Double Anchors

Double Anchors

Thursday 14th January 2021

The anchorage on the west side of Boot Key, Marathon is pretty good with winds from north through east. However, it is completely open to the south and west. There is cold front expected to pass through the area which will bring west then fairly strong north-west winds and with little or no protection from these directions seas will build up and the anchorage will be at best uncomfortable and possible dangerous. It was always our intention to try and get inside the inner harbor but we didn’t want to try this yesterday afternoon at dead low tide and so waited until this morning.  From prior phone call we already knew that all 225 of their moorings were occupied and unlikely to become available. Winter is peak season for this Florida Keys destination and many boaters come here and stay for several months. We did not have high hopes of finding space to anchor but at 8 am we called the harbor master on the radio and he told us there were 15 fewer boats anchored in the designated area than there were last year and he thought there would be room, but he also advised us to use two anchors to reduce the length of chain and swinging room required. We pulled up our anchor and motored down the entrance channel, through the now dismantled bascule bridge and into the inner harbor. We soon located a small area with 10-foot deep water, nestled between several boats and dropped our anchor with 50 feet of chain. Radar was again invaluable in allowing us to map out the neighboring boats on the chart-plotter and measure distances.  Once things settled we felt comfortable that we would swing clear of all other boats.  After a hearty breakfast of bacon and eggs we set to the task of deploying a second anchor. 

We carry an aluminum Fortress anchor that is easily assembled from 5 components by tightening just two bolts. We have about 30 feet of chain and 150 feet of nylon line ready to deploy with this secondary anchor. We started the motor and drove Cotinga forward so that we could drop the second anchor about 20 feet to the left of the main anchor. We were then able to back down and set the Fortress anchor and then balance the tension on the two anchor lines (one all chain and one mostly rope). We were happy with the outcome and pretty pleased with ourselves because deploying a second anchor is something we have only done once or twice before and it went really smoothly. Now we have two anchors set, each with 50 feet of line out (which is less than the minimum we would normally use) and that should hold us solidly through the expected 20 knots of wind at the weekend. We are very happy to be here!

Later in the morning we registered at the marina and got lots of information on how things are run. For a harbor that has maybe 300 boats on moorings and at anchor it's a very efficiently run operation. There is also a cruisers radio-net at 9am every morning to share information. It reminds us a bit of Georgetown in the Bahamas. 

Later, whilst walking around town we found a fresh fish market and bought some grouper. Tonight we had grouper, sautéed in butter and lemon with Spanish rice and avocado and tomato salad. It was easy to make and tasted amazing!

Mike

24 42.220 N, 81 06.131 W

The anchorage on the west side of Boot Key as the sun rises peaks through the clouds

Pelican portrait

Two shots of my next birthday present - Corvette in B&W

Corvette - color negative

Sauteed grouper in lemon butter with a touch of smoked paprika, served with homemade Spanish rice and tomato / avocado salad