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Anchoring /mooring question - thoughts

3K views 24 replies 13 participants last post by  sailingfool 
#1 ·
I have a Cape Dory 25(4k lbs) that is currently anchored in Cocoa FL - its on a 25lb Mantus anchor with 50 feet of chain and about 50 feet of rode - in about 10 feet of water - has held through a small tropical storm - so seems fine.

Have asked around about putting in mooring - to local authorities and the local CG Aux. - nobody really knows anything - the city is clueless - the CG defers to them - but was told by one Coastie that it would be a paperwork nightmare to get approval - if it could even be done - but he suggested to discreetly drop one myself, it is a busy area and to drop an engine block or something similar would attract too much attention - so 3 options:

Stay as is

Use two anchors spaced about 20 feet apart with chain running to each and chain running from the middle of the two to an anchor buoy

Use one larger anchor with all chain to buoy

Have read some cruiser threads that think one heavier anchor would be best because no matter how you set two anchors - the load will almost always just be pulling on one.

Lots of boats anchored out - most on anchors not moorings. Last week some guy dropped his old beat up Hunter 23 in the water at the ramp - heard him say he was going to keep it there and hour to make sure it did not sink, he then got towed out about 500 yards - threw one small anchor over and left, luckily not upwind from me.
 
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#2 · (Edited)
There are or were several ship chandlers on the Miami River that have lots of ship gear including anchors and stud link chain. Find some stuff small enough to handle and set your perhaps a tad oversize 'new' anchor and chain. Who could say different?
 
#3 ·
Just do it.

An old engine block is too much like pollution for my taste. Maybe that's a California thing and in Florida would be okay. Capra'a big old anchor and chain idea is good. Anchors can be better than very heavy steel blocks on some bottoms. Huge concrete blocks can be dragged around with a small outboard workboat so they are not very secure. I don't like dragging chain on the bottom for several reasons. Sealife hates it and the chain hates it, for starters. So I would float the chain off the bottom.

A mooring is an anchor. An anchor is a mooring. Look it up. I know yachties use the terms in a specific way, but they are really the same thing. Is the area in a "Designated Anchorage" or some other administrative domain? Near a channel or ferry terminal? If not you can do as you please. And so can others. So don't expect any special treatment. Like if you are away and I anchor in what you falsely believe to be some kind of reserved space for you. You have zero rights except to ask nicely for room. Likewise don't expect any compensation if I destroy your unlit uncharted flotsam by running over it with my trawler. It's just tough luck. And keep an anchor light on all the time. Reflective tape on the float would be polite...
 
#4 ·
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Use two anchors spaced about 20 feet apart with chain running to each and chain running from the middle of the two to an anchor buoy
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In the Cocoa area I would use three large Danforth anchors on chains spread out equidistant from a central chain coming down from a mooring buoy.
That's if I wanted a permanent mooring, as opposed to an anchor, which is designed to be pulled up to go sailing, at least that's the way I look at it.
If you want to use one anchor for a mooring and leave it down when you go sailing, than a quite large anchor is indeed recommended.
 
#5 ·
Since is sounds like you are going to do this yourself and not use a professional mooring service, the 3-anchor mooring that Mike suggests above is the way to go. A mushroom mooring for a boat your size would be something like 250 lbs. Not something you could move and drop easily. A helical screw mooring is another option, but normally requires a special rig to install.

The problem with relying on a single anchor long term is that sooner or later when you are not there, something will happen and the anchor will drag and boat ends up on the beach. Going extra large reduces the chances somewhat, but don't eliminate them. The most common problem is sudden wind direction changes that require the anchor to reset.
 
#6 ·
There are some screw in moorings that you can get. They hold like rock if you have a sandy or muddy bottom. But you would need to be a skin diver or hire one or two. Basically you put the screw device into the bottom and then put a long pole through the pin end and turn the pole. West Marine and Hamilton Marine, and Probably Jamestown and Defender sell them.
 
#7 ·
I think the only salt water adjacent to Cocoa is the ICW, and that should be under state and federal (Corps of Engineers) regulation, at least. I'd be very careful about putting in anything like a mooring, because if there are regulations against it, and someone decides to exercise them, you could wake up to find the boat and mooring both seized and a rather un-amusing citation in your mailbox.

Find out the municipal (unlikely), county, state, federal regulations for that specific area, and find them in writing. Everyone who tells you "just do it" isn't going to help bail you out if it turns out they were wrong.

Florida also hasn't had a real hurricane in 11 years, it is VERY much overdue. The fringes of TS Sandy were just that--fringes. The last big hurricane might have been Wilma, a Cat2-3 storm. You need a plan to either MOVE your boat, or SECURE your boat, against 125mph winds and weather.
 
#10 ·
Keep in mind a 3-anchor mooring is not the same as setting out multiple anchors. The three anchors are set 120 degs apart and connected by chain to a central point. The chain to the ball and pennant is then connected to the central point. Boast swings normally with wind and current.
 
#12 ·
Railroad wheel with ships chain through the center. Ships chain is held in place with a steel bar passed through the links. Attach the ships chain to a small link chain using a swivel. Smaller chain is attached to the float. Used this setup in the ICW off the coast of Palm Bay. Yes it takes a barge (pontoon boat) to set the wheel and chains in place.
 
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#13 ·
Railroad wheel with ships chain through the center.....Yes it takes a barge (pontoon boat) to set the wheel and chains in place.
Railroad wheel? Barge? And maybe a floating crane? First of all, where does one get their hands on a railroad wheel? How much does one weigh? How many friends, who don't care about back injuries, would you need to get to help you with such a project?
 
#16 ·
In my experience someone who swings with short scope, say 4:1, causes less problems than someone who swings with say 10:1 scope.
People on moorings usually have mooring buoys, which should be an obvious statement to transients that there is a mooring involved, rather than just an anchor.
 
#19 ·
The problem with moorings are not so much when they are in use, but when they are not. Their presence permanently blocks out a certain swing space, which can make anchoring more difficult. It's kind of like someone blocking out a parking space on a public street even when their car is not there.

And in the case of commercial moorings, they convert a public resource (free anchoring) into a private good (paid mooring).

I understand the need for mooring fields in very busy places. It's easier to squeeze more boats into a small space with a well laid out mooring field. And I certainly understand why a local boater would want their own mooring in a place go to all the time (like out front of their house/cabin). I just wish these personal moorings would be placed as far to the edge of an anchorage as possible. Don't hog the swing space for transients.
 
#20 ·
A bit perplexed by Xort statements - locals who anchor out are squatters? But OK for transient boats to do the same?

There is plenty of room for all - probably 30 boats that use the anchorage for permanent base - plenty of room for cruisers who pass through also.
Of the 30 boats - 5 -10 or so look somewhat abandoned - next stop the bottom, a few others are live aboards- a couple on nice boats, a few on boats that need lot of attention - the are a number of high end boats - PS 37 for example in great shape - I would guess half of the boats are on an anchor the other half a mooring - but nothing looks overly official - the city of Cocoa had a master plan for putting in moorings - but no one at city hall has a clue as to what is happening with it - was supposed to be put in 2015( probably no money).

Talked with a cruiser stopping for a couple of days - on a big steel schooner from S Africa - heading to Newfoundland with his two teenage daughters.

I like the three anchor idea - on the same scope I currently use so would not take up any more swinging room - I only draw 3 feet so can get closer in than most crusiers.
 
#22 ·
Where I live and sail, only the very very rich have slips. Everyone else has a mooring that requires us also to have a dinghy to get out to it. The moorings are regulated by the local municipality as to maintenance, and have to be verified as safe.

You don't rent these moorings, because the are owned. I paid about $1000 for mine, and this year I had to pay an additional 270 bucks for maintenance(beyond the $135 normal fee) since the galvanized 1/2 inch chain was no longer galvanized and had worn down to 1/8 of an inch in some spots. Mine is currently at my yacht club which is on the coast in Frenchman's Bay. I also pay an additional $150 a year to be able to have it there so I can access the dock, and the clubhouse. i may pay to have it moved, but i will still pay the maintenance fee, and the town tax for it, just not the additional fee to have it at my yacht club. The main reason for moving would be that the field at the club is rather large(45 boats) and my mooring about 1000 feet from the dock. This is a bit long for rowing a beamy Walker Bay RID, and so needs an outboard; and also to take the boat out of the water I have to truck 6 miles to get to a ramp.

There are plenty of places to anchor but you don't just take a mooring unless you have talked to the Harbor Master first since you can get in a heap of trouble for taking someone's mooring---its called theft, and the harbor police will be involved. We also have to register them with the town and pay a $35 fee.
 
#23 ·
Places like New Smyrna, Jupiter and Manatee Pocket are full of squatters permanently anchored using most, if not all, of the room. In Cocoa, you have to anchor out near the ICW because all the room closer to shore is full of squatters.

This is like pitching a tent or building a shanty in a public park. The right of anchoring is for "vessels in transit".
 
#24 ·
In New Smyrna I would anchor in the alternative channel if I wanted to stay there. I've anchored in Manatee Pocket, but not for 3 years or so. Lots of room around Cocoa if you're a transient and don't need to go ashore frequently.

You definitely have a valid point, but I seem to avoid the problem by planning my anchorages in advance, and going to less crowded places. For instance, there's a protected anchorage to the east of the Dragon Point in the Indian River. It's usually crowded, mostly with boats on moorings, so I anchor on the west side of the Dragon (or what's left of it lol) and usually spend a delightful night with maybe 3-4 transient neighbors. If a strong west wind is forecast, I move to the west side of the river.
Too many places to choose from to not choose ones you like.
 
#25 · (Edited)
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