Date: 3 March 2015. More Emergency Anchor Up Info.

© janice142
 

After the article Emergency Anchor Up (OpenCPN info too) was published a fellow soloist gave me a phone call. Irene lives aboard her Valiant32 and has like me had to "do the drill" regarding anchor up on more than one occasion. And she is one smart cookie with tricks I have since added to my arsenal.
 

This is Irene's sailboat Katja at anchor in Fort Pierce, FL.

 

Katja is anchored at Belhaven, NC.
 

Also, Irene has a second anchor ready to launch on the bow.  Part of the danger of dragging is in getting up on that lee shore where the boat can be battered. Also, if in an anchorage with other boats one wants to stay away from them and prevent damage to other vessels along with your own.
 

Being able to immediately launch a second anchor and make the boat stationary is an important safety factor.

Another thing Katja has on hand (tied to the forward stanchion and bow rail) are a couple of small pieces of line.  Sometimes relieving the stress on the chain is important in helping to either retrieve or set set the second anchor. Having short pieces of rope conveniently nearby helps.
 

As for me, I keep both eyeglasses and a flashlight in my tool locker. I need both when in there.

For me both the reading glasses and the flashlight are necessary, therefore available every place I need them.
 

Tools need to be near where they are used,
especially in an emergency situation.
 

Having a piece of rope to relieve tension on the anchor rode is smart. That same item in a locker in the cockpit does little good when you need it on the foredeck. As a soloist having the luxury of help is unlikely.
 

Solving an issue independently is one trait of a successful boater.
 

Like Irene, I intend to keep a piece of light line forward.
For Seaweed, that will likely mean attached to the remote for my windlass.

On our boat (the 40'er) we kept a small hatchet/ax inside the anchor locker. A second was inside by the door into the cockpit. If we needed to part a rope (our rode was 1" three strand, following 40' of heavy chain) the axe would serve the purpose.
 

I still have one of the hatchets. It's just beneath the step to exit Seaweed on the starboard side of my pilothouse. I do need to sharpen it because frankly, at this point it is not likely to cut much of anything.
 

She's a boat: there are always things to do.
 

Have you any anchor-up tricks to share?
And do you have a way to cut your boat free from entanglements?
 

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