Getting the Anchor Unstuck from the Lake Bottom

[Dave 205]

After a spring of poor weather, hassles with bad dealer paperwork that wouldn't allow me to get my boat registered, and my tow vehicle in the shop for three weeks after an Accord ended its life by catching the rear end in an intersection, we finally got our new boat out Friday and Saturday last weekend and had a great time.

We spent an hour or so anchored in about 5 feet of water, pretty good wind, and the bimimi up. The fluke style anchor did its job very well, and was lodged so hard in the lake bottom that I couldn't pull it up even with another adult's help. I ended up starting the boat, and pulled against the anchor a bit, the opposite of the pull the wind had been putting on the anchor. This did dislodge it, and it came up packed with probably some pretty rich earth.

Is this the normal approach to getting an anchor out of a lake bottom?

 

[annie]

Yep that's normal.... If you can't pull it up tie it off to a cleat and drive over the top until you feel it let go and then pull it up the rest of the way. I have had an anchor so stuck I couldn't free it using lots of power in reverse going in circles around the anchor. Gave up in the end, free dived as deep as I could, cut the rode and called it a bad day! I would love to know what I hooked up on. But $300 gone to Davies jones locker.

 

[blaster]

I will sometimes have to power the anchor out too but be careful. You could snap the line or worse end up like those football players down in the gulf. They tried to power the anchor out from the stern and capsized.

 

[MonacoMike]

You could snap the line or worse end up like those football players down in the gulf. They tried to power the anchor out from the stern and capsized.

Their problem was the stern pull! What a shame to die for it. MM

 

[chuck1]

Yep you did what has to be done. Side note. Not sure about what is on the bottom of your lakes, but I would also carry a mud/spade type anchor that you can use if there are many stumps/trees in your area.

 

[Henry Boyd]

You can also attach a line with a float to the hole at the front of the anchor (before deploying). If the anchor gets stuck, slack the rode off and go pick up the float. Because that line attaches at the front when you pull on it you will effectively back the 'tooth' of the anchor out from what ever it is stuck on.

Henry

 

[Dave 205]

Thanks for the tips and confirmation on my intuition on how to free the anchor was newbie's luck on doing it right. The capsize story is a reminder that as much fun as we can have, we are dealing with heavy and powerful equipment that has to be used right and respected. I may have to go back and look at the nylon anchor line the PO left for me. It was new in the package, and came with a nice anchor and chain, but seems relatively light weight. I did have everyone out of the bow before powering it out, in case the line snapped.