Comfortable Anchoring
“Cetus” at anchor with a riding sail, a small triangular sail that helps reduce swinging at anchor, which can weaken the anchor’s grip on the bottom as it works from side to side.
One of the most feared aspects of cruising is anchoring overnight. It keeps many people turning their back on lovely, little gunkholes and opting for the security of a dock or mooring buoy. They don’t want to spend the night worried and unable to sleep. We would like to pass on what we’ve learned to help others relax and enjoy their time at anchor.
Heidi Kotas “I think the anchor is dragging!” “I think the anchor is dragging!”
Nobody wants to hear those dreaded words – especially in the dark of the night. And the fear of being rudely awakened by such a terrible situation has meant many sleepless nights for boaters everywhere. Better to stay awake on anchor watch to keep an eye on the situation, than to wake up too late, and too groggy, to properly assess the problem and take corrective action. In our thirty plus years of cruising
aboard sailboats in Puget Sound, the San Juan and Gulf Islands, Hawaii, Mexico, the South Pacific and the Sea of Cortez, we’ve done a lot of anchoring and had many an anchor watch and sleepless nights. But, as with everything in life, you live and learn and we’ve picked up several good ideas along the way that have made anchoring much more comfortable. We now find that we can sleep securely, when others around us have fitful nights of uncertainty.
That’s not to say we will never sit up for another anchor watch if conditions are such to warrant it, but for the most part, a quick check of the instruments will be all we need to do to fall back to sleep should the wind come up or change direction in the middle of the night.
One of the most feared aspects
of cruising is anchoring overnight. It keeps many people turning their back on lovely little gunkholes and opting for
48° NORTH, APRIL 2011 PAGE 50
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