Anchoring Problems

[Hot_tamale]

I fish Lake Winnebago quite often and if you are familiar with that body of water, you know that a light wind will create white caps and heavy wave action.

I use a Richter anchor and 5 times the depth for rope out, but i still find myself moving in heavy winds. yes i am setting the anchor correctly, but does anybody have other anchoring tips to try?

I use a 24 lb. anchor and i am moving.

I will be going there this weekend and it is suppose to be windy which means i will be all over the place unless i can find a solution quick.

thanks in advance.

[AaronM]

#1. Make SURE you use a chain with a Richter, 4-5 feet in front of the anchor that attaches to the line. I suspect this is your main problem and should solve it.

#2. Remember, anchors, like everything else, have a time and a place. The Richter is not the end all be all anchor and does have its limitations.

#3. Use NYLON as your anchor line as the stretch will help you hold.

[eyebjim]

I had many years of the same trouble til I got some help here with anchoring. This is the rig I use now. First the anchor is a waterspike anchor. This is one of those lightweight anchors with the long tines that dig in. I know I thought the same thing at first. The anchor is connected to 4 feet of heavy chain(plastic coated). The chain is then connected to 100 feet of 1/2 inch rope. I usually fish in 30 fow or less so 100 feet or rope is enough.

The chain keeps the anchor flat and allows it to dig in properly. It also acts as a buffer from the wave action so the chain is pulled up somewhat by a wave but it never pulls the anchor out.

I set up with this and headed to mille lacs in 20 mph winds that were going to be 30 mph later in the day. I anchored on a shallow reef with all the rope out and sat and caught fish after fish while everyone else left the lake cause it was too windy (continuous 3 footers with the occasional 4-5 thrown in). I was the last one out and still stayed for some time catching fish I would never have been able to before this setup.

Your setup will likely work with the addition of the chain. If not the water spike is a great anchor. By the way go with one size bigger than they say for your boat.

[Hot_tamale]

Guys, thanks for the quick response.

I do use 4 foot of heavy chain with the Richter and I do let a lot of line out as well. In 20 f.o.w. i would have about 100 ft of rope out.

I know the richter isn't the end to all problems (obviously). but i was cruisin' pretty fast and right through a spot where me and a buddy were pullin some nice eyes out of.

so after we wrecked that spot we moved elsewhere and had the same problem. We also had another anchor out as well as we were trying to keep the boat sideways so we could both have out 2 slip floats and jiggin over the side.

I could have turned the bow into the wind and possibly held, but then our baits, slip floats, jigs, etc would have been blowing into the same small area and we would need to keep reeling em in and recasting.

I want to keep my boat sideways in a high wind/wave situation.

I really dont want to buy another anchor as i have several in my garage now that dont work. i shouldnt say they dont work, but for the most part, i want an all around useful anchor, not one for every situation.

any other thoughts out there?

[eyebjim]

Ah. Sideways may be a problem. I use the center front hook on the boat for best staying power. If you need to go sideways and you already have the chain you may want to consider a (I forgot the name of it). Maybe someone can help if I describe it. It is a bungee like thing that attaches to your anchor rope on the boat side. It allows give and take of the bungee to help keep the anchor from ripping loose. If you use this with the chain it may help. Attaching the rope to the front hook of the boat and as low as you can get it on the rear may help also. Try not to connect the anchor rope on the gunnel. The lower the better.

[tunrevir]

You may also want to run up 100' from where you'd like to fish and then drop the anchor and drive in reverse untill the front anchor is set and drop you second anchor shortly after the first to let it get set in as well. A tie off the front cleat quartering slightly into the wind may lessen the drag and allow your anchor to stay put as well. Good luck, let us know what works out for you.

Tunrevir~

[dfv87]

I have a Guidemaster (similar to a richter but better... IMO)

Actually you don't want a chain, as the anchor needs to tip over to dig in. I actually took a 18" piece of a "Noodle" (that little kids use for swimming) and thredded it just above the anchor on the rope, tie a knot in the rope to hold it there. the bouancy of the noodle keeps the line at the top of the slide ring so when you angle the rope the anchor tips over on its side and the tines can then dig in. If the anchor doesn't tip over you are just dragging it on the bottom of the anchor witht he tines pointing up and it cannot grab anything.

[matthothand]

Try a bigger anchor. I see way too many people using an undersized anchor. I realize 24 lbs is a good size anchor but stepping up to a 30 isn't that much extra work. I could get by with less in my boat but I run a 30 and that's one less thing I have to worry about.

[Hot_tamale]

I think the problem with most folks and anchoring with things such as the richter anchor is you have to set it out on its side. if you drop it flat it may not tip and dig.

I did see elsewhere on this site about a product called a drop n stay. I went to the web site and they have these videos. it looks like a great idea. It is the shock cord set up that takes about 60% of the tension out of the line.

Have any of you used this product? I was thinking about buying one. The "deuce" looks like what i would want as i almost always have someone fishing with me and like to turn the boat sideways so there is more room for us to fish a wider area.

any reports for this product? I want to get one and if i get it shipped over night i could hopefully get one before saturday. It's supposed to be super windy and a cold front moving through. Perfect place to test it.

[harvey lee]

I used my new Digger anchor along with the Drop and stay this spring on the Mississippi when the water was running very fast.

The drop and stay takes that extra pull out of the anchor line so its not pulling on ones anchor to keep it from pulling loose.

Great set up.

[My_Key]

The drop and stay looks like a really good idea, and I was actually surprised that the price was reasonable

[deadeye]

Having the side into the wind would be my guess as to your problem. I can never keep my boat that way even with two anchors. Nose into the waves with a anchor off the front and a anchor off the rear is the only thing I have found to really work.

I suppose a heavier anchor wouldn't hurt either.

[PierBridge]

A water-spike and a bunch of rope is another good option for holding in high winds and current!

[reddog]

I recieved my Drop and Stay today. I hope I dont have to use it, but if I do, I'm looking foward to giving it a go!

[Hot_tamale]

I think i am going to buy one. In the video they are sideways.

I dont know how you all fish with two guys in the boat in heavy winds, but we put out 3 lines per guy and aiming the bow into the wind just leaves the back of the boat for tossing out slip floats which narrows the area you can cover where the boat sideways leaves a guy in front and a guy in the back spreading lines over a minimum of 16 foot and more.

so i just ordered one and hope i can get it here in time for fishing saturday morning. I'll keep you all posted on what i find.

thanks for your input.

[JimBuck]

I picked one up and finally got it on the water last weekend. They are sweet! I got the deuce for anchoring sideways and it works like a charm. My 16' shifts much less than it would with a traditional setup. Going Sturgeon fishing next week with 3 other guys in my boat so that should put it to the test.

[Hot_tamale]

JimBuck,

Exactly, when you have more than one guy in your boat, why would you want to all be cramped fishing with just one line straight down? You want to turn that boat sideways so that everyone can have some space and toss out multiple lines. if you use slip floats, they will be heading away from you and stay in the zone and not be drifting over your partners set up every 3 minutes.

I cant wait to get my drop and stay. The weather reports for this weekend are looking worse and worse. But I cant change my fishing days so i need this product to keep me on the fish. The heavy winds are going to keep my trolling boards in the boat so casting and anchoring are going to be the only viable methods for taking fish, well that and drifting maybe.

any other thoughts?

[Ed Carlson]

I have been using the Digger Anchors and the Drop-N-Stay system for several years now, and I agree they are the real deal.

They work very well as a team to hold in the toughest conditions to anchor in I have found on rivers and open water with big deck washing waves.

The other critical tip is try to keep at least a (5/1) 5' rope out to 1' water depth ratio on the anchor line...this is critical on most any anchor to hold well.

In rough seas, up to 12/1 ratio is advised by the USCG, but rarely required. So do not get the prospective angle to tight, or an anchor will skip and drag, and not function as designed.

[eyebjim]

The drop n stay is what I was thinking of that I could not remember the name. Between that, a chain, a good anchor and a boatload of rope I don't think you can get any better setup for anchoring.

[Supercrew]

I dont know how you all fish with two guys in the boat in heavy winds, but we put out 3 lines per guy

Mmmmmmmm? 3 lines? I must not understand the rules in Cheese State, but maybe you should only be allowed 1 guy per 16' boat. That solves your problem...

[SkunkedAgain]

I have 100' of rope and that works fine for my typical fishing situations. When you need more, do you all use a longer rope or just tie multiple lengths together?

[Hot_tamale]

Supercrew,

I just got my Drop-N-Stay today. Just in time cuz we are getting some nasty winds and I only have this weekend to fish so I need it. I'll let you know how it went.!!!

yes here in the cheese state, we can have 3 lines per guy. so what most of us do is toss out two slip floats and either jig or cast out some other kind of bait.

What is the rule in Favre stealing land? How many lines per guy?

By the way, has he said if he's returning this year or not?

[eyebjim]

By the way thanks for Farve!

Here in the land of 10,000 laws we can only use 1 line in summer and 2 in winter.

I sure hope the old man plays again this year.

Good luck with the drop and stay.

[Supercrew]

Hot Tamale,

We did not steal him, he was dumped by GB and swung a deal here...Remember he was Jet before he came here....(we almost reached the promised land). Anyway, 3 lines must be like a east asian firedrill if the fish are going. Why can't we at least fish 2 lines year round? Something is not right here, got any lake homes for sale in WI? So if you and a friend and his son go out in the boat there are 9 lines to work and your in a 16'er..... I think I would have a stroke since I would rather fish alone or with just one other (my son or wife) in a 16'er. Let us know how your drop-&-stay does. 3 lines, are there any fish left?

[chickeywing]

How about anchoring bow into the wind and using side planers?

TC