Best cruising East Coast of North America

[Reeve21]

Originally Posted by thomm225

Nice pic!

Rotated.

Thanks, that is like magic to me

[thomm225]

Originally Posted by Reeve21

Thanks, that is like magic to me

Thank you.

I was sort of pushed into being a half way tech nerd whether I liked it or not.

Had to pay off my car and boat as a teenager in the 1970's..

It is a nice picture though, and a good spot to anchor in the right conditions.

[Kettlewell]

Anchorage off the beach at Menemsha, August 2023. Plenty of room!

[Reeve21]

Another one from the area. Dingy dock, Cuttyhunk Harbor.

[thomm225]

Florida Gulf Coast Pensacola Pass from the Lighthouse on NAS Pensacola.

[thomm225]

Watching the squall that missed my anchorage by a few miles pass by.

Southern Chesapeake Bay near the York River Western Side.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=66n6MKOXQFM

[ranger58sb]

Originally Posted by Kettlewell

The Chesapeake is right up there too: thousands of interesting destinations, great for supplies, fuel, repairs, lots of other sailors, but it is too hot and humid in the summer, swimming is iffy because of stinging nettles, many anchorages feature iffy holding in stinky ooze, thunderstorms every afternoon, and lack of interesting terrain features.

How about you?

Originally Posted by malbert73

Re holding on the chesapeake- if you have a Spade or Rocna indeed the gooey mud can challenge them.
With my anchor (Mantus) I never sleep so well as anchored in a snug Chesapeake harbor.

We like the Chesapeake for our home cruising grounds, even in summer.

We've run up and down the ICW to/from Florida, and we've enjoyed places along there, too... to visit... but we prefer the Chesapeake for long term. Haven't been north yet, though, intending to do that maybe next year...

For holding, we've found a Danforth, Fortress, and SuperMAX all do well here in the ooze/slime/goop/soup...

And a Delta... not so much.

Trying a Vulcan as our main anchor, now, biggest/heaviest we could fit... but don't yet have enough time with it to judge. With a big Fortress as back-up, when I can get around to that (and a Danforth as backup, in the meantime.)

-Chris

[Kettlewell]

View from one of the old WWII bunkers looking southwest toward Sow and Pigs Reef, Cuttyhunk. Lots of nice trails on the island for walking.

[thomm225]

You guys must be having anchoring problems North of say Reedville on the Bay because the PO's 20 lb. CQR did fine since 2011 on this boat all over the Bay from Deep Creek (Eastern Shore of Virginia) south both Eastern and Western sides with winds to 35-35 knots.

Winds over 30 knots were during squalls.

Small fishing anchors seemed to always work on our small power boats as kids also.

I have a 25 lb. M1 Mantus now as my CQR was very worn and of course it always holds. It's about 19" across as compared to the 9" of the 20 lb. CQR and has a sharper entry point.

On the seaside though of the Eastern Shore, you sink to your knees in some spots in the marsh mud.

Not many sailboats chance getting through the inlets over there though South of say Chincoteague anyway..

[Kettlewell]

You guys must be having anchoring problems North of say Reedville on the Bay because the PO's 20 lb. CQR did fine since 2011 on this boat all over the Bay from Deep Creek (Eastern Shore of Virginia) south both Eastern and Western sides with winds to 35-35 knots.

I've anchored a lot all over the Chesapeake, and there are some places with very soupy, gelatinous mud that is quite deep before you get to thicker, better holding mud. I have found it is helpful to let a heavy anchor "soak" for awhile before backing down on it or else you sometimes just drag it along through the soupy mud near the surface. Frequently, I have had better luck getting a Fortress to dig in at first jerking it on short scope to get the flukes to penetrate, before doing a proper set on longer scope. One time when dragging a well-set CQR in a big blow up the Sassafras River we only stopped after deploying a smaller Fortress. In any case, it is good to hear the Mantus works well there. Southern New England holding is generally excellent in thick mud, or sandy mud, with the occasional spot with thick weed making it hard to anchor. It is often difficult to retrieve your anchor after a big blow since it is so well set.

Chesapeake Bay anchor test: https://fortressanchors.com//wp-cont...n_feb-2015.pdf

[thomm225]

With my anchors, I always used tons of scope since I'm usually the only boat anchored in a spot, or there are 2-3 other boats well spaced.

I'm talking 80'-130' in 6'-8' of water which probably saved my boat a few times at Kiptopeke when the wind turned to onshore at 25 knots plus after midnight, and I'm 60 yards off the beach.

With the M1 Mantus, I can now use much less scope if I have to anchor near other boats as I explore the Bay to the North and head South after I retire.

The PO had two sets of main anchors, chain, and rode and I only used the CQR and the old set until 2022 or so from 2011.

Now the M1 is attached to 300' of never used rode and a thicker chain and shackles without rust.

[ranger58sb]

Originally Posted by thomm225

You guys must be having anchoring problems North of say Reedville on the Bay because the PO's 20 lb. CQR did fine since 2011 on this boat all over the Bay from Deep Creek (Eastern Shore of Virginia) south both Eastern and Western sides with winds to 35-35 knots.

There's mud. and then there's mud.

In the former, many anchors, styles, weights will work.

In the latter -- really soft mud, aka soup, goo, ooze, slime... which will run through your fingers like maple syrup -- not so much.

As K says, in those, the anchor needs time to swim south, sometimes finds the first kind of mud (or not), so depth under the surface becomes a factor. No need to worry about Danforth/Fortress style anchors resetting with current/tide changes... 'cause the anchors may well be (hopefully) 10' below the seabed surface by then.

And then cleaning the anchor and rode, especially chain, as it comes back in can be a major chore.

The slime isn't everywhere, but generally we have to plan as if it is.

-Chris

[thomm225]

Originally Posted by ranger58sb

There's mud. and then there's mud.

In the former, many anchors, styles, weights will work.

In the latter -- really soft mud, aka soup, goo, ooze, slime... which will run through your fingers like maple syrup -- not so much.

As K says, in those, the anchor needs time to swim south, sometimes finds the first kind of mud (or not), so depth under the surface becomes a factor. No need to worry about Danforth/Fortress style anchors resetting with current/tide changes... 'cause the anchors may well be (hopefully) 10' below the seabed surface by then.

And then cleaning the anchor and rode, especially chain, as it comes back in can be a major chore.

The slime isn't everywhere, but generally we have to plan as if it is.

-Chris

Like I said, you guys must be having trouble North of Reedville since I have had no real problem anchoring in the Bay due to slimy mud which we call marsh mud.

It's quite bad on the seaside (of the Eastern Shore)

I started anchoring in the Bay at around 15 years old. Around 1970 or so.

As far as the marsh mud on the anchor, I usually clean that off with an old metal bucket the PO left on the boat. Located in kayak with line still attached.

As I sail away from an anchorage, I'll drop the bucket in repeatedly and rinse the anchor, chain, and rode which is on the foredeck is covered in black mud.

Photo is of low tide on the seaside. Just North of Wachapreague. Used to be a good clamming spot though. Barrier Island / Cedar Island in the background.

Photo of a dock in Wachapregue also.

Rinsed anchor still on deck after leaving Kiptopeke and headed back to Virginia Beach on a Sunday around noon. Wind is just coming up and building perfect for a return sail.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ejcp-rCYz3U

[ranger58sb]

If a dog can walk on it, its not what I'm describing.



-Chris

[thomm225]

Originally Posted by ranger58sb

If a dog can walk on it, its not what I'm describing.



-Chris

I know what you are describing. I thought maybe you'd get a hint from the color of the mud.

As I said, there are spots where you will sink up to your knees when you jump off your boat.

When you grow up along the Bay (and the ocean) in this area, you also hunt.

We used to be all over the marshes both Seaside and Bayside.

It's called local knowledge.

When we weren't hunting, we were fishing.

My high school was on a muddy creek. (Bayside)