BASIC ANCHORING The two most common anchors we would all be familiar with are the fluke anchor, (Danforth or Fortress), and a plow-style anchor, (CQR or Bruce). Fluke anchors, being flatter, are easier to store in an anchor locker. The plow anchor is bulkier, does not store flat and is better suited to remain hanging on the bow roller. Both of these anchors are able to reset themselves. The holding power of these anchors depends on the conditions of the bottom. Luckily in the St John River the bottom at most anchoring sites is sand or mud where fluke anchors work well. If the bottom is gravel, rocks, or there is too much weed the plow anchor would work best. Both types of anchors can drag and can require a few tries before they are set. From experience we know that they also seem to drag around 3 am on nights with high winds and rain. I’m sure there are a few of us who have gotten up in the middle of the night to get soaked in our PJ’s to reset an anchor.

Editors note:   There is a third type of anchor that has now been developed and is very popular by people who cruise full time.   This is the Rocna, Mantis or Mason brand of anchor.   It is a plow style anchor that has a roll bar.   It is generally considered the best anchor to use in most situations.    They are not inexpensive and will not usually be found on a vessel that you have just purchased for cruising on the river but they do give you peace of mind when you have to anchor in a new spot every day for 9 months or so.  When we decided in 2018 to cruise down to the Bahamas for the winter this was the first thing that I invested in.

A nylon anchor rode has both strength and elasticity which allows it to absorb the shocks from wave action on the boat that could cause an anchor to break free from the bottom. Some of that elasticity could be lost if you choose a nylon rope that is too thick for the size of the boat. Boats 20 to 25 feet should be using 3/8” line, 25 to 27 feet a 7/16” line, 28 to 32 feet a 1/2” line, and 33 to 36 a 9/16” line. Scope is the ratio between the depth of water plus height of the bow (where the anchor is attached) and the amount of rode (anchor rope) deployed. The ratio should be about 1 to 5 (for every 1 foot of depth you need 5 feet of anchor rope) up to 1 to 7. If there is high wind expected or the ground has poor holding you may need more scope like 1 to 10. Adding a length of chain equal to about half the length of the boat will greatly improve the holding power of the anchor by lowering the angle of pull on the anchor. An anchor with no chain will need a lot more scope to give the same holding effect. With more chain the ratio can be shorter as the chain will hold the anchor line down and keep the angle the anchor is pulled at low.

When setting the anchor, you need to be upwind of the spot you want the boat to sit by the amount of the rode you plan to let out. Come to a stop upwind and drop the anchor and let the wind drift the boat back. If the wind is not strong enough to get the anchor to set you can put the engine in reverse to drift back and to set it. Let out the anchor line until the amount of scope required is out, then secure the rode and let the anchor dig in and stop the boat. If you have not let out enough scope the anchor may skip across the bottom without grabbing. You will have to try again with more scope. Remember how much rode you have let out as this will affect how close you can be to other boats. If the wind changes and you swing around you have to have enough room that you don’t get too close to other anchored boats. Check that the anchor has set and you are not dragging. Now you can set anchor alarm if you have one and relax with a drink in hand. When raising the anchor if you are unable to lift the anchor off the bottom, pull the anchor line up as tight as you can so that it is vertical in the water. Cleat it down and then drive the boat forward with the engine. This in most cases will break the hold of the anchor to the bottom and the line will loosen allowing you to raise it the rest of the way.

Occasionally you will anchor in places that are known for a foul bottom.  What this means is that there is a good chance of hooking something on the bottom in a way that you can’t raise your anchor.    To prevent this you should tie a line on the forward end of the anchor that is approximately the depth of the water.  Tie a float on to the end.   This will not only mark the actual location of your anchor but serve as a means of getting your anchor unstuck.

Bow tie with stern anchor

There are a few places on the St. John river where tying your bow to tree (or an anchor on shore) and having a stern anchor out is a convenient way to anchor. It can allow a larger number of boats to raft together in a space that would otherwise have little room for everyone, like “The Hole in the wall” on Musquash Island or Foshay’s Creek above Colwell’s wharf, or allow you to be so close to shore that you can just step off the bow of your boat to get ashore like Atkinson’s beach in Douglas Harbour, Grand Point Bar, or “Florida Beach” on Grimross Island just above Gagetown. You can do this singlehanded but it is much easier with two people.

The easiest way to get started is to just pick someone who knows what they’re doing to be the first to tie up then just tie up to them. Yes,that would be the easiest but if you are the one doing it you’d best get the dinghy brought up to the bow of your boat first. Preferably with someone in it who has a long line, 100 feet will do, and who doesn’t mind getting their feet muddy. Have the line tied to the bow cleat and the remainder coiled in the dinghy. You will be at the helm and have a stern anchor ready. Find a tree that looks easy to access from the dinghy or at least a short muddy walk from the shore. Drop the stern anchor mid-creek (if you are in Foshay’s) and head straight to the tree onshore. Payout the stern anchor as you slowly head into shore and just before you think you will go aground tighten up the stern anchor and get the person in the dinghy to head ashore to loop the rope around the tree trunk and bring it back to the bow to tie.

Things to consider:

-Keep the bow far enough from the trees that your forestay doesn’t snag in the branches.

-By looping the line back from shore to the bow you will make departing much easier and your buddy won’t have to muddy their feet again.

-Tie a float at a point on the stern anchor line so that others will know there is a stern anchor out and at a point you think would be deep enough for a boat to easily go over the anchor line.

-As other boats tie up to you about every 3 rd or 4 th boat should be tied to a tree along the shore and have a stern anchor out.

-You should have spring lines in both directions because when the current changes direction the boats may be pulled differently in relation with each other.

Other Kinds of anchoring

There are other types of anchoring that we will be commenting on later like the Med moore and the Bahamian anchor method.