We pulled off the ICW by the Atlantic Blvd Bridge and were delighted to see M/V Egret, a boat we’d anchored and moored near a few other times, just finishing up on deck after anchoring. This spot is deep and narrow with a ripping current, and just for fun we had a stiff NW breeze as well. So we had to have lots of scope out for the depth, but not too much because of the limits on swing room, and we had to worry about wrapping the chain around the keel when the tide was against the current. Setting the hook in those conditions can be a challenge, too, and of course the wind and current were against each other when we dropped the hook. We dropped, set, snubbed, monitored, and set the anchor alarm.
We were down by the southern pink anchor mark.
So what’s the problem? Around 2200 the Skipper was monitoring our “track” on the plotter and saw indications of us dragging. As best we can tell, the anchor had set in the deep hole near where we tried to set it. Tide was high, wind was blowing, scope was shorter...about a 25’ shift and we stopped, but it was enough to cause anxiety. We let out more scope and I was plenty awake so I offered to stand the first anchor watch. I didn’t think we were dragging, but the extra scope had me worried about the shallows near us during the tide change. I read, researched things to do along our path, culled my photo collection, and watched our position electronically and visually. We were fine all night, but it was worth having someone watching so that at least one of us could sleep soundly.
We woke to 38F temps, sun, and a chilly wind. After weighing anchor, I hit the rack! 😴 Next stop—St. Augustine!
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