swaying / sailing at anchor

[buckeye]

Just spent a night out here in the Panhandle. Strong gusty winds out of the east starting at 1AM.

Would very much like to find a solution to the boat sailing at anchor, the anchor line chafing on the bobstay, and all that working of the anchor.

I found this online which makes sense, is basically free and takes no space. Any comments?

"The problem with light displacement sailboats is that they want to sail. They will sail forward on the anchor line until the line pulls them head to wind then they will fall off and start the cycle over on the opposite tack. The trick is to keep them from tacking on the anchor line. Tie a rolling hitch ( see internet Knots) on the anchor line between the anchor and the bow cleat. A rolling hitch will adjust up or down on rope or chain but 10 FT. down from the cleat works well. Run this line to the aft cleat on the same side that the anchor line cleated. Slowly adjust this line until the boat sails up but doesn’t come head to wind and fall off. The principal is the same as Heaving To. Do not pull the line in until the boat is broadside to the wind this will put excessive strain on the anchor.

[buckeye]

Had a very nice weekend sail down here in Panama City Florida.
Anchored over by Tyndall AFB in winds 8-12mph in a pretty protected anchorage.

Anchored from the stern. Boat was rock steady all night.
Might not be ideal when facing a chop but in flat water that would be my preference going forward.

[jcrawf]

Hi - I'm going to be sailing my 3rd hand PocketShip this spring along the Intracoastal Waterway. Since it's been a few years, I'm curious if you've had any more insights into this?

[dbeck]

So far I just experienced seven overnights at anchor. 'Sailing at anchor' has not been a real issue. But all nights had been very calm.

Except one night with gusty wind, where I used my second anchor - 5kg folding grapnel - as an additional weight on the anchor rode to keep the rode down and to absorb shocks. Our bobstay is made of dyneema, charfing is not really an issue so far.

I prefer anchoring from the bow. Then, cockpit and companionway are better protected from the wind. And in case of rain, there is less need to insert both drop boards to keep the cabin dry.

In case of anchoring at a sport with restricted space, I might also try the idea from the first post.