Single-handed anchoring

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srah1953

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In all the books and articles I've read, I've never really seen a satisfactory statement of how best to set and take up an anchor single-handed. Boat is 35 ft and has an electric windlass but only operated from bow. Main problem seems to be to be in 2 places at the same time.
Any suggestions welcome. Cheers
 
srah1953 said:
In all the books and articles I've read, I've never really seen a satisfactory statement of how best to set and take up an anchor single-handed. Boat is 35 ft and has an electric windlass but only operated from bow. Main problem seems to be to be in 2 places at the same time.
Any suggestions welcome. Cheers
Click to expand...

The following has worked for me, so far. In both cases the anchor is over the bow roller and chain prepared on the foredeck in advance.
  • Light winds. Sail on a quarter reach. A couple of lengths from chosen anchor point, stroll to bow. When over anchor point, drop anchor and all chain. Chain tightens, anchor digs in, boat rounds up. Drop sails.
  • Stronger winds. Approach on a reach. Round up. Drop anchor until it hits the bottom. As boat drifts back, pay out the rest. Windage digs it in.
I believe there are also methods involving the engine.:D
 
:)To think about or write about it makes it seem more complicated than it is:

Anchoring:
  • get everything ready to let go before reaching the crowded and congested bits
  • come up to where you want to let go - taking the attitude of other similar boats
  • go forward - this is generally a saunter unless things are a bit wild
  • put the anchor down and as it bites
  • let the cable out as you drop back down your line - after all, you faced the correct direction to lie to your cable
  • snub or make off when you feel there's enough out
  • saunter aft to do any reverse pulls you want
  • repeat as necessary
  • saunter forward and make secure

leaving is easier, you can usually chose your moment with more flexibility
  • prepare sails or whatever you need for passage
  • have a look at how your cable's lying
  • pick it up if you can
  • if not - may have to use some power to come up to the anchor (repeating as necessary)
  • as soon as you notice from your transits that the anchor's not holding you can get it home (if room to drift) or pull up a little more and make off to deeper water clear of anyone else
  • when clear of everyone else, secure for passage

I just realised I seem to do a lot of sauntering
 
srah1953 said:
In all the books and articles I've read, I've never really seen a satisfactory statement of how best to set and take up an anchor single-handed. Boat is 35 ft and has an electric windlass but only operated from bow. Main problem seems to be to be in 2 places at the same time.
Any suggestions welcome. Cheers
Click to expand...

I saw a post somewhere on these forums (forgive me for not doing a search on "anchoring" :D) which suggested anchoring from the cockpit as follows :

1. Keep your anchor and chain in the cockpit in a locker or bag or something
2. Run the nylon tail outside the boat to the stemhead roller and fix.
3. Motor (or sail) gently downwind/stream (ie in the opposite direction from normal).
4. Drop anchor from cockpit
5. Pay out chain and warp
6. Last boatlength or so has another warp joined on in a V. Hang on to this and use it to swing the boat so she faces the dropped anchor
7. When facing anchor set it by running astern as normal
8. Tidy up by taking the V'd warp outside the boat to join other warp at stemhead.

9. De-anchor by reversing the above, storing the last boatlength of warp on top of the anchor in the bag/locker.

You obviously don't use your windlass at all in this method so if you are laying 100m of 10mm chain and a 25kg anchor I don't really think this method is for you (or me).

I can imagine this getting a bit frantic if there is a lot of tide / wind because obviously forward boat speed is added to tide in this method. If your boat doesn't steer well in astern then you might have problems slowing her down by motoring backward into the wind/tide.

If anyone uses this method I'm interested to hear how these problems can be resolved ?

Boo2
 
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I started to write a long detailed post, then realised like AncientSailor I was making it much more complicated than it is.

The crucial points are that you rarely need to do two things from different places at the same time (the possible exception being steering away while getting the last bit of the tackle on board) and that things happen slower than you think (if the anchorage is not crowded, you probably have time to get the last bit of the tackle on board while drifting and still not hit anything).

I'm aware that I have advantages with my little boat in that I can manhandle her up the cable in any reasonable conditions, and that I can scandalise all power out of the main but have it drawing again in a couple of seconds. But equally I have no bow-roller or through-deck chain-locker, and have to manhandle the anchor over the side and manually haul chain in and out of an awkward navel pipe. This probably keeps me on the foredeck away from the tiller longer than your gear does.

Pete
 
This is what single hander James Baldwin has to say:
Normally I like to moor with two anchors set 180 degrees apart and both tied to the bow so that the anchors and lines are never dragging around the bottom getting fouled. Typically, I come into an anchorage under reduced sail, kick the Danforth over the stern and pay out twice the amount of scope I want to end up with. The end of this anchor rode is led outside of all rigging and secured to the bow cleat. When the boat comes to a stop, I walk forward and release the bow anchor. Then I pull in on the stern anchor while letting out chain on the bow anchor until the boat is centered between the anchors. When departing, the above steps are reversed. Whenever this trick is not practical I bring the boat to a near stop and drop the main bow anchor and then dinghy out a second anchor and return to adjust them from the bow.
Click to expand...

The advantage seems to me you'd have more control if something goes wrong.
Especially when not relying on an engine!
 
I have never had a problem anchoring single handed on a 29 footer without a windlass. I either flake on deck or make sure it's free to run. Go in under motor with the helm lashed then, when she's stationary over ground, wander up and chuck the anchor over, then pay out as she takes it. You can always give her some astern to dig in.

Getting it up is similar; lash tiller, motor slowly, haul up, get out of the anchorage then clean off and stow anchor. As in everything single handed, preparation, plan 'B' and taking your time makes it easier.
 
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Boo2 said:
I saw a post somewhere on these forums (forgive me for not doing a search on "anchoring" :D) which suggested anchoring from the cockpit as follows

[snip complexity]
Click to expand...

I can see that being appropriate for someone who is perhaps disabled and can't easily leave the cockpit. It doesn't seem to have much else to recommend it.

Pete
 
ancientsailor said:
:)To think about or write about it makes it seem more complicated than it is:

Anchoring:
  • get everything ready to let go before reaching the crowded and congested bits
  • come up to where you want to let go - taking the attitude of other similar boats
  • go forward - this is generally a saunter unless things are a bit wild
  • put the anchor down and as it bites
  • let the cable out as you drop back down your line - after all, you faced the correct direction to lie to your cable
  • snub or make off when you feel there's enough out
  • saunter aft to do any reverse pulls you want
  • repeat as necessary
  • saunter forward and make secure

leaving is easier, you can usually chose your moment with more flexibility
  • prepare sails or whatever you need for passage
  • have a look at how your cable's lying
  • pick it up if you can
  • if not - may have to use some power to come up to the anchor (repeating as necessary)
  • as soon as you notice from your transits that the anchor's not holding you can get it home (if room to drift) or pull up a little more and make off to deeper water clear of anyone else
  • when clear of everyone else, secure for passage

I just realised I seem to do a lot of sauntering
Click to expand...

All above good advice. The only thing I would add is I tend to go beyond where I want the anchor to lie then reverse strongly with auto pilot on (allowance made for prop walk) and then go to bow, let go so chain will not pile up on itself. When 75% approx of scope out snub the chain to get anchor to dig in, let out remainder, make fast then back to cockpit, more engine up to 75% revs to dig right in. Has worked fine most times.
 
Has anyone else a boat which behaves like mine?- I recently bought a ketch - mizzen a long way aft and long keel with deep (ie not cut away) forefoot. When heaving up anchor with mizzen up and heaved tight in she will track straight downwind with no tendency for the bow to blow off (necessitating a rush aft to correct with wheel). Its quite uncanny and totally different behaviour to all my previous boats. It allows me all the time in the world to heave up and stow the anchor then saunter aft to reverse helm to make use of sternway to sail off on desired tack.
 
A tip I was given and now use. If you leave the anchor stock just below the water the anchor is remarkably stable. It just sits at a slight angle off the bow, slightly aft of straight up and down; CQR type at least.

So dropping and weighing anchor is simplified by deploying or recovery in clear water with room to manoever. If its choppy lower the anchor another foot or two. Just dont steam off at 7 kts, keep the speed down!

I have anchored on the run with my kedge over the stern. Main down, most of the Genoa rolled away. Let fly or roll away the jib. I then let the kedge go over the stern and control the rope rode on a sheet winch.

I have recovered a heavy anchor quickly with the tripping line after shortening up and taking the anchor chain to the stern so that she is hanging by the stern. Haul up on the tripping line and run off into clear water trailing a loop of chain. Very messy but good in very fluky, strong winds, when you need steerage fast for close quarters sailing. The main advantage is that you dont sail off with a big hook perhaps 3m or more below as you shear the wrong way.
 
Take you all for these excellent comments.
Re comment on remote windlass, there is only one problem on this (apart from the fact that I don't have one) is that the chain heaps up in the anchor locker and needs to be "redistributed" every so often otherwise windlass jams.
 
srah1953 said:
Take you all for these excellent comments.
Re comment on remote windlass, there is only one problem on this (apart from the fact that I don't have one) is that the chain heaps up in the anchor locker and needs to be "redistributed" every so often otherwise windlass jams.
Click to expand...

Another vote for remote. I fitted one from maplins, garage door unit but about 32 quid. I had the same prob with chain piling up when I had manual windlass, elec one drops chain slightly further back so not so bad but before I had to flake the chain on deck before dropping the anchor, yet another thing to do when coming in solo.

But even if just for weighing the anchor a remote is very handy, easy to run back to cockpit and point the boat in right direction while still pulling chain up. Cheap and not tricky to fit.

Though to be honest a lot of the time I do what everyone says not to do, use the windlass to move the boat, pull in some chain, wait for a little while as the boat moves closer and repeat. Not bad when calm but with some breeze it can get a bit naughty so the engine gets used more to move the boat.

Worst was bust engine and bust windlass, sailing solo off the anchor while leapfrogging rope off the mast winches to pull the anchor up. With boats anchored nearby, that was shortly before the credit card got a hammering. :)
 
srah1953 said:
Take you all for these excellent comments.
Re comment on remote windlass, there is only one problem on this (apart from the fact that I don't have one) is that the chain heaps up in the anchor locker and needs to be "redistributed" every so often otherwise windlass jams.
Click to expand...

Exactly. On my boat that means poking around underneath the widlass to free the piled up chain about every 10 metres or so.

I fitted a remote to a previous boat and found it totally useless for a whole variety of reasons that meant you really needed to be at the bow when initially dropping and subsequently retrieving the anchor. Some of these problems could be got round with, for example, a self stowing anchor roller, but dont kid yourself that the simple addition of a remote to a standard set up will be all that is necessary.
 
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