anchoring & retrieval done solo

[Rickcentalonza]

How is anchoring and retrieval done, especially in bad weather?
I'm a new owner and was wondering what's best way.
Has anyone added a some sort of roller or other device?
On my previous 22' boat it was back breaking work to bring the anchor in by hand in bad weather.

Rick

[Ron]

Rick -

No one seems to be picking this up, so just a few comments about solo anchoring.

It's not that easy on any boat, and the bigger the boat the harder it gets. Main problem is that it's much better to have someone at the controls as you go forward to play with the anchor and rhode - for both setting and retrieving it. For example (and this especially applies to larger and heavier boats), you must move the boat almost directly over the anchor to raise it and the line, using either the motor or sails. Pulling on the line at any angle less than about 75 degrees will not break it free and you will also struggle to move the boat that way to get over it. Setting is the opposite - you've got to set it as the line is let out with its 5 or 7 to 1 scope. As the weather and seas get worse, so does the job.

I've done it on larger boats single handed, but not with any real wind or current pushing the boat around. You've got to run back and forth to operate the controls and the windlass (or to manually pull the line). If you think that the anchor will take a really good set it may be better to run a trip line as insurance.

[trashpad]

To add,

The Telstar being a "Light" sailboat, has light ground tackle so it is a bit easier to handle.

[Ron]

Kurt -

Agreed that it's a "light" sailboat (although not as light as the specs say), but it could still be a hassle if you try to pull it into a heavy current or wind, especially when the vertical angle between the boat and ground tackle increases above 30 or so degrees. You've really got to motor it up to the anchor, then pull up. My last boat weighed 24,000 pounds and I wouldn't even try it without the motor on. If the boat's position is mostly controlled by the current you may be able to sail up to the anchor as well, but that would be rare. I think I was able to do that only once in 30 years. You'd normally be in irons or close to it.

[Rickcentalonza]

Light ground tackle for me is out of the question if you want to sleep.
Running back and forth to bring in an anchor in bad weather is recipe for an accident. What about motoring slowly in reverse with the tiller between the knees and bringing it in that way? Of course you have to be careful not to tangle the prop. I appreciate all the input I can get.

Rick

[Ron]

Rick -

The point that I was trying to make was that you will probably have to move the boat OVER the anchor to retrieve it - and in many cases (boat bigger than a dinghy?) using something other than the anchor line itself. How you get there is up to you. The boat will invariably be down current and/or down wind. You may be able to get enough forward momentum to float over the anchor by pulling sharply on the rhode but that will not work in heavier weather or a strong current. I do not know a way of doing this without having to move around the boat if you're single-handed. You've got the same problem (but in reverse) when you set it. The cockpit is nice and safe but you can't always stay in there. If you're single-handed get a harness on and set up jack lines when conditions deteriorate.

The three hulls have an effect on drag in the water, but it's still a fairly light boat. You won't need a 50 pound CQR to hold it. I turned down the imitation danforth (12 pound if I remember correctly) that it comes with in favor of a 15 pound Delta with about 20 feet of chain and 150 feet of line. Note that I do not expect to ever anchor in anything above 20 feet so it should work well. Main reason why I "picked" the Delta was that I won it (with the rhode) at a Catalina Rendezvous a few years earlier. I prefer plows and it's a good anchor.

[Dan]

A few points on anchoring the Telstar solo.

First, anchoring the Telstar solo isn’t all that difficult to do, especially if you plan ahead and run the anchor back to the cockpit. A lot of times, I’ll drop the anchor from the cockpit or the ama and let the boat drop back as the rode plays out. If the water is shallow enough, you may not even need much more than a boat length of rode out.

I’ve also anchored the boat via the stern, which works fairly well, although it does look a bit odd. Don Jordan has a good article on anchoring from the stern, located here.

Second, having a good ground tackle setup on the boat makes anchoring out a lot simpler. One reason I say this, is a good anchor reduces the chances that you’ll have to try and raise the anchor and re-set it. That’s the reason I went with what most people would call an oversized anchor for a boat the size of the Telstar 28, but it does allow me to sleep when out at anchor.

The primary anchor on my boat is a Rocna 15, which weighs 33 lbs. The primary anchor rode is 60' of 5/16" G43 chain and 200' of 5/8" nylon octo-plait for the rode. I’ve used this setup in winds over 40 knots and not had a problem with it. It sets on the first try every time, so far. While many people might consider this overkill, I did not want to have to carry a "storm" anchor as well as a primary, and this way I don’t have to. Stowage of the anchor is the biggest problem, but it does sit on the bow roller well enough that I generally leave it there.

I also upgraded the ground tackle setup at the bow, adding two 10" cleats, larger bow chocks, rub strakes, a manual windlass, chainpipe and bow roller. Here is a photo of the setup—please note, the chain pipe is not shown, but it is now mounted on the deckplate that can be seen in the photo.



Third, make sure the centerboard is retracted completely. If the centerboard is down at all, the anchor rode can get wrapped around it and can cause problems. This was a problem on the Corsairs I’ve sailed as well, but with a daggerboard, you can often lift the board straight up and free it that way, which isn’t possible with a centerboard. In my opinion, whenever the Telstar is at anchor, on a mooring or in a slip, the centerboard should be fully retracted, and the rudder kicked up as much possible. Given how the Telstar can move around at anchor, this is very important.

Fourth, be very careful when anchoring among other boats, since the Telstar doesn’t always drift down the same way a neighboring monohull will. With the centerboard retracted and the rudder kicked up, the Telstar will often be affected far more by wind than by currents, and may not lie to the anchor the same way a monohull does, in similar conditions. Many times, I’ve found that we weren’t being affected by the currents that were affecting our neighbors, and so would be lying to the anchor in a very different manner. Of course, having a very shallow draft can allow you to anchor in places monohulls wouldn’t even consider trying to anchor. I’ve anchored out in six feet of water with 7:1 scope, and barely more than just the chain out on my rode.

Retrieving the anchor under calm conditions isn’t much of a problem, but in stormier conditions, retrieving it can be challenging without crew. In relatively calm conditions, the windlass allows me to pull the boat up to to the anchor, and use the boat to break the anchor free of the bottom. In heavier weather, I’ll get the boat moving forward, put the engine in neutral, and then go forward and haul in the rode until the boat stops making forward progress, and then repeat, until I have the rode vertical and can break the anchor out. Once, the anchor is free of the bottom, I can usually set the autopilot to motor out of the anchorage, and go forward to finish retrieving the anchor.

One major problem with the Rocna anchor is how much of the bottom it tends to bring up, and I generally leave the anchor hanging in the water for a few minutes while the boat is underway to rinse the mud off the anchor.

[Ron]

Dan -

Good answer. Light air and minimal current and you can do almost anything you want.

But since he mentioned heavy weather (or a fast moving current) and as you inferred, I would probably not do some of those things solo from the cockpit or ama. Trying to manually hold the boat with the anchor line while setting or retrieving could be a real challenge. The relatively light bow is also much more affected by wind and current. Better to move the boat forward over the anchor and work from the bow. And best if you have someone else at the controls while you go forward.

[Dan]

Ron—

I think that retrieval of the anchor in heavy weather, while single-handed, is probably the most difficult of the tasks. I’ve found that setting the anchor when single-handing, even in heavier weather, isn’t usually much of a problem, especially given the choice I’ve made for ground tackle.

Having the autopilot remote does make it a bit easier to retrieve the anchor single-handed, but it would still be preferable to have a person at the helm instead.

[Rickcentalonza]

Thanks to all for your valuable input on the subject. I will work on my technique.
I guess in bad weather, if possible, it would be better to sit it out at anchor.

Rick