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Boxing Day


Paul J
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Dont ask about my day!!!! past PJ as i crept past him, steering from a tiller arm and sat on the back of the boat trying to pick and choose the waves as the steering cable wasnt locating & headed out and anchored in 75ft of water on the slack. Listening on the radio as a couple of cod were landed on Stella, fish to 25lb+.

 

A bit of advice in the future is for me to pick and choose my crew!!!! I last boat fished with my best mate Tad 2 years ago on a charter session, where he spent the whole trip puking up!!! He had pestered me to take him out though and with the orders i gave him to take some Sea Legs, i agreed!!!

 

Anyway, down went the double cuttle baits along with the whiting rods with baited feathers!!!

 

10 mins in to the session, he informs me that he never bothered to take any sea legs, and that he was feeling rough. The next I know hes spewing last nights beer, yesterdays roast and this morning brekki all down the side of the boat, before falling asleep!!!!

 

after 30 mins, ive had enough of him and decide to head home as its no fun fishing with him next to me, so I try lift the anchore and its stuck fast, the cable ties arnt breaking either. Resulting in lost anchore and 100ft of warp!!!

 

Anyway, we did get a few small pout and whiting on the baited feathers and 6 or doggies on the double cuttle baits.

 

DT

 

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i didnt Kam, ive got plenty of spare warp and a few spare anchors and as i havnt planned a trip in a while as im moving, i decided to cut my losses....I glad i didnt try n moter it out to quickly. Nice and slowly but increasing the revs. Its the first time ive stuck the anchor and i can see how there could be saftey problems if you just caned the boat at full speed, especially if the anchor dont trip.....as im fairly new to boating, im trying to do everything as safe as possible.

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its all set up properly, alderny ring, large bouy, triangle, plenty of chain to counter balance the anchor, but i think when its stuck and the trip dosnt work then maybe there was just a chuncky snag down there. Ive bouyed the anchor lots of times since i was shown and have found it very easy, until u become stuck!!! lol

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Sorry Kam

 

Not sure that I agree with your advice about tying off at the Bow

 

Sounds a sure fired method of making sure that you have to have the warp under the hull and close to the prop to me, if the anchors stuck the boat will spin and sods law will make it spin the wrong way. a very fast spin could even jettison yourself or a crew member.

 

and it would be a very bad time for a man overboard.

 

The safe method is to shorten as much as possible to get the warp upright, and then use progressive power to try and snap the ties and trip it out. I would tie off at the stern but not use so much power as to swamp the boat.

 

If that doesn't work waiting for slack tide usually does.

 

In Dans case I am sure he made the right decision to lose an Anchor is better than losing a friend. I think I would have buoyed it off with a fender and gone back for it though.

 

At least all was done with safety in mind. well done

 

Charlie biggrin.gif

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Charlie,

 

Not sure I fancy the idea of tying off the rope to the stern of my Orkney. ( I have pulled the last bit of rope up on occasion using this method though )

 

I normally pull the anchor out with the rope tied to the bow but take the boat at 90 degrees for a short spell so as the anchor rope is being pulled in a slightly sideways motion. This way if the anchor is stuck and the boat spins , I know which way the boat will go.

 

 

 

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Dan

 

Maybe you need to use a smaller tie. When your anchor is holding all the tie does is keep your warp running in a line with the shaft of the anchor. Most of the holding is done by the anchor warp pulling on the bottom of your anchor.

 

Charlies advice is sound except that I would never tie off to the rear of my boat. If anything untoward happens and you are tied stern on into the tide which is the most dangerous position to be in a small boat especially if there is any sort of tide or sea running, you may well be swamped and sink. If anything goes wrong when tied off to the bow you at least know where your boat will end up.......back on anchor ready for you to try again. When steaming your anchor out the anchor warp will/should always be to one side of the boat so if you are pulled round you know which way you will be pulled (if that makes sense). Just take it easy and if ever in any doubt take off the power and allow your boat to return to anchor then try again. When this happens to me I switch off the engine and lift it out of harms way and allow the boat to return to anchor.

 

Here is the correct way to use a retrieval system anka yanka from one of our club sponsors

 

Martin

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Hi all

 

Still do not like tying the rope off at the bow and then motering over the warp.

 

I personally use the large springing cleat one my own boat, and my previous 18ft Dory with an OBM. but not all boats have a big enough cleat for this.

 

Tying off on the side cleat with the anchor jammed can be more dangerous than being stern too as it makes the boat list and lowers the freeboard,

The rope is not tied it is belayed around the cleat so it can be released even under full tension. [ and a knife is handy just in case]

 

Although my boat is bigger the power unit is not huge so occasionally when the anchor was stuck the boat has swung onto the very tight warp, releasing the warp and allowing it to run allows the boat to be turned and motored into the tide while the warp is again belayed off and another attempt is made to lift the anchor.

 

If it goes wrong again, I have even let all the warp go, There is a 9" buoy on the end that will not pass through the 8" alderney ring.

We then drift away and decide on the next plan.

 

Drift fish and await slack water is a good one

or brief the crew and motor up to the warp, lift it in with the boathook take in as much as possible then belay off and try again running into the tide

is another.

 

The main point must be never do anything that you are not confident of, always brief your crew on what you are going to try and do and have tel them what you are going to do if the plan does not work

and most importantly assess the risks and assess wether saving kit is worth the risk.

IT IS NOT if you are not 100% SURE YOU HAVE THE SKILL AND EXPERIANCE TO DO IT SAFELY

 

Be safe biggrin.gif

Charlie biggrin.gif

 

 

 

 

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interesting reading, i think i have got my own method that i am confident with, i have followed the advice that Bob F gave me in the summer and it seems ok. I have to agree with Martin though. Its only a small boat and the 2 large cable ties I use may of been a bit to strong. I am just dropping down to one on me next set up.

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Commiserations Dan....been there ..done that...bloody nightmare.!!..

Just for info, and in support of Charlies thoughts, Andy and I buckled the 1/4" stainless wings on either side of the bow roller on the Arvor trying to break out a wedged anchor over the bow. We always pull out on our stern corner cleat now,[its a good big one ,well re-enforced below deck].. However I can follow everyones thoughts on the matter with a lighter boat. GOOD LUCK to all in 2006. and thanks to all who have given their advice ;support;and sympathy to us learners in the last year ... jack

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Interesting thoughts from all.

 

A cautionary note from a good ol' buddy's experience, and one I took great heed of personally.

 

He always used a buoy/anchor (Alderney) system, which I presume he, for similar reasons to the above, used a stern bollard to tow the anchor and chain into the ring for winch or hand recovery. On one occasion, he had fished the first part of the ebb, back into a part of St Alban's Ledge, until the tide picked up. (33' wooden fisher 5+ tons)

 

Upping anchor started OK, having freed it from the bed, warp on stern bollard. Suddenly he had loss of power.

(you can see where this goes).

 

Drifting down tide he + one crew try to sort out the engine as they drift to the ledge when the anchor (which was only half in) drops on the ledge, immediately sticking in. This swings the boat from broadside on, to stern up-tide in seconds, right in the rip / over-fall zone.

 

Stern under and shipping water, the axe went through the warp ASAP but only just in time.

 

 

 

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Dan,

 

Sorry you had a poor day out and the crew wasnt great (poor Tad he's never going to have sea legs is he?)

Glad you chose safety first and you didnt take any unnecessary risks.

 

Oh yeah.....i was talking to Tad New Years Eve and whats this about you being sick aswell?......................

He said that you also got sea-sick, or was it just the pleasent aroma of Tad's mess.

 

Happy New Year all.

 

 

Dom

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