I've only been sailing for a couple of years and have never anchored, always gone back to a slip. I'm planning to take my newly restored/refitted Cal 34 to Catalina this year and would like to anchor in some of the smaller coves. I'm planning on a Bruce anchor with 70'of 3/8" chain along with 250' of rope. Any Cal 34 owners or other 34'/36' sailboat owners have any suggestions or comments on the size of the chain or type of anchor? Thanks.
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Thanks Ross, I'm not sure if your response is positive or negative. do you mean its too strong and will tear out your cleats, or the cleats will go before the chain breaks?
The cleats will go before the tackle fails
but you won't enjoy being on the boat if conditions get THAT bad. Make sure that the strong points on the boat are as strong as the ground tackle. That means large backing plates, and large cleats. I tie a 35 pound CQR with 3/8 chain and 5/8 nylon to a 6 inch mooring bit and a 12 inch cleat in tandem.
but you won't enjoy being on the boat if conditions get THAT bad. Make sure that the strong points on the boat are as strong as the ground tackle. That means large backing plates, and large cleats. I tie a 35 pound CQR with 3/8 chain and 5/8 nylon to a 6 inch mooring bit and a 12 inch cleat in tandem.
overkill
3/8 is great, 5/16 would be adequate. There really is no such thing as overkill in anchoring. It is more a function of how much you can pull up, meaning do you have a windlass, or are you the man-ual windlass? I used to pull 80ft. of 3/8 with 300' of 5/8 rode, quite a work out. There are some deep anchorages at the Isthmus. With 320 overall feet of anchor chain and rode, you can anchor in moderate conditions up to approximately 60 feet of water. The mooring buoys are a great way to get a good nights sleep.
3/8 is great, 5/16 would be adequate. There really is no such thing as overkill in anchoring. It is more a function of how much you can pull up, meaning do you have a windlass, or are you the man-ual windlass? I used to pull 80ft. of 3/8 with 300' of 5/8 rode, quite a work out. There are some deep anchorages at the Isthmus. With 320 overall feet of anchor chain and rode, you can anchor in moderate conditions up to approximately 60 feet of water. The mooring buoys are a great way to get a good nights sleep.
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