anchoring a kayak to kelp

[astrofunk]

I just bought a kayak that I'm rigging as a platform for scuba and ab diving in northern California.

My question is about anchoring: Do folks really just tie off to kelp? Has that ever failed anyone? Are there ways to add redundancy (e.g. loop a line around the kelp, then add a shock cord to take some strain)? Do you miss having an anchor line to follow up and down?

I'm comfortable with the idea of anchoring to kelp while free diving, but I'm nervous about leaving it for an hour's scuba dive. On the other hand, I don't mind not buying and rigging an actual anchor if I don't have to... Any tips would be appreciated!

 

[Sh@rkW@tcher]

I'm not familiar with yak diving in kelp, but here in Florida a lot of us yak divers either clip a long rope from the yak to our BC, or to a reel and tow the yak with us. It is always close by when ya surface, and makes a great dive marker and flag holder.
Yellow poly rope is best since it floats and is very visible.

 

[astrofunk]

Hm, I'd worry about the entanglement hazard in a kelpy environment.

 

[Peter_C]

I anchor mine just outside the kelp sometimes in 100+ feet of water. I have seen the kelp clips you can purchase and we were discussing them the other day at our club dive as a few of us use kayaks. Personally I am NOT comfortable with a single kelp strand holding onto my kayak. Two maybe, but I know with an anchor at some point it will stick and hold. If it works out for you, please share your experience.

That opens up the problem of anchors...sticking on the bottom and with a kayak you can have a heck of a time retrieving it from the side without rolling. I ran my line up to the bow, but have to recover the anchor from the bow before departing. Look under google for "Anchor trolley" or something along those lines. It is a system that will allow you Bring your anchor line forward and backwards.

http://www.kayakfishingstuff.com/articles_view.asp?Kayak_Articles=54

 

[Nemrod]

I have not useda kayak in kelp. I have dove kelp and dove from kayaks. I generally pull my kayak with me but I also have a small collapseble nachor I may use sometimes.

Uh, that kelp could present a problem for which I amnot sure there is a good answer. Could you dive down a ways and tie off to deeper growth? Could you take the anchor down and hand place it?

N

 

[Peter_C]

Could you take the anchor down and hand place it?

N

Usually we just dive down our anchor line and try to make sure it is not fouled. Sometimes it is out deeper than our planned dive site though, so we get to find out at the end if the anchor will come free.

Remember there is no shame in cutting your anchor rope. Please do not risk your life for $30 worth of equipment.

With our wind, waves, and strong current, we have to secure our kayaks before departing them.

A hand held depth finder is almost a requirement here. This is the unit I have.

Brought up in another thread by Nemrod, so I will add it to this one. Dive flags are extremely useful with our swell conditions. The other day my friend and I were diving Monastery by kayak. We used a GPS to get us out to the dive site, then anchored and went for a dive. We surfaced a distance far enough from the kayaks, it took us about 20 seconds to spot them. The first thing we spotted was the dive flag NOT the kayak. One kayak is orange, and the other red...errr really pink now. Point being a dive flag is a good thing in many ways. One to let the Coast Guard know you are diving, and two for relocating your own kayak after the dive. We do not have a dive flag law unlike Florida, where it is a requirement.

 

[astrofunk]

Personally I am NOT comfortable with a single kelp strand holding onto my kayak. Two maybe, but I know with an anchor at some point it will stick and hold. If it works out for you, please share your experience.

My only kayak dive to date was a couple of years ago with a borrowed kayak at Lover's Pt. in Monterey. Admittedly the conditions were very calm, and since it was the middle of summer, the kelp was plentiful and strong. To anchor, I wrapped a line three or four times around a BIG armload of kelp, clipped it off, and went for my dive.

So I know it worked at least once! I just want to know how widespread this practice is, and at what point the conditions would merit using a real anchor.

 

[Peter_C]

Monterey Bay is way different than diving on the open ocean. Calmer water is a big reason why it is such a popular dive destination.

Just make sure you do not tie off to these kelp strands

 

[astrofunk]

Monterey Bay is way different than diving on the open ocean. Calmer water is a big reason why it is such a popular dive destination.

So you wouldn't balk at kelp anchoring on a calm day, say, at Pt. Lobos?

Just make sure you do not tie off to these kelp strands

Ha, exactly the feedback I'm looking for.

 

[Peter_C]

So you wouldn't balk at kelp anchoring on a calm day, say, at Pt. Lobos?

Depends where. If you mean Cannery Wall or somewhere inside Whalers sure. If you mean outside at Bluefish I would "feel" more comfortable anchoring, but that is more of a feeling then actual experience anchoring off of kelp, as I have never done that. It would really suck to come back and find two kayaks trashed against the rocks. Not only would you have to get yourself to safety, but also arrange to retrieve your kayaks.

We generally drop one anchor for two kayaks. The second kayak gets clipped off to the first one. Using a rope with a little give in it, but not a bungee, seems to be the best way.

Someone else I know will not clip the second kayak to the first one, after a bad experience and loosing gear when his, the lead kayak, flipped.