wandering at anchor

[tom clayton]

I wanted to know if when you guys are at anchor does your boat wander all over the place, and Is there a solution to making it not oscillate constantly. Our boat went back and forth all night long never settling down i was in 3 feet of water or so, with 25 feet of chain out and maybe 30 feet of rode, had to get up thru out the night to make sure we hadn't wandered or broke loose. the only thing that was good is that feeling the boat move from side to side let me know we were still anchored on something just gets a bit annoying. I tried dropping my center board about a foot to see if that might make a difference but it didnt seem to. let me know if any of you have the same situation and if you have any solutions thanks Tom.

[March]

We usually use two anchors, even when the wind is far from being strong. Deploy the first one at the bow, back up the boat until it reaches the end of the rode, drop the second one from the cockpit and find the happy medium. Another method: drop one anchor and take the boat as close to the shore as you can. Take a line to the shore and attach it there (I have one of those "corkscrew" thingies meant for attaching the dog) Use a thinner line--you don't need much to keep a boat in check

Now if there's wind, things are different. I usually try the "bridle" method (an additional line from the middle of the anchor rode attached to the cockpit, in order to create a triangle of ropes) That seems to help some.

I am planning to build a little triangular sail from an old tarp an attach it to the backstay--acting as a weathervane. Oh well, some day...

[Chinook]

This topic has received lots of attention here. Some drop a stern anchor down to reduce swinging. Another approach involves running a line between the bow and a stern cleat, and then securing the anchor line in an offset bridle configuration. Setting a stabilizing sail is also done by some. As far as lowering the board goes, I'm not sure about the M, but with the centerboard on the X, this doesn't work. It fits too loosely, and constantly clunks. The noise is very distracting when in the cabin, and probably not very good for the centerboard.

[Chinook]

I see that March has beaten me to the punch, with a good rundown on the various strategies.

[K9Kampers]

Well, March just took the words I was gonna type, so...another idea. If you were in just three feet of water, maybe shoulda just put the centerboard all the way down to plant the boat solid!

[Wind Chime]

Mac's are notorious for "Dancing on the Hook".
It's because of the high freeboard, light weight, and no lateral resistance under the waterline.

Here is what we have found to settle her down as much as possible.

1. Full ballast
2. Both rudders down
4. Engine down
5. As much keel down as possible before the knocking starts (we have the X, and the swing board knocks more than the centerboard)
6. Tie the anchor rode off-center. Tie it to the pulpit stanchion, instead of on center from the bow roller. This seems counter intuitive but it works. I learned this trick off this site)

We were at anchor for the last 2 weeks. There was another X near us that had no ballast, all boards and engine up, and tied off the center bow. They were all over the place with a small breeze and we were much more steady with our system.

Good luck!

Darry

[tom clayton]

Thanks, March i will give that a try, how are you guys doing wheres your next adventure going to be? Oh i think you wanted to know what it cost to ship my boat over here to HI. From LA it was 5600$ with Pasha shipping, matson wanted to charge 6800$, Tom. and thanks all,very good information. i did have full ballast but pulled the engine out worried about tide same with the rudders all up. Tied off to the bow i will give the off center a try next time out, Tom.

[fishheadbarandgrill]

Agree with Wind Chime. The more resistance in the water the better.

Bob

[ROAD Soldier]

Pictured is a riding sail. Run it facing one way at anchor on 26X Back Stay to the mast pointy end facing forward keeps your boat pointed into the wind. Use it another way for the main sail in really heavy winds pointy end facing aft. I believe it is a do it yourself make kit by Sail Right. Word of caution when using it at anchor around other boats and the wind is stronger than the incoming and outgoing tide all the boats around you will point and swing in one direction while you point were ever the wind is.

[Love MACs]

I saw an Anchor Sail in use for the first time, a couple weeks ago. It appeared to really work as the other boats around were really swinging, including mine. But it was used on a much bigger boat, a 40' Hunter I believe.


Allan

[Russ]

Glad to see you using the proper anchor scope. 3' of water, wow! Gotta love the Mac huh?

These boats like to sail on anchor. Works wonders on radio reception too.

I've seen people take the anchor line and tie it further back by the first lifeline stanchion. A good mod might be a cleat mounted in this location. This keeps the boat on the same "tack". I remember seeing a picture but I don't have much luck with the search function.


--Russ

[Laika 26X]

With regards to the “Anchor Riding Sail”:

Though I can’t speak from experience regarding just any MAC, I can speak for the .

I did not own one on my first , and in my shallow water anchorages, I got dizzy if I stared out of the port lights to the shore because we were spinning so fast! That necessitated the use of a stern anchor, which is not a wise practice in a crowded anchorage when you wanted to swing with your neighbors.

For a short period before I sold PROTEUS, I kept her on a mooring in ~25 ft water. I did what everyone here recommended with regards to rudders/centerboard. Since the rudders were always down, that required antifouling paint. To be honest I never/would never keep the motor lowered (personal rule). She still sailed all over the mooring

When I bought LAIKA, I was happily surprised to find her sail inventory included an Anchor Riding Sail, which I use with GREAT success! It’s easy to rig, and really works!



From the picture you can see where it hanks onto the backstay (just above the adjuster), the tack is attached to the port aft stanchion with a bungee, and hoisted with the main halyard. Notice, it’s not in line with the boats centerline, but angled to it. I was told on this board that’s the way it should be set. You can also see I’m in shallow water where the tide can get to 1 ½ ft. I can’t lower the rudders, and I have to keep the centerboard retracted.

It REALLY works as evidenced by my GPS. I keep that on all night for the anchor drag alarm. So when I transferred the data to Google Earth, I saw my swing arc go from 180 degrees to somewhat less than 40 degrees!

I’ll put it this way, if I ever lose it, I’d buy another in a heartbeat.

"Sub" Ed Tordahl
S/V LAIKA
USCG Auxiliary
Qualified Crew
Qualified Aids (Nav) Verifier
Qualified Public Education Instructor
NYS Qualified Safe Boating Instructor

[Gypsy]

Be careful about putting out a stern anchor at night !
A storm can blow up out of nowhere and your boat will be unable to turn her bow into it .
This can cause all sorts of bad things to happen , such as waves coming over the sides , and severe rolling . It can also cause the boat to drag her bow anchor.

[Russ]

From the picture you can see where it hanks onto the backstay (just above the adjuster), the tack is attached to the port aft stanchion with a bungee, and hoisted with the main halyard.

Some of us M owners don't have a backstay.

I'm sure it could be rigged up somehow though.

Also, wise advice about using stern anchors unattended. You don't want to be pinned down when the weather gets bad.



--Russ

[DaveB]

In a current up to 2 knots and not much wind or wind equals current I bring the rudders up just enough so they don't break the surface, also bring up engine half way. This I do in tidal areas in thin water.
Centerboard is all the way up as it will knock in waves from a beam. A partial down centerboard may foul the anchor rode when current reverses.
In open areas I would use a aft steading sail,attached to Topping lift (Backstay is off to starboard side on a MacX so not in center of boat) or in tight anchorages a Bahimian Moor .(two anchors set at bow,one forward,one aft,swing in your boat length)

Dave

Thanks, March i will give that a try, how are you guys doing wheres your next adventure going to be? Oh i think you wanted to know what it cost to ship my boat over here to HI. From LA it was 5600$ with Pasha shipping, matson wanted to charge 6800$, Tom. and thanks all,very good information. i did have full ballast but pulled the engine out worried about tide same with the rudders all up. Tied off to the bow i will give the off center a try next time out, Tom.