Lost Anchor near Varney Islands
 

Hello All,

Happy New Year. As I was thinking about the fun boating memories this past year, I remembered that I had to leave my Anchor after it got wedged under a boulder while anchored off the Varney Islands close to Harmony Is.

I was only in about 10 feet of water and it was getting late so I was not able to unscrew the Anchor Chain and Shackle. And of course I did not have a knife to cut the 150' of rope.

So... I made sure the rope sank to the bottom and made plans to return the next day with snorkel and fins. I was not able to get the anchor out from the rock, but with the help of my 12 year old daughter and a couple of noodles, I was able to unscrew the shackle, anchor chain and rope. We had to leave the anchor. My guess is someone with scuba equipment will be able to get the anchor with a little patience.

Question -
How often does this happen to people and are there any recommendations to keep it from happening?:cheers:

I have had it happen a couple of times.

I have been able to pull the line tight and tie it off to a cleat and pull it out with the boat power when hand power and the windlass wouldn't do it.

Go to Halibut Point, Rockport MA.

There you will find half a dozen anchors left by my family over the years.

This stopped happening when I started using an anchor with a loop shank and slide ring.

The boats I took there were all 19' and smaller.

I do not know if this type of anchor is suitible for larher boats.

If you return with a crow bar you might get it back.

Easy-Peasy...
 

'Happens to everybody.

:look:

What's worked for me was to attach the anchor line at the transom, put a few pounds of tension on the anchor line, and circle the anchor gently under power. Attach a float near the surface to detect when the anchor has started to loosen in the right direction. The float will also act to keep the anchor from slipping back into its watery niche. Reverse the circle's direction, and it should come out.

Don't try this method when wave/wake action is heavy. Using the necessary shorter anchor line, firmly secured to bottom boulders, your boat can "ship" a lot of unwanted water aboard! :eek:

Using too much power, or having an oversized boat pass by could bend the anchor—making for a very difficult straightening job.

There are some interesting gizmos to retrieve anchors—some are very easy to fabricate and assemble; however, since you can (hopefully) see your anchor underwater, I'd suggest the ApS™ circling method.

Trip Line
 

Back in the Dark Ages, we did most of our boating on the Ohio River. Often we anchored out overnight. Always, there was the chance that the flukes of the anchor would become lodged under a waterlogged branch or tree. We fastened a light line with a small float to the lower end of the anchor. If the anchor was "trapped" under an obstruction, a pull on this line would help to remove the anchor from under the naughty obstruction. ��

While snorkeling on the Lake in maybe 10' of water I came across a fairly large and expensive kedge anchor. Just by diving down I was able to free it and put it in the boat. I was amazed that whoever lost it couldn't have done what I did.

So, if that happens to you, try the suggestions written above and don't give up easily. It may not be that hard to free it.

It might have happened when the water was cooold like early spring or late fall and the owner decided it wasn’t worth the hassle.