Anchoring

Anchoring is very important to understand before you need to actually anchor. Please review the systems before you need to anchor.

The boat is equipped with a 35lb (15.91kg) CQR anchor. The CQR is the best all around anchor that you can buy. The anchor is attached to 225 feet (68.5M) of 8mm chain. Soon there will be a chain counter and remote switch installed at the helm.

When anchoring the rule of thumb to use is 5:1 scope (1.52m/.33m). For every foot (.33m) of depth you need 5 feet (1.52m) of chain. You can certainly set out more if you are not at risk of swinging into anyone. Remember to consider that the winds may shift during the night.

When dropping the anchor, motor to the spot you wish to drop the anchor. Stop all the momentum of the boat. Using the windlass down switch, lower the anchor. The windlass drops about 1.5 feet (.45m) per second. Do not motor around with the anchor dangling.

When the proper amount of chain has been dropped, the person at the windlass should point to the direction the chain goes. This enables the helmsman to back down straight on the chain and not drag it against the hulls. As the chain starts to go tight, put the transmission into neutral. Once the chain is tight, back down straight on the anchor with both engines (occasionally the chain will slip on the gypsy when it gets tight). In theory it should take about 6-12ft (3-4m) to bury the anchor. Check alignment with fixed objects on shore as well as the GPS to confirm you are not moving backwards.

Once you are satisfied the anchor is properly set, connect the bridle to the chain so the hook will be taking the load. The bridle is located under the doors on the walkway. Once the bridle is connected lower the chain so ALL the weight is supported by the bridle. You should have a loop at the boat end of the bridle. The bridle, lowers the angle of pull on the anchor and takes the stress off the windlass. Never anchor without the bridle. Once the Bridle is set, put both engines in reverse and make sure you are not moving backwards.

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When lowering the chain sometimes the chain can get tangled around itself and the windlass will stop and make a horrible noise. Just reach in to the anchor locker and adjust the chain. It will be obvious where the snag is.

When raising the anchor, open both doors on the walkway. Have the helmsman motor forward some. Never use the windlass to pull the boat to the anchor, it is not rated for that type of pull. Begin to bring in the chain, remove the bridle and rehang. The person at the windlass should use hand signals point out which direction the anchor chain is going so the helmsman can motor straight to the anchor. Once the anchor is up, retie the safety line to the windlass.

The best position to raise the anchor is sitting with the anchor locker open. Occasionally you must reach down into the anchor well and knock the pile of chain down. Often if the chain is not knocked down, it will be piled too high and does not feed into the hold. As a result you must lower the anchor a little to clear the jam.

This photos shows the chain starting to pile up.

The switches on the windlass are controlled by a metal contact under the rubber. After extended use, about every 6 months the contacts will come off. As a result you will have to wiggle your finger on the button to find the "sweet spot". Or worse case scenario you cannot use the switch. If you cannot use the switch, go inside to the main salon. Behind the cushions is the windlass breaker. You will see 3 wires going into the unit. Reversing the end ones with each other will allow the Up switch to be uses as Down and vise versa. This is a pain, but a whole lot easier than pulling up 225 feet of chain by hand. To drop the anchor you can release the windlass break, the windlass break is the 3 pointed knob on the end of the gypsy. If this is loosened the chain will free spin down. Never try to stop a free spinning chain by hand.

Soon a chain counter will be installed at the helm. Do not raise the anchor with the remote at the helm unless you have someone directing you to the angle of the chain/anchor.