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[Spawn Sack]

Hoping ya'll can help me sort out a few anchoring issues. The other day we took our boat out in the Fraser sturgeon fishing for the 1st time. It was awesome! But I had a few anchoring issues. Hoping for some advice. I should add that we bought the boat last fall and this was our first time anchoring out in the main flow. Last year we anchored up in various spots in the V canal with no issues. Boat is a Harbercraft Falcon 1625 with a 30lb fraser anchor (hand bomb set up) with 15 feet of 5/16 chain + 150 feet rope.

So we launched at Island22. 1st went immediate right from I-22 to that side channel by the saw mill. Got some tips from a staff member at Fred's where a few good holes are up there. Our anchoring "system" is I'm up in the bow on the anchor and the wife is on the throttle/steering wheel. I'm typically driving right up to the point where I decide where I want to drop anchor. I'll cruise around the spot a bit, look on the fish finder for any obvious obstructions on the bottom, when I'm happy with the depth etc we'll switch spots and I'll drop the anchor.

From what I've read/been told it is advisable for the driver to try and hold the boat on the spot until the anchor hits bottom. I'll shout out..."BOTTOM" then she knows to back of the throttle a bit and let the boat slowly drift down stream. From here I'll wait until the anchor bites and boat is not drifting, then I'll let out some more rope so out the anchor is not right under the bow. I was told this was advisable for 2 reasons: one is the extra rope out will result in not such a steep angle on the rope, which will help it bite in better. ?The other is the more gradual angle is desirable if a log or something gets hung up in your anchor line; it's not RIGHT in front of your boat, so you have more time and distance to react and decide what to do.

Our "system" worked fine on a few spots, but on others the anchor would not bite, and instead just dragged along bottom. I'm not sure if the water was just too fast for the weight of our anchor? Or maybe I can do something better? I'm a little unsure if I should let the anchor bite down with just the length of chain+rope it took to hit bottom, and THEN let out extra rope, or, if I should start immediately start letting out extra rope when the anchor hits bottom, and let it bite once all the extra rope is out? I think that makes sense?

So yes the first issues was getting the anchor to bite and hold without drifting down the river off the spot I wanted to anchor on top of. The 2nd issue was the damn anchor got stuck a few times!! Does this happen often? Or is it likely that since we were dragging anchor a bit, we were just asking to get hung up on something? I imagine if I sort out the 1st problem I'm less likely to encounter the 2nd problem?

So anyway, when we go to pull the anchor the wife drives until the bow roller is basically straight over the anchor, then tension is out of the line, then I start to haul it in. When it was stuck a few times I tied off to the cleat on the bow, had the rope going out of the bow roller still like I was anchored, then s-l-o-w-l-y powered forward until the anchor broke loose. We have the type of anchor with the bar on top so the shackle can slide along it and pull the anchor out "backwards" if needed.

I wondered afterwards if it is better to be trying to pull it out this way with all the slack rope pulled in and the boat tight over the anchor, or, if it would have been better to use the extra rope that was already out and use this extra length as an advantage, as there would be a lesser angle on the anchor, trying to get that shackle to slide to the other end.

Put differently, is it "better" to just start your boat up, not do anything with the anchor yet, drive over it and past get to get it to release from the bottom, or if you find it is stuck use the extra length of rope that is already out to get a better/easier angle on pulling the anchor out backwards?

Lastly, I wonder, do you always try to free a stuck anchor pulling with the rope attached to the bow? Or do you ever move the rope to the stern? I contemplated tying off on the stern, but this seemed like a lot of extra arsing around. However, I was not the most safe feeling pulling with the anchor on the bow, having the bow drop a bit as the tension on the rope increased, then suddenly pop/jar as the anchor broke loose.

Any tips of getting your anchor to bite without drifting downstream and how to best deal with a hung up anchor would be much appreciated!

[Chromie]

for your anchor you will need more chain for it to bite more. Also some anchors are better then others on the angle of claws.

To get it unstuck i always use the bow and if need be let some line out 5 -10 feet then power up.

Cheers Chromie

[salmonlander]

never ever tie off to the stern of your boat. Let out lots of rope before you pull upstream, it gets a proper angle that way. Get yourself a scotchman ball and a slider to pull with.

[Spawn Sack]

for your anchor you will need more chain for it to bite more. Also some anchors are better then others on the angle of claws.

To get it unstuck i always use the bow and if need be let some line out 5 -10 feet then power up.

Cheers Chromie

Interesting. Respectfully, before I bought the anchor + chain + rope I asked around at a few places that sell/built boats and was advised to buy what I bought (30lb anchor, 15 feet chain, 150 feet rope). Actually I was told that 1/4 inch chain was enough but I decided to go with 5/16 for a bit more weight on the bottom.

Now, I get what you are saying...if it were enough, then it would be working! However, I suspect there is a better way I can the set up to bite down better without drifting. Or maybe not. Maybe I should add more chain. It would be easy enough to add more 5/16 chain with a 5/16 shackle. In fact I think I have another 10 or so feet I could add. The only down side is the anchor + chain is already heavy enough for my liking. Yeah, I could handle more weight, but if I can use what I have better, and make it work, that would be ideal. I'm all for working smarter - not harder!

[Spawn Sack]

never ever tie off to the stern of your boat. Let out lots of rope before you pull upstream, it gets a proper angle that way. Get yourself a scotchman ball and a slider to pull with.

Why is it so bad to tie off to your stern? I didn't, but I'm wondering why it is such a bad idea?

I now get the concept of more rope out = better angle to un-snag that anchor. Duh! I didn't think of that one the river...

I have a scotchman ball. I forget what size, it's big. I bought it from Cascade and was advised it would float my anchor + chain no problem.

Does the slider offer any additional advantage for un-snagging an anchor?

If it does not, honestly I don't really mind pulling it in by hand. I've seen u-tube vids of the anchor/prawn trap things that work with your scotchman. I thought, yeah, kinda cool, but I typically want to pull my anchor up right where I'm anchored...not power off, wait for the scotchman to signal that it's ready by going under a bit if I remember correctly, then drive back and pull in my line. I can see this working great in the ocean and so on...but in the Fraser esp with other boats in close proximity during salmon season, I just want to pull it up where I'm fishing.

Might be a cool thing to have on board to use once in a while say if fishing a deep hole with 100+ feet of rope out?

If anyone has any more tips on getting your anchor to bite without drifting/dragging, and how to best un-snag it I'm all ears.

Thanks for tips so far I've already learned something.

[HOOK]

your anchor only being 30lb isn't helping you. everyone I've ever been on the Fraser with has had 40lb anchors plus the same approximate lengths of chain you started. They sucked to pull in by hand !!!!

[GordJ]

Why is it so bad to tie off to your stern? I didn't, but I'm wondering why it is such a bad idea?

I now get the concept of more rope out = better angle to un-snag that anchor. Duh! I didn't think of that one the river...

I have a scotchman ball. I forget what size, it's big. I bought it from Cascade and was advised it would float my anchor + chain no problem.

Does the slider offer any additional advantage for un-snagging an anchor?

If it does not, honestly I don't really mind pulling it in by hand. I've seen u-tube vids of the anchor/prawn trap things that work with your scotchman. I thought, yeah, kinda cool, but I typically want to pull my anchor up right where I'm anchored...not power off, wait for the scotchman to signal that it's ready by going under a bit if I remember correctly, then drive back and pull in my line. I can see this working great in the ocean and so on...but in the Fraser esp with other boats in close proximity during salmon season, I just want to pull it up where I'm fishing.

Might be a cool thing to have on board to use once in a while say if fishing a deep hole with 100+ feet of rope out?

If anyone has any more tips on getting your anchor to bite without drifting/dragging, and how to best un-snag it I'm all ears.

Thanks for tips so far I've already learned something.

Never, ever tie off to your stern in current. It takes about 15 sec.s for the current to pull the back end of the boat under water and that big ol' river finds it a challenge to fill up the boat as quickly as possible. This is from experience not theory. The only way to pull from the back end is with someone holding the rope on a cleat. No knot.
Your cleats are on the top of the gunwales and the rope is on the bottom of the river, the more tension the more the rope wants to go down. I have had the nose of the boat under water trying to release an anchor and as soon as you back off the throttle the line slackens and the nose comes up.

[firstlight]

Do not power up when anchoring.
Throw the anchor over and let the boat drift back until it catches.
As already said,NEVER tie off to the stern of the boat unless you want to become a submarine.
Lifting the anchor sounds right the way you are doing it.
Be prepared to lose an anchor here and there when fishing the Fraser.

[Spawn Sack]

your anchor only being 30lb isn't helping you. everyone I've ever been on the Fraser with has had 40lb anchors plus the same approximate lengths of chain you started. They sucked to pull in by hand !!!!

Alright...but both Venture Riverboats and Cascade in Chilliwack recommended a 30lb for my boat + the chain (well, 1/4 thickness was recommended and I went 5/16) I have attached to it. We are only rolling in a 16 foot boat. However it is possible the drag on a bigger boat isn't much more.

If I were to lose this anchor I would consider going heavier the next time around.

It should be noted that some of the water we were trying to anchor in was a little on the fast side IMO. The anchor lays down and bites in no problem in slower water. And in most attempts fishing a few days ago we did get the anchor to dig in where we wanted to fish, we just drifted off the spot I wanted to be on top of which kind of cheesed me off. I'd say on average we drifted maybe...I dunno 15-30 feet? I don't recall exactly.

I don't have a huge issue with dragging a bit before the anchor digs in and holds, although I'd like to minimize this as much as possible.

I do really appreciate the tips and explanation on why to never pull your anchor out from the stern! Glad I learned that here, than the hard way on the river.

The next time my anchor gets hung up I'll make sure to leave a bit of slack in the rope before I try and pop it out, instead of starting with no slack in the rope and right over top of the anchor. Whoops!

[Noahs Arc]

Sometimes the anchor just doesn't grab. It happens. Like first light said let the boat drift back and it'll set. If it doesn't pick it up and try again. I think 30lb is fine for your size boat.

[canso]

Let out more rope

[Spawn Sack]

Thanks a lot guys. I just want to make sure I am understanding everything properly so here's a summary in my own words.

Dropping anchor: driver holding the boat over the spot, drop the anchor until it hits bottom. Driver still holding the boat stationary. I feed out some more rope, I think the guideline is 2-3 times the depth of the water? So say we are in 20 feet of water, the anchor is now on bottom, I might guesstimate feeding out another 20-30 feet of rope. Driver still holding the boat stationary. Now I would tie off on the cleat, and signal the driver to let off the throttle and let the boat drift downstream. As the slack in the rope straightens out, the anchor will drag a bit, and hopefully bites down quickly. If this fails pull the anchor up and try again. Perhaps move towards shore a bit more out of the faster water. 

Pulling anchor: I'm in the bow, driver slowly pulls forward until we are right over the anchor. I pull in the slack and then give the anchor a good yank and hopefully it releases from the bowels of the river. If it's evident that it's stuck, I'll let out some rope and signal the driver to back off the throttle and let the boat drift back a bit. Now, with slowly power upstream, over and past the anchor, and hope it pops out.

If it does not pop out the 1st time, I would back off and try again at a different angle. say 45 degrees to the left, then 45 degrees to the right, etc.

If it really is not going to release, I guess cut the anchor line and cut your losses?

[Easywater]

Your latest description sounds good.

You should have a break-away connection (zap straps) at the end of the anchor.

If the anchor gets stuck, the connection will come apart and you can more easily pull the anchor up by the "permanent" connection at the heel of the anchor.

[Spawn Sack]

Our boat has the slide bar or whatever it's called. The shackle slides up to the head of the anchor and pulls it out backwards. When I bought the anchor I heard some ppl says the zap-strap style was better (releases easier) than the slide bar style, but you need to dick around with zap straps each time you bust one. Others said nah, the slide bar typ4e is just as good, and you never need to dick around with zap straps.

When I bought the anchor the only kind they had in stock was the slide bar type, so I went with that style.

[Noahs Arc]

That's the better style anchor for sure. It's more the old school anchors that guys have or the home made ones (like mine) where you zip tie the line to the anchor.