Stern Anchor Setup

[ref_123]

Hi, all,

anyone wants to share their experience and knowledge in using a stern anchor? How do you stow the rode for it? How do you deploy it and, what is more interesting, how do you retrieve it without scratching the gelcoat?

Two obvious ways to set up the rode: either put a pipe trough the transom or through the lazarette in the cockpit. Both have advantages and problems, but I think the pipe in the cockpit may be a lesser evil. We had some REALLY unpleasant experiences with the pipe on the stern of a charter boat. Weather was somewhat windy, the anchor was stubborn, and I was close to very undesirable dip into the drink. My wife was holding the wheel with one hand and my harness with the other while I had to step on the ladder... In case if the question arises later, that was Frys Harbor at the Santa Cruz Island, CA. Those who have been there know that a single anchor is not an option.

As for the retrieval, on a charter boat it was not an issue: some scratches on pulpit and gelcoat (although I tried my best to avoid it as much as possible) are considered a "normal wear and tear". On our boat though it seems not such a tempting thought... Can anyone share ideas on how you work it out on your boats? I did not see people setting up rollers on the stern yet, but may be it is not that crazy a thought, after all?

Thanks in advance!

[GordMay]

We used to sometimes stern anchor, bow to shore, in Lake Superior. We’d carry a bower to the stern, lay it out and motor to (a steep) shore, looping around a tree or boulder (& back to boat). Was good for daytime “back & forth”. At night, we might slack the bow loop, and take up some rode, pulling ourselves away from shore - or we might just cast off, and anchor.

I worked on a Cal 40 that had a stern anchor mounted on the pushpit, and supported by a deck (lazarette) mounted roller (about 24" dia x 24" wide c/w a lot of rope rode). Looked kinda funny, but the owner swore buy it!

Regards,
Gord

[WHOOSH]

I too would welcome comments from experienced users of stern anchor systems, both on the mechanics of your set-up and experiences/problems when used. We''ll shortly be routinely using one of the two Med Moor arrangements, in our case bow-in as I don''t like the vane and the deep rudder being close to the seawall and perhaps a sloping/shallow seabed where it joins to the wall. I also like the idea of having max steering control while approaching the quay and wedging oneself between the existing boats...and also control when departing, simply by pulling the boat away from the quay using the anchor line.

Based on other comments I''ve heard to date, using a large Fortress puts the most holding on the (muddy/sandy) bottom for the least weight, a consideration since one of us will be bent over at a painful ergonomic angle, handling the rode. We''re thinking 50'' of HT chain and the rest nylon line. An inelegant choice, we nonetheless can see advantages to using a plastic wash basket to hold the chain & line (which would live in the cockpit, set aside in a corner on daysails), with the anchor mounted back aft on the stern pulpit. We have a roller installed on the transom but that last 50'', when it''s all chain, seems like it would be awkward to handle.

Seems like this will turn out to be half ''workable set-up'' and half ''technique''.

Jack
See a new thread for the other unresolved issue: where/how to mount a paraselle off the bow.