared changing the landscape completely to the casual glance.

The tide had come in.
 
I agree that normally you cant have too much chain unless you are in a crowded anchorage such as Newtown Creek where your boat may swing on the tide into another[if has less chain out]. Different boat also swing un the wind i.e flybridge,sports or raggie. Last w.e in N.T.C I gave myself plenty of room when along came a Fairline 33 and moored in a 'hole' that was questionably too small. He then took His family ashore. When the tide turned His boat swung within 1m of my stern. I shortened my chain to no avail. To prevent the prosect of N.T.C. 'pajama games' which usually start at about 2am especially on springs as the was little room elsewhere we moved out elsewhere. Dave.
 
Pick somewhere other people anchor a lot: there's obviously good holding. The corner of Studland, round the back of Brownsea Island etc (I reckon you could anchor in Studland just with the chain and no anchor: the morning after the sunset piccy, I found the anchor lying on its side!)

Check the depth - look at the nearest tide diamond and work out how much further the tide has to fall to low water, then subtract that from what your own depth sounder shows. That will give you the confidence that you won't go aground.

Work out the amount the tide has to rise to HW, and add that to your present depth. Multiply it by your fabourite number - 3, 4 or 5 (we usually use 4, because our chain is marked every 4 metres) to work out how much chain to put down.

Sod the anchor alarm. Set it too close, and it will go off when the tide turns, set it too far and it will never go off (first time we tried it, I found out the morning after that we'd have been in the Bankes Arms' car park before it went off). If you sleep properly, you won't hear it; don't sleep and you won't need it...

Enjoy the experience.
 
They say ignorance is bliss. The very first time I went to sea in our first boat, a 32 ft Fairline some moons ago, we left Conwy N Wales and pottered around the Menai straits for the day and then, simply because in my innocence I thought that was what all boaters always did, we anchored up overnight off Puffin Island. Felt slightly nervous as the light faded, to see that no one else was joining us. What do they all know that I don't? I wondered to myself, but I had done the training, the forecast was good, I had the correct length of chain out, it was a charted anchorage, so what was the problem? No problem at all, we had a great night, woke up in the morning to find the island was still where we left it. Having done this it gave me great confidence and have anchored ever since, anywhere I can as the preferred mode of berthing. It's just a question of confidence. Plan it out as others in the thread have accurately described, and enjoy! To me it is the essence of the freedom of boating to wake up at anchor alone in an isolated cove.
Don't be put off by all the dramatic tales of woe that evry body loves to relate. In 10 years we have never dragged anchor, swung into anyone else or otherwise come to grief. The only problems ever encountered were in getting the anchor back up in the morning, but that's another story.

Dave
 
With 2 anchors out, presumable bower (chain) and kedge (warp), middle between the two and tie off the warp onto the chain (rolling hitch upside down) and lower the knot underneath the keel. Confines you to a very small circle - but not recommended near other boats lying to a single anchor!
 
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