Can you anchor in 10ft of water?

[Dsanduril]

Originally Posted by Kettlewell

Try anchoring in 10 feet of water up in New Brunswick and you'll have a long walk to the water's edge at low tide.

Or conversely, if you anchored at low tide you might not even be anchored when high tide rolls around

[Bash]

Originally Posted by Kettlewell

I think the OP is asking how limited you would be if you could only anchor in water of 10 feet or less. In other words, apparently he plans on carrying only enough chain and line to safely anchor in 10 feet of water, for some reason.

That's the way I was reading it. If this be the case, I think we'd all recommend getting a bit more rode. Most cruisers are wanting 300' of chain on the primary rode, it seems to me. That's not because we like being heavy.

[Paperbird]

No problem in the Chesapeake either. Many, many creeks and bays with 10' or thereabouts depth. Coupled with an average tidal range of 1-2' and a soft mud bottom over most of the Bay makes it pretty easy.

[midnightmail]

Just wanted to correct my earlier claim that the tidal range in Passamaquoddy Bay is 40 feet. It's actually about 25 feet. Funny what a few years can do to the details of an anecdote.

[Kettlewell]

I hope the OP returns--I'm curious what he was trying to get at.

[cwyckham]

Originally Posted by nimblemotors

How limited in locations to visit and anchor would you be if 10ft was the maximum depth of water you could anchor in?
Asked another way, can you find 10ft of water to anchor in if you had to?

We're going to need some background on this one. What the heck are you asking and why? Your first mate is scared of deep water? You can't afford more than 50' of chain?

In these parts, you couldn't find very many places that shallow, and if you did, the 10' contour will be so close to shore you won't have any swing room.

[NCSailor]

Do it all the time. 5' draft, wind tides only. Neuse River & Pamlico Sound of NC.

[sww914]

Yes, you can anchor in 10' but you can't always anchor in 10. In Cabo, for instance, I dropped my anchor in 22'. The wind was blowing onshore and I let out 120 feet of rode, enough to compensate for the height of my bow roller plus a smidgen for good measure. After we drifted back we were in 18', no problem. The wind shifted after sunset to offshore. Our depth there was 95'.
If the anchor had dragged we would have drifted all the way to Tenacatita!

[Randyonr3]

I normally see 10feet, just before I feel the BUMP, anything below 30 makes me nervous.

[Kettlewell]

anything below 30 makes me nervous.

I'll take a wild guess that you don't sail here on the East Coast.

[nimblemotors]

Originally Posted by Kettlewell

I hope the OP returns--I'm curious what he was trying to get at.

Thanks for your interest. I understand it depends on where you are, but that was the question really, where or how often is 10ft of water difficult to find?

I've been contemplating an anchoring system that will work best at a max of 10ft of depth. Don't want to carry 400ft of rode is one of many reasons.
Tidal range is indeed a big issue if 10ft becomes 30ft, it would be a problem.

I don't plan on going further than the pacific coast of north america, but I would not want to limit my boat to just this area. btw, my cat has just 18in of draft.

JackB

[capngeo]

Originally Posted by RainDog

On the Gulf of Mexico, you would have a hard time finding a place with more than 10' of water to anchor in. Prob not so much in CA.

^^ +1^^^^

[Kettlewell]

Well, I think you have at least 6 or 7 feet of tide right in San Francisco Bay, for example, so if you draw say 3 feet you will need a minimum of ten feet of water in order to anchor just kissing the bottom at low tide. Let's guess you have a height of bow of 5 feet, that means you would need a length of 75 feet of rode in order to get 5:1 scope. Add another 5 feet in order to have some still onboard in order to connect it to something. I would guess you could live with 100 feet if you didn't go far and mostly anchored only in good weather. However, I would suggest you consider a minimum of 200 feet and probably 300 feet would be better. Again, depending on where you are headed, on a cat you might want to make that 100 feet of chain and 200 feet of line, meaning you could be on all chain rode in depths of up to 20 feet or so. Most Pacific cruisers like 300 feet of chain for those deep coral anchorages, but that is a lot of weight to carry in the bow of a 38-foot cat. Another option is to split the chain up into 100-foot lengths, only adding extra chain when you need it once you reach deeper coral anchorages--but don't wait until the last minute!

[islandplanet]

Jack,

As someone who has anchored along the North American coast from Puget Sound to tropical Mexico, I think it's a foolish plan to assume you'll always be able to anchor in 10 feet or less. There are times when you'll want to anchor in deeper water for reasons not related to safety. For instance if you anchor in the shallows of Matanchen Bay, you will be eaten alive by the bugs. You will miss out on some cool places if you can't anchor in more than 10 feet. For instance we anchored at Las Monas at Isla Isabella and while my logs aren't readily available, I think the prime spot was in about 20 or 30 feet.

Your multi-hull will swing differently than neighboring mono-hulls. If you're using a mostly rope rode, you will swing more than you would with chain. Keep in mind some anchorages will be crowded and you won't be warmly welcomed if you're swinging a much wider radius than other boats.

I'm not advocating an all chain rode by any means, but if you or your boat can't manage proper ground tackle, please stay in marinas. You'll want a reasonable amount of chain and you can use HT/G40 or G70 to keep weight to a minimum. I don't know what multi-hull you have but if I had something like an F-27 I'd probably carry 30-60 feet of chain plus 150 or more feet of 12 braid plait which is very light. Get a real anchor, not a toy. We had unforecast winds of 47 knots the same night the anchorage in La Cruz saw over 80 knots of wind.

If you figure out a way to keep your chain near the center of the boat, you can carry more of it without getting out of trim.

Your anchor is a safety device. I've had to anchor when the engine died and there was no wind. Current would have pushed us to shore.

Also consider what happens if you're running out of light while approaching an anchorage. Perhaps you'll want to anchor in deeper water until it's light. We've done that arriving somewhere like Los Frailes at night.

[maxingout]

One of the worst and most sleepless nights I have ever had was in the BVI in my Westsail 32 with only a couple of feet under the keel. When waves started coming into the anchorage, we bottomed out on the sea bed. We spent hours smashing sea urchins and whatever else was under our keel as each wave passed by. I was very glad that I was in my Westsail, and it stood up to the thumping without any damage. It was just noisy as the whole boat shuddered each time we hit the seabed with the keel. No rudder damage.

I am wary of anchoring with less than five feet under the keel at low water unless I am in a millpond without any fetch.