Select to expand quoteYara said..Ramona said..
How do you tell that the anchor is dragging from the feel of the chain?
Vibrations? Going slack?
The chain is tight, just resting your hand on the chain or rope you can feel the anchor ploughing [I'm a very sensitive person]. The other moored boats your slowly passing helps too. If it's vibrating there is a good chance your hooked in. I have spent many nights anchoring my old fishing vessel on a sandy bottom and a lot of time ensuring the anchor hooks in before getting my head down.
Select to expand quoteRamona said..Yara said..Ramona said..
How do you tell that the anchor is dragging from the feel of the chain?
Vibrations? Going slack?
The chain is tight, just resting your hand on the chain or rope you can feel the anchor ploughing [I'm a very sensitive person]. The other moored boats your slowly passing helps too. If it's vibrating there is a good chance your hooked in. I have spent many nights anchoring my old fishing vessel on a sandy bottom and a lot of time ensuring the anchor hooks in before getting my head down.
Great advice Ramona, thanks!
Come'on guys, don't make this tricky for us.
Ramona said..
"If it's vibrating there is a good chance your hooked in."
And Stockie said:
"From my experience, the chain or rode vibrates or shimmies." (when it is actually dragging).
..
..
Stockie, did you instead mean to say chain vibrating or "shimmies" when NOT dragging ?
(Also, what does "shimmies" mean ?)
Chain not likely to vibrate but rope on a mooring riser in current definitely vibrates. The intensity of vibrations will vary depending on length of the rope.
When you anchor and the anchor has hit the bottom and enough scope is out just rest your hand on it till your sure it has hooked up. Rocna, Spade , and Ultra it will be almost instantaneous. If your using a CQR and your vessel is pointing up your anchor rope it could be plowing. If like my mate yesterday afternoon who anchored his Cole 42 behind the reef at Geroa in a fresh NE wind with a CQR found the boat just drifted down wind sideways for a couple of hundred metres before it found the odd bit of rock on the sandy bottom. Lot of chain and rope, a scope about 20:1. He left a mate onboard with instructions on how to start the engine while he went off windsurfing! He has a SS spade anchor under construction too!
Knowing full well that despite my best efforts to prepare and plan, when i take my first trip north I could suffer multiple equipment failures, I am comforted by the idea that I can beach and eventually recover.
+1 for beachable cats 
