Best Way to Reduce Wind Movement - Second Anchor?

[catfighter]

Hello - I'm having a problem with anchoring my boat. I'm sure this has been discussed before but maybe not (and I also can't find it on the forum anywhere).

So I have a 14' fiberglass john boat that I fish out of on a small river with little current. I use a 3lb collapsible claw anchor to hold the boat in place in the current; it holds the boat fine in one place, but what happens is if the wind picks up even a little, the boat will start to drift everywhere. It's a problem because I fish for catfish on the bottom and if the boat pivots in one direction too much, then all the lines get tangled into a giant mess, especially at night when you can't tell it's happening until it's too late. . .


So I think the solution is this: use a sandbag anchor, or something like it (i.e. a piece of concrete block?) as a second anchor to keep the boat from twisting in the wind. Maybe connect the rope with a zip-tie or something, so that if I need to, I can just jerk it up and leave the anchor at the bottom in an emergency . . . .

Another solution is maybe a drift sock (i.e. a 5gal bucket tied to the back, of course)? would that keep the boat from swaying in light wind?


Thanks for the help.

 

[ondarvr]

Re: Best Way to Reduce Wind Movement - Second Anchor?

Get a drift sock, it will keep the boat pointed in the correct direction. Or use bucket in the same way, it's a bit cheaper.

 

[catfighter]

Re: Best Way to Reduce Wind Movement - Second Anchor?

Thanks, I'll try that, especially if I'm anchored in current.

I really want to avoid the idea of anchoring the stern, especially considering the fact that many people say Never anchor from the stern!!.

 

[ssobol]

Re: Best Way to Reduce Wind Movement - Second Anchor?

Thanks, I'll try that, especially if I'm anchored in current.

I really want to avoid the idea of anchoring the stern, especially considering the fact that many people say Never anchor from the stern!!.

Anchor is not big enough or the wrong type. While it works for the boat against the current, the wind blowing the boat adds to the load. If the wind shifts around a bit this also works the anchor loose. Adding a drift sock will help hold the boat into the current, but will also add load to the anchor (current pushing on the sock). You also need to check that the anchor is suitable for the bottom you are anchoring in. A claw anchor works best on a rocky bottom where it can get around or between something on the bottom. In a mud bottom a claw will not do so well.

You also should have a length of chain after the anchor before the rope. At least 5-6 feet of 3/16 chain. Also, ensure you have enough line out. The scope should be at least 5 to 1. This includes the height of the anchor cleat above the water plus the water depth. The longer the scope the better the anchor will hold. However, a longer scope also increases the amount of room you must have for the boat to swing if the wind or water current direction changes.

In most cases the wind speed and direction have a stronger bearing on how the boat lies at anchor than the direction of the water current.

Instead of an anchor on the stern you could try two at the front between 45 and 90 degrees apart. This will reduce the swinging from wind changes.

 

[5150abf]

Re: Best Way to Reduce Wind Movement - Second Anchor?

Drift socks are great, if you have decent current, if no they just hang there and do nothing, a 5 gallon buchet woudl need a ton of current to work, even in a decent current they sink like a stone.

When I am out and there is no current I will let the back anchor rope all the way out then drop the front and bring in some of the back so you are suspended between the anchors.

I personnely don't use any chain at all, I have a deck hand and an anchor mate to retrieve anchor rope and neither one likes chain,
I use 15lb mushrooms front and rear and a hillbilly brake rotor filled with lead and rarely ever have a problem anchoring even with the camper top on.

 

[haulnazz15]

Re: Best Way to Reduce Wind Movement - Second Anchor?

Thanks, I'll try that, especially if I'm anchored in current.

I really want to avoid the idea of anchoring the stern, especially considering the fact that many people say Never anchor from the stern!!.

Anchoring from the stern is NOT bad in and of itself. However, there are certain conditions in which a stern anchor should not be used, especially as a primary anchor point. When you are in rough water or with swells/tide, the stern anchor shouldn't be used. In your case, a stern anchor wouldn't be a bad idea as the boat isn't likely in rough water and the bow will remain pointed towards the current. Stern anchors are also commonly used when spending the night on the hook with cruisers/cuddys to prevent the sway. Nothing wrong with a stern anchor when used properly with the current conditions in mind.

 

[catfighter]

Re: Best Way to Reduce Wind Movement - Second Anchor?

Thanks for the suggestions.

The anchor is actually not moving or dragging, though I could probably use more rope out. I had a danforth that I used to use and it did the same thing. The wind, vectored perpendicular to the current, pushes the boat sideways and twists all the lines together.

I'm liking the old brake rotor idea to try out. . . or maybe just try a milk jug full of sand. I think adding lateral resistance is all I need to keep the boat moving in slight breezes. Unfortunately, anchoring in the wind doesn't always work where I live [West Virginia], as the winds can change direction at any time, especially when you're anchored beside a cliff.

 

[ondarvr]

Re: Best Way to Reduce Wind Movement - Second Anchor?

I live on a river and fish on anchor frequently. The reason we don't use a stern anchor that often is because unless you pull it in when you have a fish on there is a good chance it will get tangled with your line when the fish is close to the boat.

A bucket doesn't need that much of a current to work, its weight is almost neutral in the water, and a drift sock needs even less, they are easy to pull back into the boat too.

We use many methods to hold the boat in the correct position, we also use many different types of anchors depending which body of water we're on and the bottom in that location. The boat I use on the river isn't that much larger than yours and the anchor that's normally on it weighs 55 lbs, the stern (if needed) anchor is about 10 lbs.

Anchoring methods can be very location specific, so try several different things and see what works best.

 

[catfighter]

Re: Best Way to Reduce Wind Movement - Second Anchor?

We use many methods to hold the boat in the correct position, we also use many different types of anchors depending which body of water we're on and the bottom in that location. The boat I use on the river isn't that much larger than yours and the anchor that's normally on it weighs 55 lbs, the stern (if needed) anchor is about 10 lbs.

A

55lbs?! is a huge anchor, unless you meant 15lb.

I heard the bucket idea from another forum; I think I'll try that way as well. . . .


I'll just add this trial-and-error into the fun of learning the boat.

 

[ondarvr]

Re: Best Way to Reduce Wind Movement - Second Anchor?

55 lbs is correct. I don't need it this large anymore, but it never slips. There was one location on the river where the fishing was very good, but where you had to anchor the water was flowing fairly fast and the bottom was gravel, so almost everybody had problems staying in one place. The water was only about 3 feet deep, but even with 50ft of rope out the anchor would start to drag after a bit. The boats were also anchored bow to stern with about 5' between them. In this spot we used a heavy bow anchor and a 10+ lb stern anchor because the added drag of a bucket or drift sock would move the anchor.

 

[catfighter]

Re: Best Way to Reduce Wind Movement - Second Anchor?

For shallow water I use an anchor and a "hillbilly anchor" which is a big pole jammed in the bottom and attached to the boat. . . but I don't think it would work in really strong current or gravel bottom. Perfect for anchoring in 4' of water for catching bait, though.

 

[catfighter]

Re: Best Way to Reduce Wind Movement - Second Anchor?

I picked up a brake rotor, painted it with "rust-stopping" primer [yeah, right], and tried it out today. It worked perfectly!

I also used a thin rope for it, in case I needed to cut it.


Only problem was pulling it up from the depths; damn, that thing is heavy in the water! Probably overkill but worked perfectly.

 

[fishrdan]

Re: Best Way to Reduce Wind Movement - Second Anchor?

When I am out and there is no current I will let the back anchor rope all the way out then drop the front and bring in some of the back so you are suspended between the anchors.

That's what I do on "the river", but the current isn't all that strong and usually shuts down after 10PM when/where we are normally out there.

I picked up a brake rotor, painted it with "rust-stopping" primer [yeah, right], and tried it out today. It worked perfectly!

I also used a thin rope for it, in case I needed to cut it.

I used to have one of those... I had an old bucket of latex house paint that I dipped the rotor in 5-6 times, leaving it a couple days in between so it could dry out. It was nicknamed the "Weatherbeater"... (ala' Sears Weatherbeater house paint, LOL)

Unless you have someone along, dropping stern and bow anchors to chase a fish is going to be difficult, (maybe slip knot the front anchor?). Sometimes I'll drop an anchor to cast and keep a float on it, float in the water besides the boat. When I hook up on a good fish, I reach over and toss the looped anchor line into the water. After landing the fish I go back and pick up the float and anchor.

It really depends on what type of river conditions you are fishing in. I go to a section of the Colorado below Hoover Dam that's like ODR was talking about, current screaming and hard to get an anchor to hold in the gravel/cobble. I don't have a 55# anchor so I'll float that section, or pull off in an eddy and cast into the current. Some of the eddy's are very small, just big enough to get my 14' jon boat into, let the boat drift out and you're screaming down river again...

 

[catfighter]

Re: Best Way to Reduce Wind Movement - Second Anchor?

I'm using floating rope; I know people avoid it because it can get in the propeller but I have an outboard so there shouldn't be a problem with looking down and making sure rope isn't in the way. . . .