Anchoring P-15

Bruce Hood (bhood@sunset.net)
Sat, 30 Oct 1999 14:07:05 -0700


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West Wight Potter Website at URL
http://www.lesbois.com/wwpotter/
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Dan, this is a case where local knowledge can really make a
difference..I'd
talk to local sailors, fishermen etc. and ask about the type of bottom,
for that is what has a lot to do with what kind of anchors work best.
For example: Sandy bottoms, or soft mud.. "Danforth" style folding
anchors work well... an 8 Lb. will hold a P-15 pretty well, and doesn't
take up much room, and if the winds won't be above 30kn or so, 100
ft. of 1/4 inch twisted nylon rode, and six feet of chain from anchor to

rode end works well. The length of chain will help the anchor drag
along the bottom and "Plough in" like its supposed to. If you go to
a marine store like E&B, or West Marine they often have good pamphlets
free which explain the types of anchors and sizes. For a second anchor,

a grapnel type with skinny sharp arms would be good for grassy bottoms,
or sand and rocks.. As I suggested, finding out what the local guys
use is helpful. Generally seven to one scope works well, that is if
the
water is six feet deep you want to have 42 feet of anchor line out, so
that it can droop in a gentle curve ( the catenary curve) to the bottom
and keep the pull on the anchor lateral rather than vertical. P-15's
are
light and with their fairly high freeboard, tend to sail around a lot on

their anchor, that is they will wander around, even though the anchor
stays put, as the wind shifts and then may bump into other boats which
will tend to lie nose to wind better than the P-15 will.
"Ready made" anchor lines are usually 3/8 inch and are much easier on
the hands than 1/4". Whichever size you choose, having an old pair
of strong leather gloves like gardening gloves, for pulling up the
anchor
is a good idea.. you can really get a grip and won't skin yourself up..
1/4" twisted nylon is strong enough in most circumstances for a P-15
and doesn't take up nearly so much room as 3/8'. Bundling anchor,
rode, and chain in a canvas shopping bag works well for keeping things
organized.. you can carefully flake down the rode into the bag so it
will
be easy to quickly deploy it when needed. A standard caution:
Don't forget to tie the anchor line to the boat before you put the
anchor
over the side!. On P-15's they actually anchor off the stern very
easily

and tend to hold transom to wind very naturally.. this avoids the need
to go climb forward, or you can anchor off the stern, then once set,
lead the line to the bow by pulling up some slack, moving forward
and cleating a hunk of the attached line to the bow cleat.. The West

Marine catalog has lots of good information about anchors and anchoring,

by the way.. and I bet your local library has tons of books on boating
with tips on anchoring. Something that will show you a lot about
how your anchor will work is just to take rode, chain, and anchor
down to the beach, wade into shallow water and drag it along a bit..
you'll soon get a sense of how and when it is really "set" and of course

this will be with the actual anchor you will be using..
Best of luck with your planned cruise..
Bruce Hood, P-15 "Aillte" sail no. 1246, since 1985