And guaranteed not to drag
Issue 79: July/Aug 2011
Every sailor knows the price of gear goes up exponentially with size. Interestingly, this appears to be completely untrue once an anchor gets above a certain weight. In fact, in our wanderings we have discovered tons of anchors lying around free for the taking! Knowing the price of a large anchor and the sound sleep that comes with knowing you have secure ground tackle, my wife, Nicole, has been inspired to take advantage of these amazing deals.
It appears that some towns are so desperate to get rid of their free anchors they attempt to lure takers with nice paint jobs. The anchor in beautiful white is available in Port Townsend, Washington. Don’t wait too long. This one looks like a steal.
The biggest free anchor we’ve found so far was right in downtown Seattle. This one even included a rare swivel. But you have to look closely at the photo to see the defect. Even though it was above her head, Nicole fortunately noticed the bent fluke before taking it to the boat, as this would have severely reduced its ability to set. So beware, sometimes with free anchors, you get what you pay for.
Nobody else seemed interested in the free anchor in Poulsbo, Washington, so Nicole gave it a tug, trying to get it back to the boat. I would have been happy just to have that shackle for the mainsail halyard, but unfortunately we couldn’t free the pin.
We even found an anchor right outside our marina in Ballard, Washington. This one, although a little rusty, had 80 feet of chain rode attached. Free! You would certainly sleep well knowing the working load of your rode was many times the weight of your entire boat.
As we began discovering free anchors around our cruising area, we learned that getting one back to the boat can be difficult. By the time we came across the one among the boulders in Seattle, Nicole had learned an important secret: you have to lift with your legs!
We found the stern anchor outside the NOAA building in Seattle. Perhaps this one wasn’t as free as we thought, however. We discovered one evening that NOAA has armed security. Lesson learned: always verify the freeness of an anchor, especially at night.
Aaron and Nicole Maraschky are out cruising aboard their 1983 Hans Christian 33, Bella Star. Read more about their adventures and escapades on their website, www.svbellastar.com.
Thank you to Sailrite Enterprises, Inc., for providing free access to back issues of Good Old Boat through intellectual property rights. Sailrite.com
