When the anchor is about to reach bottom, the boat is backed away by putting the
engines into reverse for 5 seconds: eddies from the chain indicate motion. Resume lowering
the anchor while drifting backwards (watch the eddies and add another burst or reverse if
necessary!) until the desired amount of chain is out. Stop paying out chain. Engage reverse
for five seconds at a time until the chain starts to pull straight off the bow toward the anchor. A
straight chain indicates a “set” anchor!
NEVER pull on the chain for more than five seconds, and never at any engine RPM
other than idle! Putting the boat’s weight plus its horsepower on the chain forcefully
even at idle will bend the anchor and/or damage the mooring gear!
If while checking the set, the chain rumbles and clunks, and seems to release in bursts,
it means you're anchoring on a rocky bottom and the anchor is not holding. Be patient: it may
not set on the first try, and you'll have to repeat the process sometimes to get a good “set”.
3B4: Anchor Bridle:
An anchor bridle is located in the Portuguese bridge cabinets. Use it when anchoring
overnight, as it accomplishes three goals:
(A) It takes the strain of the anchor off the windlass, pulpit, and pulpit pulley and directs
it to the bow cleats which are more suited to hold it;
(B) It reduces substantially the “chain noise” transmitted to the occupants of the forward
cabin;
(C) It allows the anchor rode to have a lower angle relative to the sea bottom, thus
increasing the anchor’s holding power.
To use the bridle:
(1) Lower the anchor normally then, after it is set, hook the bridle on the chain just in
front of the anchor pulpit bow roller.
(2) Secure the bridle rope ends through the side-coaming hawse pipes, to the bow cleat
on each side so the bridle lines are equal in length and as long as possible.
(3)Finally, operate the windlass to pay out anchor chain so the chain slacks and is
supported by the bridle, the chain forming a loop right in front of the boat’s bow.
If you wish, you can pay out additional chain to form a long hanging loop between the
boat and bridle, which weights the chain down in front of the boat well below its normal path;
thus the chain itself becomes a “kellet” or “sentinel”, lowering the chain angle more than the
bridle alone. The weight “drooping” the chain down like this then forms a an even more
effective “snubber”, so the boat is gently held against the pressures if wind and tide.
3B5: Shore Lines
When a shore line is required, the anchor is set 75 - 100 feet from shore, with the boat
backing toward shore during anchor-setting. The stern line is put around a tree, and brought
back to the boat. During this process, be sure to keep clear of rocks near the shore, and allow
for our Northwest tides, occasionally twelve feet, and sometimes 20 feet when further north!
Check the present tide, and high and low tides before beginning anchoring: No sense
anchoring in 15 feet of water if you're at the "top" of a 15 foot tide!
To get to the shore, you will need to have a dinghy down, and then have your mate
keep the boat's stern toward shore with short bursts of reverse gear. Sometimes a helpful
Section 3B: Maneuvering Suggestions 3.5
