Anchor Rope Length

[dpbishop]

I will dive while leaving the boat unattended, but not everywhere. There are some anchorages I've tried ( North Coronado Island comes to mind) where I ended up pulling the hook and going elsewhere, it's not worth the risk. The bottom composition also effects your choice of hooks. A good Danforth will hold like stink in rocks, if it sets right, but it will just plow up the sand. A plow or Bruce holds better in sand, but they don't do that well in rocks. Note: Some experts will tell you the exact opposite of this, I'm basing it on personal experience.

 

[Scott M]

If in your situation you are limited to how much anchor line you can put out. I have a neighbor that is in a similar situation with a very large boat. This is a system they came up with that works perfectly. First they use a heavy oversized anchor with double the size and length of the recommended anchor chain (good heavy chain), at the end of the chain they have installed what could be regarded as a hydraulic anchor which is nothing more than a heavy piece of metal attached to the end of your anchor chain. What this does is act as a shock absorber when the waves get bad and keeps the anchor chain laying as flat to the bottom as possible by taking up the slack when the boat does pull excessively on the shorter anchor line. I would not go under the 4 to 1 length though.

Regards

 

[White Knight]

Thanks for the advice. I have already come to some of your conclusions, such as: Some places I just don't go, I use an extra heavy anchor chain and I do let out at least 4 -1 on the rope, trying for six to one as a standard. Lastly, some place you just can't dive and expect to leave the boat unattended. Thanks, Bruce