'Kedging'

[Neeves]

Two views on kedging from professionals

No prizes for finding fault with either offering:

From Sandbars to Deep Water: How to Anchor Your Boat in Any Situation and Stay Safe - Fortress Anchors

Get Ready to Kedge - Anchoring For Race Yachts

Jonathan

 

[Binnacle]

"No prizes for finding fault with either offering:"

I don't understand. Reading between the lines, have you found fault(s) in the articles, and are you unwilling to bring them to our attention ? If so, why the abstruse language ?

 

[Refueler]

Bored again ??

 

[Neeves]

Bored again ??

Not at all, I like sharing knowledge.

You must have time on your hands to have bothered with your comment.

 

[langstonelayabout]

Not at all, I like sharing knowledge.

You must have time on your hands to have bothered with your comment.

But it’s all pretty old stuff: instead of kedging most of us will now just start our engines on a calm day.

 

[Neeves]

Most will have started their engines long before a calm sets in.

Jonathan.

Binnacle,

For example - the use of kedging on a racing yacht - an emphasis is on saving weight, hence the aluminium anchor - but recommending against the use of dyneema - because its too thin. If the rode is thick enough to handle it will be heavy....

It will save weight, the dyneema, and it being thin is irrelevant if held on a Cuban YoYo. Simple. It also stores the dyneema neatly - what's not to like.

 

[NormanS]

Two views on kedging from professionals

No prizes for finding fault with either offering:

From Sandbars to Deep Water: How to Anchor Your Boat in Any Situation and Stay Safe - Fortress Anchors

Get Ready to Kedge - Anchoring For Race Yachts

Jonathan

I have only occasionally kedged, but have anchored several thousand times, and as you know, it's a very subjective subject. We all have our own preferences, and some may be better than others. I would take issue with some of the Fortress statements. They say that "blah blah.... you can anchor in any conditions". Oh yeah?
They also say that the scope depends on the depth of water, and suggest a basic three times the depth. I prefer using the distance from the bow roller to the seabed.
They also talk about lowering the anchor, which suggests, if using a windlass, that it would be powered down. Gravity works very well for me, and by slackening the clutch, the anchor drops immediately into the place that I want it to be.
I'm sure there will be other points, but the device that I'm on won't let me see the articles while I'm writing this, I am relying on my faulty memory.

As for original kedging when racing etc, I have no experience whatsoever, but have often enough laid out a second anchor for a variety of reasons. Nothing contentious about that.

 

[johnalison]

I don't think I have ever used a kedge to propel the boat but we used to lay out a second anchor quite often when we started cruising. As well as giving a little more security, especially in strong streams such as the Ore, it also reduced the swinging room in narrow creeks. I suppose it could be reassuring to know that you wouldn't have to depend on the anchor biting again after a turn of tide, but I never thought of it in those terms.

 

[Wansworth]

Years came acrossaJOG racer called TomThumb and they had a reel of stainless steel wire attached to small kedge…..I anchour Ed on the seaward side of the Cies islands as the engine was kaput,let go my 25llb CQR on a few fathomed of chaine attached to about 200 feet of 12 mm rope

 

[thinwater]

Most will have started their engines long before a calm sets in.

Jonathan.

Binnacle,

For example - the use of kedging on a racing yacht - an emphasis is on saving weight, hence the aluminium anchor - but recommending against the use of dyneema - because its too thin. If the rode is thick enough to handle it will be heavy....

It will save weight, the dyneema, and it being thin is irrelevant if held on a Cuban YoYo. Simple. It also stores the dyneema neatly - what's not to like.

Not critique? In an anchor thread? Blah blah.

The Fortress article never said "kedge. They talked about anchoring. We are talking about moving a boat, either to get somewhere of to get away from something (aground).

kedged; kedging. transitive verb. : to move (a ship) by means of a line attached to a small anchor dropped at the distance and in the direction desired.
Upffront. First, capitalizing polyester is a pet pieve. Dyneema and Nylon are trade names, polyester is not (Dacron is).
I like the Cuban yoyo idea, and in fact, that is how I store my dinghy rode. You pull on the handle, not the line, and for holding still in a race, if there is unmanageable (depending on the boat size) load it is not yet time to pull up the rode. I know you can catch 50-pound fish on a yoyo.

For kedging off a mud bar, a common use, a sturdy polyester rode is best because you will be winching. Nylon will work, but the stretch is annoying, as is the recoil if the anchor slips. The load spikes cause by waves help free the boat, and nylon only damps them, potencially letting the boat push farther into the mud.

For pure kedging, you really don't need any chain. I've used a covered Dyneema leader for many years. Kedging isn't anchoring. That said, you can use a kedge as a second anchor. But you still don't need much chafe protection, because if you did it right the boat is not yawing and the rode is not moving on the bottom.

Ideally, for kedging, you need two kedges, because the boat will drift back while you are repositioning. Realistically, you will be using the bower as one of the kedges if you need to pull more than one rode length. Obviously, a really, really long rode helps.

noun
noun: kedge; plural noun: kedges; noun: kedge anchor; plural noun: kedge anchors

1. a small anchor used to reposition a ship or boat by having the anchor's hawser hauled in.
   
   
   

 

[Laser310]

i have kedged while aground in a sailboat without an engine

...a small keelboat, with no dinghy, so i had to throw the anchor each time, then take it up on the winch.

it worked.

 

[Neeves]

My comment about finding fault was to ensure people read the 2 articles and maybe read them again looking for the fault(s). Apologies for being devious.

As Norman says there are many correct ways to anchor - if it works for you - its correct.

If my thread has people thinking of a Cuban Yo Yo then it will have served its purpose. Many here will carry a Fortress, or equivalent, and some will have a smaller version (than needed as a primary) and using dyneema on a YoYo is a very convenient rode (and the combination aluminium and Dyneema, make for a very easy anchor to deploy from a dinghy (or throw). I don't think denying the use of dyneema is useful (and I expect people who make money from sailing to know their stuff). Dyneema is not the perfect answer, it floats and needs careful use to ensure it is not allowed to wrap itself round keel, rudder and especially prop. Wansworth has the same concept - pre the introduction of dyneema - stainless wire. Dyneema is an improvement to stainless wire as you can winch dyneema.

I like to share, accurate and tested, knowledge and ignore those who are petty and narrow minded.

I'm not sure why its called a 'Cuban' YoYo - here in Oz a company called Alvey Kayak Series Archives - Alvey Reels set up a commercial operation making fishing reels some using the Cuban YoYo concept. Quite common here.

Jonathan

 

[thinwater]

... I'm not sure why its called a 'Cuban' YoYo ....

Jonathan

Because they are very popular for hand line fishing in Cuba, and were brought into the Florida from there. I first saw them in Florida. The original ones were wooden and turned on a lathe.

 

[vyv_cox]

I was hoping that Kukri would have contributed to this thread. In his experience of sailing with Bill Tilman in high latitudes I seem to remember a harrowing tale In which he was involved, kedging off when hard aground after dumping ballast over the side

 

[Refueler]

When my old 4-99 seized years ago ... I had to get from Folly Inn (IoW) to HYCo .... the whole exercise by sail ...

Came off FI Pontoon even though stuck betweem two rafts of 3 each boats ... careful use of spring and genny ... didn't touch any other boat ... sailed down river ... made it past chain ferry and out into Solent.

Reached beginning of the winding channel to HYCo ... and my mate insisted he wanted to sail it up the channel ... and made the biggest error ... he tried it with mainsail ... my boat is not a Moody or Jeanneau ... the best sail on her for anything is the genny.
We ended up aground ....
First of all we tried having a tow from a McGregor 26 ... despite its 50HP moptor - it just could not get a grip in the water ... so I asked owner to ferry my people to shore and I would stay with the boat ... hoping that early next morning get HYCo to tow me in on the tide.

Once alone ... I looked at the situation and said ENOUGH !!

Laid out chain and got bow anchor ready ....

Unfurled genny but let if free ... luckily wind was light but in my favour in this first leg ...

Threw out anchor .... hauled up to bring bow round and she slid of the mud ... anchor hanging off ... sheet in genny ... moved a few yards ... repeat ... more yards ... repeat ... more yards ... finally into the channel ...
Second dog leg ... same again ....

Made it all the way to HYCo where I hailed a guy on pontoon and threw a line to him ... asked him to make fast ...

I then pulled her alongside the outer pontoon and made fast. Called my 'ex crew' who then came back to collect their gear.
Next day with HYCo - we put her back on her berth .....

Kedging .... yeh .... all done with a Holdfast Plough anchor (copy of the CQR) ....