Beach anchor...what are you guys using?

[riding high]

As you will see I am no expert on anchoring ski's. However I have anchored a lot of watercraft in my days and here is the method I find most successful. The mistake that most people make when trying to anchor is that they use to short of a anchor rode (rope). You should use abut 10' of line for every foot of depth. So if your in three ft. of water you need to use approx 30' of line. The next mistake people generally make is not selecting the proper anchor. A good anchor that has claws to dig into the bottom would be preferable. And last but very important is to put a length of heavy, and I do mean heay, chain between your anchor and the rode. This will aid the anchor to hug the bottom as opposed to pulling on it in more of a vertical direction. If you are anchoring in a really rough water you can add a store bought shock absorber to your anchor rode to absorb some of the impact between the anchor and the ski. I know this sound like a lot of trouble but once you get it set up right it is your best chance of success. IMHO:thumbsup:

 

[Spimothy Leary]

i'm posting this anchor buddy just for the hell of it... and its ANIMATED !

however, for a pwc, frankly all you really need is a good amount of weight..or a screw, i think the need for more fancy alternatives comes with a boat, not a pwc.

 

[Hghgrad]

Very true. I'm going to pick up these at harbor freight when I get off work tonight. I can modify them as needed, since there's 4 for 20% of the sand shark.

I'll give these a whirl and see what happens next time I'm out and about. I wouldn't mind the sand bag also, as an alternative to having to screw in the stake for short beach stays. For an all day thing though, the stake seems like it will be the way to go, just have to make sure nobody is tripping over it.

The beach is pretty crowded on weekends, so I'd like to be able to either have it above water a little with a foam cover, or down even with the sand on the bottom. In reality, people shouldn't be anywhere near the skis while they're anchored...but they tend to swarm around them for some reason.

 

[Hghgrad]

Made it to harbor freight today and grabbed a set of those augers. I'm going to try one out tomorrow and see how it holds the ski. If it works, I'm going to build a sand shark type setup and have a nice extended handle so I won't drown myself trying to screw it in

 

[Hghgrad]

So, the dog anchor screw thing failed within an hour. It disappeared into the lake somewhere. Spent about an hour with 4 other people trying to find it so it wouldn't be a hazard...no luck. My guess is that it was pulled out completely and somebody picked it up and threw it away.

The HF auger tie down worked great with one ski, but was pulled out when the second ski was attached to the rear of the first. Going to take a second one with me this weekend.

 

[rjcress]

As you will see I am no expert on anchoring ski's. However I have anchored a lot of watercraft in my days and here is the method I find most successful. ...

I anchor my boat overnight quite a bit and had problems with it pulling the anchor and drifting (not good when Momma wakes up and says... "uh, honey. I thought we were anchored in that cove WAY over there when we went to sleep last night"
:willy_nilly:

What I've found works well is to follow the guidelines Riding High posted, but also to back into the anchor to be sure it is "set". Most folks I've seen just drop the anchor in the water and assume the the tines will dig in on their own. After I drop my anchor and pay out the right amount of rode, I tie it off on the bow cleat and put the boat in reverse for a second or two. Either the anchor grabs and the boat stops moving backwards, or the anchor doesn't, and I know I have to repeat the process.
I'm not talking about powering backwards... just engaging reverse for a second to get a little momentum... like maybe 0.5 kts.

To "un set" the anchor I leave the rode cleated at the bow and drive slowly over the anchor so that the anchor shaft is lifted vertical and the tines break loose from the bottom. Then I stop the boat and pull the anchor in.

I'm thinking that on a PWC I would use a variation same process. FWIW, I've only ever anchored a PWC using a 10# mushroom anchor and never done so where it was rough enough to pull that loose.

 

[Spimothy Leary]

correct, the mushroom's work fine, i think i posted that earlier in this thread...
it will work fine for 1 ski, but not for two (ask me how I know this lol)