Anchor markers........

thinwater · Jun 11, 2016

The problem is that other boats can run into them, tripping your anchor. Anchored boats can drift over them when the wind shifts.
Unless you are having major problems with fouling, they cause more trouble than they solve.

Stu Jackson · Jun 11, 2016

thinwater said:
they cause more trouble than they solve.

^^^^^^^^^^^^That.

Rookie nonsense.

Terry Cox · Jun 11, 2016

Anchored hundreds of times all over PNW waters through many years of cruising, have never used one and do not plan on it. Just my two cents worth. Some feel it is a good idea, perhaps so, but...

Rookie

Sailm8 · Jun 11, 2016

I tried one a few times. I had an old float and figured why not. It constantly got fouled either lowering or raising the anchor. Also idiots would motor over to see "What's that floating in the water"? IMHO it was a waste of time.

Head Sail · Jun 11, 2016

I rarely see them here in Puget Sound. Seems like in some of the more crowed anchorages, they would create an obsticle course and additional hazard. I think most crusining boaters check how their neighbors boats are anchored before dropping theirs but I'm sure there are the bozo's out there too.

Roland5048 · Jun 11, 2016

We have them on the two boats I captain for a charter company. The other captain insists on them. Personally, I think they are a hassle and a waste of time. They sometimes catch when deploying the anchor, get hung up when retrieving, foul the anchor at times and, people run into them when the anchorage is crowed with jetskis, power boats, nut cases not looking where they're going, etc. It's just another unnecessary thing to deal with.

rgranger · Jun 12, 2016

Now that we have established that anchor markers are bad... I recall reading a post years ago where someone was using a clear plastic jug as their anchor marker and putting one of those chemical glow sticks in the jug... a lit anchor marker. I've always wanted to try it but could not thing of a justifiable reason to....

Kings Gambit · Jun 12, 2016

NYSail said:
hello all,

Anchor markers seem to be a good idea but I don't see many people using them. See one product available that is self adjusting. What is the overall opinion.
Thanks!

The answer would depend on why one is being used. A) So you know where your anchor is. B) So other boat's skippers know where your anchor is. C) So to usurp or establish "territory" in the anchorage. I care less about whether or not another boat is (what I consider to be) too close to me, as long as we are likely to swing together and not "sail" into each other when yawing is out of phase, even if he's swinging over my ground tackle part of the time than I do if someone drops (or tries to) his anchor near or over my chain and might drag into it if the conditions changed much. A new guy might be able to see my anchor marker, but still drop on the chain if I have a lot out, and its been snaking around the bottom for a couple of nights, etc.

MattObjects · Jun 13, 2016

I keep an anchor marker aboard but only use it in two circumstances: when my boat is the primary anchor-point in a raft up so we can see where my anchor is should we decide to deploy an anchor from another boat, and when anchoring out with one particular other boat from my yacht club as the captain of that boat possesses some preternatural skill at dropping his anchor directly on top of mine every single time unless I have a marker deployed.

I use the Elastatether brand and like it quite a bit as it has a 6' line that can self-adjust to 32' (or up to 64' if you attach a second 6' line). The marker has reflective tape around it and I think you could jam a glow stick in the top if you wanted to.