Anchors Away!

We have a new anchor!

Friends that aren’t sailors are often puzzled by the idea of anchoring. How can a hook in the bottom hold a boat safely? They wonder what might happen if the wind blows hard or if it changes direction. The fact is that a good, well-designed anchor will hold a boat very well through high winds and will reset itself if the wind changes direction.

How well an anchor holds isn’t just about its size. Generally heavier is better but a modern anchor gets much of its holding power from its design. Cambria’s anchor was not a modern design and it was not very heavy either so we’ve replaced it.

Many years ago some friends bought a microwave for their kitchen and ended up remodelling the entire space so the new microwave fit into the kitchen. Our new anchor is a bit like that.

Our new anchor is a Rocna Vulcan. Its design is very different from the old anchor. The Vulcan’s shank is curved and larger than our old anchor. This means that when we anchor, it will dig into the bottom quickly and deeply but it also means that it doesn’t fit well on the bow of our boat. That’s where Blackline Marine comes in. Blackline has modified the bow roller so that the new anchor sits securely on Cambria’s bow.

Choosing an anchor isn’t easy. There are many anchors on the market. Boaters tend to be an opinionated bunch and when it comes to anchors this is especially true. Sorting through these opinions can be quite daunting. Thankfully Steve Goodwin on SV Panope does detailed testing and our Vulcan tested well.

Our anchor is securely on the boat. We haven’t tried it yet but we’re looking forward to testing it out over the next few weeks.