I was anchored for the fist time and it seemed that the boat was swinging 90 degrees while at anchor....I had 15 foot of chain and 40 foot of line out. Did I do something wrong? The other boats in the anchorage didn't seem to be moving as much.
excessive swing - to me at least
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How deep was the water? More scope reduces the swing. Rais a little main sail and strap it down tight on the centerline, too.
How deep was the water? More scope reduces the swing. Rais a little main sail and strap it down tight on the centerline, too.
excessive swing
Reef your jib, and put out more scope. Both will reduce swing. Last option...a stern anchor
Reef your jib, and put out more scope. Both will reduce swing. Last option...a stern anchor
Questions
Which boat are you sailing? How deep was the water? How fast the wind? Was there any tidal current in play? Boats with a high hull profile, especially forward, will "dance" more around the anchor, since this is really "sail" area at anchor. Fixes include an anchor harness, or a riding sail. In light winds, the boat may be swinging around the end of the chain rather than the anchor itself, but 15 feet of chain is the same solution I have, and a good one. David Lady Lillie
Which boat are you sailing? How deep was the water? How fast the wind? Was there any tidal current in play? Boats with a high hull profile, especially forward, will "dance" more around the anchor, since this is really "sail" area at anchor. Fixes include an anchor harness, or a riding sail. In light winds, the boat may be swinging around the end of the chain rather than the anchor itself, but 15 feet of chain is the same solution I have, and a good one. David Lady Lillie
You will always appear to move more.
It is mostly an illusion. You have a frame of reference on your vessel with the shore but none for the other vessels that are also swinging, but in a different cycle and speed. Viewed from shore or a dinghy, you will observe all single hook vessels swinging pretty much the same. Some hulls sail a bit better and so they swing a bit faster. How much they swing is determined by the length of the rode. Heavy displacement, full keel boats with a short all-chain rode won't move much or very fast. A riding sail works sort of like heaving to. The sail counteracts the sailing moment of the hull and quiets things down.
It is mostly an illusion. You have a frame of reference on your vessel with the shore but none for the other vessels that are also swinging, but in a different cycle and speed. Viewed from shore or a dinghy, you will observe all single hook vessels swinging pretty much the same. Some hulls sail a bit better and so they swing a bit faster. How much they swing is determined by the length of the rode. Heavy displacement, full keel boats with a short all-chain rode won't move much or very fast. A riding sail works sort of like heaving to. The sail counteracts the sailing moment of the hull and quiets things down.
Dancing boats
I have a Hunter 30 that dances around the mooring like a frisky horse. I believe it's the short fin keel and high freeboard that does it. I put up a small jib from a daysailer at the aft end of the boom and it slowed the swing down to about 50 degrees. Z
I have a Hunter 30 that dances around the mooring like a frisky horse. I believe it's the short fin keel and high freeboard that does it. I put up a small jib from a daysailer at the aft end of the boom and it slowed the swing down to about 50 degrees. Z
Another Trick
Another way to slow the swing is to put a bucket over the stern on a short line. The drag of the bucket slows everything down. When you're ready to go haul in the bucket.
Another way to slow the swing is to put a bucket over the stern on a short line. The drag of the bucket slows everything down. When you're ready to go haul in the bucket.
a misnomer
Here is my two cents after spending considerble time at anchor. "Sailing" at anchor is a misnomer since there is no sailing going on. When the rode goes slack, which it may do quite often depending on the wind conditions, the boat will move with the wind. I think that there is windage up foward from the mast (a fractional rig) which tends to move the bow downwind faster than the stern. The postion and type of keel probably offers resistance to the boat motion back aft which contributes to the bow swinging downwind. Eventually the rode goes taut which moves the boat in line with the wind. This process goes on and on. The scary thing is it will also happen in a thunderstorm since the wind won't be constant but will gust. The result is at times you are broadside to the wind blowing at 50 kts in a crowded anchorage. That isn't fun since when the rode suddenly goes taut you are pulling quit a bit on the anchor.
Here is my two cents after spending considerble time at anchor. "Sailing" at anchor is a misnomer since there is no sailing going on. When the rode goes slack, which it may do quite often depending on the wind conditions, the boat will move with the wind. I think that there is windage up foward from the mast (a fractional rig) which tends to move the bow downwind faster than the stern. The postion and type of keel probably offers resistance to the boat motion back aft which contributes to the bow swinging downwind. Eventually the rode goes taut which moves the boat in line with the wind. This process goes on and on. The scary thing is it will also happen in a thunderstorm since the wind won't be constant but will gust. The result is at times you are broadside to the wind blowing at 50 kts in a crowded anchorage. That isn't fun since when the rode suddenly goes taut you are pulling quit a bit on the anchor.
If your
rode feeds off one side of the boat, it could be unbalanced. If that distance is a couple of feet, use another line w/ rolling hitch around the rode to pull it in line w/ bow by pulling to the other side. (Form a VEE at bow). I hope this is comprehensible... Also, ensure your rudder is amid ship and locked or lashed! Marc
rode feeds off one side of the boat, it could be unbalanced. If that distance is a couple of feet, use another line w/ rolling hitch around the rode to pull it in line w/ bow by pulling to the other side. (Form a VEE at bow). I hope this is comprehensible... Also, ensure your rudder is amid ship and locked or lashed! Marc
two anchors usually work
But there is nothing wrong with swinging around. All boats are different. There were many boats at anchor last weekend and looking about few were pointing in the same direction. All tended to point Southwest into the wind most of the time. The weird stuff is where the wind and current work together. Couple of months ago while anchored near the mouth of Mobile bay the wind was Southeast and with a falling tide the boat pointed mostly SE. But when the tide started rising the keel wanted to line up with the current. So the anchor rode was running from the bow under the boat to the anchor and the boat was pointing Northwest. After a lot of worrying I went to sleep. Woke up next morning with the wind out of the east and the boat pointing east. It has been rare that the boat is pointing the same direction in the morning as when I go to sleep. Especially when there is no big system there is usually an onshore breeze when I go to sleep and an offshore breeze when I wake up.
But there is nothing wrong with swinging around. All boats are different. There were many boats at anchor last weekend and looking about few were pointing in the same direction. All tended to point Southwest into the wind most of the time. The weird stuff is where the wind and current work together. Couple of months ago while anchored near the mouth of Mobile bay the wind was Southeast and with a falling tide the boat pointed mostly SE. But when the tide started rising the keel wanted to line up with the current. So the anchor rode was running from the bow under the boat to the anchor and the boat was pointing Northwest. After a lot of worrying I went to sleep. Woke up next morning with the wind out of the east and the boat pointing east. It has been rare that the boat is pointing the same direction in the morning as when I go to sleep. Especially when there is no big system there is usually an onshore breeze when I go to sleep and an offshore breeze when I wake up.
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