Lost Anchor & fishing gear, great day out in the Solent

[Nick Hearne]

Originally Posted by jyasaki

How were you pulling to free the anchor?

If you motor up to where you dropped and it's snagged, you should put out a good deal of slack (at least as much slack as half the water depth - more is usually better), and motor on straight, then try pulling again so you're pulling opposite the direction the anchor is set. If that doesn't work, try pulling at 90degree angles to the direction it was set. Assuming you've got time (and inclination) the more directions you can pull, the more likely you are to break the set.

If it's really hung up, pulling harder straight up or in the direction it was set will result in a bent or broken anchor or a snapped rode.

I will say that occasionally you'll get a set that is very unlikely to be breakable from the surface. I've dove on and cleared two of my friends' hooks that were stuck, and bent one of my own. Mine had the flukes slipped under a thick piece of shale; one of my friends managed to drop the hook into a vertical slot that had an opening just barely large enough for it to fit, with the flukes stuck on an overhang - took a bit of fiddling to extract that one by hand.)


jky

Believe me I tried pulling from every angle and it was a little Bruce anchor so once hocked (probably under a cable!) I was stuffed! I nearly pulled the stern of the boat under. Small price to pay for a grate day out.

[jyasaki]

Originally Posted by Nick Hearne

Believe me I tried pulling from every angle and it was a little Bruce anchor so once hocked (probably under a cable!) I was stuffed! I nearly pulled the stern of the boat under. Small price to pay for a grate day out.

A lot of slack and a pull from the side *may* get the anchor to spin out from under a cable. Key there is a lot of slack, so you're not trying to lift the shank.

Then again, as I said, there are some sets that aren't going to come loose no matter what you do.


Glad the rest of the day went well.

jky

[Firstrib]

Very interesting, thanks