Do I really need hundreds of feet of anchor line in 50' of water???

I'm reading up on boating and anchors. For something that seems simple it's a very complex issue.

Based on reading a properly anchored boat has a ratio between 1:5 to 1:7.
Calculated as such:
First value: Depth of water + distance from waterline to anchor line point.
Second Value: Length of the anchor line (I believe it's called a Rode).

Example:
Let's say my little boat is 2' from the gunnel to the waterline and I'm sitting in 50' of water.
Based on the guidance:
50' + 2' = 52'
52' * 5 = 260'
52' * 7 = 364'

So I need a Rode of between 260' and 364' to properly anchor????
The articles go on to say that adding a chain to the anchor and anchor type help to effectively shorten the "required" rode length.

sigh..thanks..
Jer

I always used the theory that I need maximum depth plus 25 feet of anchor rope and it's always worked out well for me. One should always bear in mind that with lots of anchor rope out you run a higher risk of submerging (swamping) the back end of the boat (especially a smaller boat) in high winds (that is) if you can't get it in or off the bottom fast enough. Also, keep a good sharp knife handy in case you have to make the sacrifice in emergency situations.

After looking at the Google answers I came up with the same approximately 300' of line which I think might be excessive. I think the formula most use is aimed at blue-water boats, but I could be wrong.

There is two things I do on any boat with an anchor. One is I use a jam cleat for my anchor line.

Jam Cleat

This is so if I need to jettison the anchor a simple tug UP on the line will free it from the boat. I don't want to be unwinding a line from a cleat when the line is under great pressure.

The other thing I do is tie a float to the boat end of the line so if I have to ditch the anchor I have a chance of going back when things calm down and retrieve my anchor.

This happened once to me in a kayak when something happened up-stream that put a WHOLE LOT of current where there had previously been just a gentle one. I had learned of jam-cleats when I learned to sail and saw the benefit of being able to unhook a line in a hurry and when the line is under pressure.

check out the Box Anchor The Box Anchor it claims to only need half the amount of rope to secure it.

Depends on conditions. Still water and no wind to little wind you can get away with less. High winds, tides, current will all add to length needed. I think those guides are a suggestion to mid levels of drag. And never never never never ever anchor tied to back of boat. Bad things happen quick and the transom is not designed to shed any water coming directly on it, the bow is designed for this, anchor off the bow always. If at all possible look into a boating course held by your local Coast Guard Auxillary. After completion you will gain your investment back in deduction of insurance premiums and will give great amounts of good, detailed seamanship.

I anchor to fish at night in 25 to 30 fow. Anchors at both bow and stern have 100' rope and it takes just about all of it to anchor in such a way that the boat is most stationary. I drop front anchor, put boat in reverse until 100' rope is fairly tight. Then drop rear anchor. Lastly pull front rope to about the 50' mark and tie off both ropes. With experience you can become very precise with this method and park your boat right over a brush pile, if you so choose. Even with the 50' of rope out and using good anchors and anchor chains, sometimes it won't hold in windy/rough water conditions.

To start off with, try using a "slip-ring" type fluke anchor. With this effective, light weight design, you can anchor just about anywhere and still get your anchor back. As far as line-out recommendations, I've never really worried about it. With either the 12' or the 16' boat, 100 yards of line/rope has always been more than enough for us. When the anchor touches down, I just let out about another 10 yards or so and tie off. If the boat moves (a rare occurance), I just let out a bit more. But 90% of the time, this just flat works for us.

Today an wally world the wife and I picked up a 10# slip ring fluke type anchor, 150' of three strand nylon 3/8 line and a galvanized chain (don't recall the size/length). so now we're saving up again. I still have the little mushroom anchor with 1/8 line that came with the boat.

I believe if I slot the top of a 5 gallon bucket the line, chain, and anchor will store in it nicely. I just need to figure out where/how to tie off the end of the line.

I also saw some quick line release type hardware like is on sailboats. I'm thinking that might be the trick to hold the line instead of using a cleat.. thoughts?

Oh and the plan with the small mushroom is to use it to anchor the stern. Odds are it won't get hung up and swamp the boat. Just a thought.
Jer

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Pomoxis

I also saw some quick line release type hardware like is on sailboats. I'm thinking that might be the trick to hold the line instead of using a cleat.. thoughts?

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The Jam Cleat I posted is only one type. It is the type I have on my boat. There is another smaller (but works as well) and I have this type on both ends of my canoe.

Smaller Plastic Jam Cleat

I think I got mine at Walmart but it has been a while ago so I am not sure.