Remember, an anchor is one of your most vitally important safety devices. It stops and holds the boat when no other option is working. It should have been rigged when they lost the main sail, and the ability to sail in.
I once came upon a sailboater who had lost his engine in a narrow rock-bordered channel. He was slowly drifting toward the rocks screaming for help. Panicked crew. There was not sufficient room to maneuver to assist him. "Drop your anchor" I said. The look of astonishment on his face was telling. I called the fuel dock and asked for tow assist. I saw him later that day on the fuel dock changing filters. Asking how he had fared he told me that until I mentioned it he had never thought to simply drop his hook and stabilize the situation. Your ground tackle can save you, get to know it REAL well.
I once came upon a sailboater who had lost his engine in a narrow rock-bordered channel. He was slowly drifting toward the rocks screaming for help. Panicked crew. There was not sufficient room to maneuver to assist him. "Drop your anchor" I said. The look of astonishment on his face was telling. I called the fuel dock and asked for tow assist. I saw him later that day on the fuel dock changing filters. Asking how he had fared he told me that until I mentioned it he had never thought to simply drop his hook and stabilize the situation. Your ground tackle can save you, get to know it REAL well.
