[Rhodes22-list] Stinking Anchor Line

[Bill Effros]

Mark,

I'm actually trying to get some work done today, so I have just skimmed 
what is going on here.  None of us really knows the best technique for 
mining the digests.  Luis seems to have learned more than anyone else.  
We are all curious.  The questions you are asking are useful to all.

As noted previously, I have not pulled together all of my anchoring 
observations from the past summer, and they are just dribbling out in 
response to specific questions.

The overview regarding stinking anchor line and chain is this:  chain is 
completely unnecessary on boats our size in waters where the bottom is 
sand/clay/mud..  The only thing you need chain for is the mechanical 
windlasses required to pull up anchors much larger than ours.  Others on 
the list will disagree with this, and we'll battle it out, I don't have 
the time to defend it now.

Your anchor rode should float.  It should never be on the bottom.  The 
anchor will sink to the bottom.  You pay out anchor rode faster than you 
float away from the spot where you initially drop anchor, so there is 
always some rode floating on top of the water.  When you see enough rode 
floating on top of the water, you snub the line.  The line pulls taut, 
and the wind, current, or your motor sets the anchor in the bottom.  If 
the line exiting the water forms roughly a 45 degree angle from the top 
of the water you have more than sufficient scope--that anchor won't drag 
provided only that the tines have been properly driven into the bottom.

Please note, in this process nothing touches the bottom except the 
anchor.  The line comes up wet, but completely clean, except for maybe a 
little seaweed, which you strip off.  The anchor may or may not clean 
itself while being hauled.  A few dunks is usually all that is required 
to clean it, but if not, put it in the sun, and the mud will dry and 
fall off.  A few dunks in water and it's clean as a whistle.

Neither the anchor nor the rode retains any smell at all.  The rode can 
be safely stored in the tray provided, and it's very handy to have it 
there when you are anchoring from the bow.  There is no chain, so it is 
never dirty, and never difficult to handle using the anchor line tray.  
There is no smell.  It's good to be able to air out the forward 
compartment to get rid of excess humidity caused by the drying anchor 
line.  Alternatively, the retrieved line can be stored in a container 
until dry, and then returned to the anchor tray compartment.

You will hear other views on this.  I'll get back to it when I can.

Bill Effros





mputnam1 at aol.com wrote:

>Mary Lou,
> 
>I'll be sailing on the Potomac in the DC area, so this is very helpful information ... thanks,
> 
>-Mark 
> 
>-----Original Message-----
>From: Mary Lou Troy <mltroy at verizon.net>
>To: The Rhodes 22 mail list <rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org>
>Sent: Wed, 11 Jan 2006 10:43:24 -0600 (CST)
>Subject: Re: Re: [Rhodes22-list] Luis please help Mark
>
>
>Mark,
>I was an early poster on this subject. We never used the rode tray in our boat 
>more because of past experience anchoring on the Chesapeake than because of 
>anyone else's experience. We did it more because I didn't like the IDEA of a wet 
>mucky rode in an open compartment in the v-berth rather than through specific 
>experience. In the Chesapeake the bottom is often mud and the anchor, chain and 
>even the lower part of the rode can get pretty muddy. That mud has all kinds of 
>vegetation, oil and other stuff embedded in it. The mesh bags we use to store 
>the anchors and the rode make it easy to keep the wet and the mud out of the 
>cabin. Sometimes they ride home with us in the cockpit and don't go back into 
>the lazarette until after they've been hosed off on the dock. We keep the boat 
>in a slip and have the luxury of a hose connection right by the boat. Your usage 
>and anchorages may be quite different.
>
>Mary Lou
>1991 R22  Fretless
>Ft. Washington, PA / Swan Creek, MD
>
>
>  
>
>>From: mputnam1 at aol.com
>>Date: Wed Jan 11 10:08:09 CST 2006
>>To: rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org
>>Subject: Re: [Rhodes22-list] Luis please help Mark
>>    
>>
>
>  
>
>>Ok, I'm trying.
>>
>>I was curious about the stinking anchor solutions, though.  That's all I was 
>>    
>>
>trying to ask about!
>  
>
>>Thanks for the advice.
>>
>>-Mark 
>>
>>-----Original Message-----
>>From: R22RumRunner at aol.com
>>To: rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org
>>Sent: Wed, 11 Jan 2006 10:54:01 EST
>>Subject: Re: [Rhodes22-list] Luis please help Mark
>>
>>
>>Mark,
>>Don't take Ed to seriously, nobody else does.
>>
>>Rummy
>>__________________________________________________
>>Use Rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org, Help? www.rhodes22.org/list
>>__________________________________________________
>>Use Rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org, Help? www.rhodes22.org/list
>>    
>>
>
>__________________________________________________
>Use Rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org, Help? www.rhodes22.org/list
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>  
>