Boating Lifestyle

 Few activities can compare to being out on the water, zipping along enjoying the sunshine, watching the waves. One of the many benefits of boating is the flexibility and ability to enjoy a variety of activities. Say you’d like to stop and go swimming. Or fishing. Or just relax and take in the scenery in a quiet cove while enjoying a day off with your friends and family. That’s when anchoring can be fun. The truth is, the ability to anchor your boat securely is a necessary boating skill. Anchoring can help you control your boat in less than perfect weather and keep your boat secure.

Anchors are made to burrow into the lake bottom, and when the anchor is set right, the more your boat pulls on the anchor, the harder the anchor digs into the bottom, holding your boat where you want it. Choosing the right anchor has more to do with what’s under the water than the type of boat you have. For instance, some anchors work best in sandy bottoms, while others are made for grassy or muddy riverbeds.

To anchor your boat properly you’ll want to choose the right anchor for the conditions. Let’s look at some popular anchors and where to use them:

• Pivoting steel fluke anchors are made to work in mud and sand. These are perhaps the most common anchors available. The pivoting steel fluke anchor has two steel points that dig into the bottom.
• Plow anchors and Claw type anchors are similar to pivoting steel fluke anchors except the pointing part is stationary and hold your boat in rocks, weeds, and sand
• Grapnel Anchors look like a grapneling hook and are used with small boats when water conditions are very mild.
• Mushroom anchors do not have a lot of holding power and are generally used on skiffs, canoes, and inflatable boats • Land or Shoreline anchors are used when you want to secure a boat on the beach.

Of course, to talk about anchoring, you need to know a couple of key terms. The anchor “rode” is the line (line being the nautical term for rope) that attaches the anchor to the boat. “Scope” is the term for the amount of rode you have out when you’re anchoring

• An anchor rode is made up of a long length of line (nylon is a good choice because it’s strong, stretches under a load and lasts a long time), several feet of chain and a couple of shackles to fasten the line, chain and anchor together.

How do you know how much rode you need? A good rule of thumb is to have anchor rode equal to 5-8 times the depth of water. Use a 5 to 1 scope for daytime anchoring and an 8 to 1 scope when anchoring at night.

For example—Say you are in 10 feet water, you would want your anchor line to be between 50 and 80 feet long. Or if you are in 50 feet water, you would need anchor line between 250 and 400 feet long.

With a little pre-planning you’ll be set to enjoy another great day out on the water.