STORM survival at ANCHOR | SAILING in the Mediterranean - Ep. 29
Vložit
- čas přidán 17. 10. 2019
- STORM survival at ANCHOR | SAILING in the Mediterranean - Ep. 29
In this episode of Sailing Zephyr, we are forced to ride out a STORM in Ibiza, Spain. Things go from bad to worse as winds hit 40kts+ and boats start crashing into each other.
We go through how we prepared, what other boats did wrong and all the other dramas that unfold.
Hope you enjoy the video!
www.sailingzephyr.com
SUBSCRIBE TO OUR CHANNEL
Click the bell to be notified when a new video is up.
If you like what we are doing and what to help choose our path around the world, you can support our production by becoming a Patron. You will get early access to our videos, exclusive content and goodies!
/ sailingzephyr
For the latest on what we are up to:
Like us on Facebook!
/ sailingzephyr
Follow us on Instagram!
/ sailing.zephyr
@sailing.zephyr
Contact us via email
contact.sailingzephyr@gmail.com
Music - Epidemic Sound
0.01 Cloud 9 - Valesco
0.07 Love for the Ocean - Pastis
2.37 La La La - Otis McDonald
10.38 Shoreline - Lucention
11.49 Pure Gold 1 - Niklas Ahlstrom
16.39 Viva la Vida - Velvet Moon
Thank you for watching STORM survival at ANCHOR | SAILING in the Mediterranean - Ep. 29
Hope you enjoy the episode!
Love,
James & Nats
#sailing #sailing #sailingchannel #Beneteau #sailingcouple #sailboatrefit #sailboatrestoration
I knew someone who survived a big blow (60 kt winds), at anchor, by keeping his engine running all night. With every gust he engaged forward gear, to relieve the strain on his anchor and chain. He was one of the only boats to come through that blow unscathed but he didn't get any sleep that night.
Glad you two are ok! Thank you for sharing!
Well done and thanks for your video, posts like this help making sailing safer. Should I add some little advice, I’d say that, in a place like that, with Posidonia forests and crowded as well, I would stick a pretty heavy weight at the middle of my scope and place a buoy on my anchor to prevent other boats dropping theirs on the same spot (which can easily occour when the wind direction changes dramatically and is difficult to oncoming boats to detect were other anchors had been dropped). As we use to say in Italy: buon vento (have good wind)!
I am a little late this conversation, but one thing we do in a tight anchorage during a blow is have our 'modified" ditch bag ready. You were very perceptive in knowing that the biggest problem is the other boats. If one of them drags and hits you, and you have to get off your boat quickly, you always want to have your boat papers, passports, etc. with you when you go. Love the channel!
Good advice Tim! We have actually created a modified ditch bag on your advice. Cheers for watching. 👍
Loved Nat's faces LOL
Lots of people underestimate Mediterranean, weather get here bad pretty quick.
Well you survived unscathed it seems like, excellent!!! The boat that anchored too close then fouled up with another anchor wasn't much on How to Not Anchor in a Blow. Keep it Safe!
20 years ago we got a few blows in Formentera and Ibiza... we had a Centaurus 30' catamaran at that time, and the Savina lagoon has been the safest place.
Anchoring a lightweight cat in anything above 40kn is tough but in our case, the best option was to tandem 2 anchors with the first anchor connected through 20m of chain and a shackle on the diamond of the second anchor... and from that another 30m chain and looooong dacron rope... never failed also in hurricane conditions.
At the Morro Jable of Fuerteventura instead, during a NW tropical storm, we had the dacron of one of our 3 anchor lines cut by the chain of a charter boat that was drifting time after time... a tough night in which my future wife showed off her 7 full months of steering boot camp in the face of a few unprepared charter crews... Yes... charter boats and green skippers are the real danger in the Med, especially with the many north European skippers that are used to the very different conditions of the Baltic and Kattegat compared to the Med.
Wow! That sounds like one hectic experience Spearo. Glad you made it out safe mate.
God bless you guys.
Cheers mate!
I putt like 10 buckets of sea in my dinghy to way it down and tied it close to the stern. That worked for me. I also changed the settings for the tracking. If the plotter is tracking every 5 sec you will see immediately if you are dragging.
glad you made it safe, the weather in the med can be difficult to understand, you need to check it twice a day!
Not wrong there. Med sailing is tricky.
To add to others:
Be ready to leave! Even if it means leaving your anchor and chain behind (you have GPS position, can be recovered later).
Unless you are in some kind of dangerous bar, or hard channel to go in and out, if things go haywire on the anchorage, best place is the sea... Move far from land and heave to, if necessary.
As shown, don't trust the forecast on exact direction and intensity... It's a good tool to know something is coming, but prepare for more/different from forecasted.
Fenders out! You may risk loosing one, but it may avoid direct contact from a dragging boat.
I have mentioned it before and saw your reply, but is always good to mention for others, you need a snubber, long enough to have meaningful elasticity and as strong as your chain, distribuiting weight on the cleats (not the anchor roller).
I would have the dingy up on deck. The reason being: be ready to leave... Wind from the wrong direction might turn the anchorage very nasty, and you basically can't hoist a dinghy safely in high winds. And tow a dinghy in bad weather is a recipe for disaster....
If someone drags into you, do your best to push them way. Unless they are a much small boat, they will either make you drag your break your ground tackle. If they are small enough, tie them to the stern on a big line (to a cleat!). If they foul your anchor and make a big mess on the chain, drop yours fully, to free the boat, and leave...
Your crew first, your boat second, than worry about helping other crew, than other boats.
That was the one thing I would have done differently ie have the dingy on deck and be ready to abandon the anchorage at a moments notice.
set an anchor alarm also good to try and meet neighbors ahead of time also monitor radio I like to have spare lines and anchors out just in case sounds like you have a good plan
Good call David. Cheers for the tips mate.
What I sometimes found useful is to set a second anchor to limit swinging around too much. Rules are the same as with the first one, so if it's a blow better go for 7 times the depth. The benefit of having a second anchor set at an angle of roughly 30 degrees is that in case of gusts changing directions (as it is often the case when you are sheltering in a Mediterranean bay,) it prevents you from swinging heavily. Of course you need to be pretty sure that the storm will behave and that you will not suffer a 180 deg turn. For us it worked always pretty fine with classic Mistral both in Corsica and Sardinia. I sustained up to 55kn in Porto Palma, Maddalena Is, Sardinia with a 37ft and a 40ft. Always a bit of a pain in the neck the setting which I do with the dinghy, but then I always felt safer (and boat was sensibly more stable). Last summer in Corsica just did what you did with 40 metres of chain (8mm) in 4 metres depth. Got one night at 35kn.
Yeah we clearing every year about 70 ship’s from our Ibiza coast, mostly anchor failures
I've gone from sail to power now but I remember numerous occasions going to anchor, finding a great spot, taking every precaution to anchor safely and not too close to other boats. It always amazed me how often another boat would come along and drop anchor so closely I could almost reach out and touch them, resulting in my feelings unsafe and having to move location. Selfish and dangerous behaviour.
True. We’ve had that exact conversation on multiple occasions.
Anchor watch + powerful directional light + loud horn. If someone looks like the will anchor too close, shine light on them, if it doesn't work, blow the horn. At least it will make them think about it.
(@11:25) With the wind coming in from the South-West, that will put you on a Lee shore, but surprisingly the sea-state is just as, if not more benign than when it was from the Northern quadrant. I’m not familiar with a ‘Mediterranean Hurricane’ but I’m assuming it is a deep mid latitude Low pressure system, with anti-cyclonic winds (i.e. anti-clockwise), so depending on your position relative to the centre of the low, the wind direction may either back, or veer, or if you’re unfortunate enough, the ‘eye’ may pass directly over you, in which case there’ll be a momentary calm, before a total (Or even partial) wind shift.
A stern anchor (Chain only rode, with a long Polypropylene snubber (i.e. >8m/26ft) will prevent you from swinging and possibly dislodging your primary anchor.
With the wind speed ‘only’ 25 -40 knots, you can lash your (Adequately fendered dinghy) along side securely and filled with enough water as possible to prevent it flipping over.
If someone drags downwind onto you, be prepared to corral them with your dinghy and tie them out of harms way (Using the bight of a very strong line, looped around their anchor chain to tow them out of harms’ way. Have a slip-knot on one end of the strong line (Both ends secures to either side of the outside of your dinghy transom. (Only possible problem is if they’re dragging due to a parted anchor rode!)
Have plenty of lines handy on deck if you decide to lash alongside any wayward anchor draggers (Even better, from your stern, on a bridle similar to the dinghy tow line mentioned previously!)
Don’t be afraid to visit other yachts before the storm, to gauge their preparedness, by asking pertinent questions (what sort of anchor?, how much scope? What sort of bottom did you set it in? Etc, etc And hint at better technique if needed (Well, we were worried about the holding, so we put out 7xdepth as scope!))
It is also crucially important to maintain your Diesel tanks, ‘Sludge free’ as constant violent pitching in a storm at anchor will stir up any sediment/sludge, making for a VERY unreliable engine!!!
Finally, don’t forget your black ball/anchor light and a very powerful torch/lantern and have fenders ready for yachts dragging too fast to react...
Hope these points help mitigate other yachts’ ‘performance anxiety’
Cheers, Mike from Sydney
I always put a chum down or anchor friend, Mine was a 56 pound weight that was fixed to the chain so it sat just above the sea bed this made a greater snubbing action and kept the chain on the floor so the pull was correct for the anchor
also i had the grab bag so if i did have to leave i had passports credit cards and boat insurance with me
I also made hot drinks and soup you dont want to be cooking when you're really being chucked about the last thing you need is someone being hurt first aid in a storm is no fun
tie halyards out so they dont bang and add extra support to mast remove everything from deck so your not falling over stuff life jackets and harnesses ready if you have to go outside
radio good book seasick pills keep warm and a little pray does not go amis
In a massive blow , taking down the headsail and canvas reduces alot of drag
Cheers for the heads up Rikki. I was curious about that and next time I will try it. Will be interesting to see how different things are.
A storm is always a problem and we like to stay away from everyone as much as we can. Then we can throw out our 140 mtr of 13 mm chain with a 50 kg anchor. That is enough to keep us in place during a 70 kts sustained wind. If that does not hold the engines come in, just as a back up for the chain. Of course we use a very sturdy snubber and if we are in a bay we use as many land lines as we can. Everything we have is used. After that it is just hope and pray.
You might want to consider learning how to deploy a ketenary weight as part of your anchor system and a Bahamian dual anchor mooring set up in case there is a wind shift as the system passes
Cheers for the great advice Peter. I've got my sailing books out researching those ideas now.
Good job you guys!! Amazing how foolish some "sailors" can be, keep up the good work!!!
Looking back - were you ever able to determine the explanation for the wind shift? Seemed like you and all the rest were set up for N to NE protection and then the storm comes from the SW? That's scary and dangerous. Love to hear your analysis of what went down.
Hey Joseph - you are correct. We were all setup for N NE E and it did swing. From what I understood, a secondary storm cell rapidly developed that was not anticipated by windy etc. it was a spin off of the main storm. It pushed very quickly up from the SW and was gobbled up as it collided with the stronger part of the storm further north.
As another thought the size of anchor for most boats is set by the manufacturer based on a price i always went to a bigger size most boats have reliable winch systems so go up a size on your main anchor and use your current tackle as a stern anchor / spare
Good points and thanks for the tips Peter. For Our boat (43’) our ground tackle is a 60lb Manson Supreme. 250’ of chain. And we always use a 25’ snubber. We have a backup snubber if we need to leave the boat and winds might pick up.
Watch
HURRICANE SURVIVAL TACTICS (Staying on your boat) - Sailing Uma
czcams.com/video/52vu7bbvqC0/video.html
Ground Tackle - Sailing Uma
czcams.com/video/SSxK_Fkvh8A/video.html
get in your tender and visit the other boats with your scuba gear and help them to get anchored pdroperly. Take in all your sails and solar panels.
Watching and enjoying sailing videos I am surprised that I have never seen anyone use an anchor chum. I am retired now but regularly used one when I sailed. I wonder why thy they don't seem to be common now.
If its a "Med Hurricane" it's the circular motion of the storm which disguises the wind direction from the direction of the storm; northern hemisphere is clockwise and southern anti-clockwise.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Cheers Mark!
I see you are Canadian.. Prince Edward Island here..
Awesome. Vancouver here. Beauty!
I would deploy an anchor watch, which sets off an alarm if you drag off your chosen spot - It works by way of gps, and you set up an allowable radius from chosen anchor position..
Spot on John. We have one on the chart plotter that I had set. Works very well. However, also looking into an app for when away from the boat. Any suggestions?
@@SailingZephyr No, but there must be an app... Or, you perhaps use a security camera pointing at the chart plotter, and link that to your phone.... perhaps ? Good luck in finding something that works.
I use this one on a mobile, much less precious power than a chart plotter. play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.webmajstr.anchorpro there's afree version as well.
Since the greatest danger in a storm at anchor is hitting another boat or hitting land wouldn’t the safest place to be in a storm be out sailing?
Adding charts, maps or sat photos would help in explaining your anchorage strategies.
Cheers for the feedback Thomas. It’s a great idea and something we will try next time. Appreciate you watching our videos.
@@SailingZephyr
Graphics are great for explaining where you are going and what you are seeing for those of us not as intimately acquainted with the places you're visiting as you are. I've watched several cruiser channels about the Med and all said it is a most challenging place to sail. Winds changing direction a full 360 degrees in 24 hours is not uncommon. I enjoy your channel, tnx.
@@thomasmcgarry2719 Agreed. The med is definitely testing us. I've heard similar feedback that the med is challenging. We really need to be on the weather constantly.
What is the average length of anchor chain for a sailboat? (Kept on board)
It can vary, but we currently have 250ft of chain and a backup 100ft of rode. A few of the cruisers we have spoken to with boats similar in size to ours (40-50ft) carry on average 200-300ft of chain.
The look on your face with the so called pancakes was priceless. Hope you get real pancakes soon, or live it up & get a waffle :) Really like your channel!!!!!
Haha cheers Joe. James is Canadian so I’m hoping for some decent pancakes with bacon and maple syrup.
Seems a bad place for cruisers in Ibiza only last month one Canadian guy and his dogs lost their boat to the rocks they had to right it off it was beyond repair
Check out our previous video. That was our mate and we were there when it happened. We documented the entire thing.
RYA Advises anchor 4 depth with chain or 6 times chain and line
Which is fine if you have room to swing. Unfortunately, most anchorages are too crowded for that to be possible.
Well again this can happen to any person as people don't realise the tidal changes. You think your boat is safe but anything can happen even to the best spot and anchoring. You are at risk when in that area with boats as is conman place boats get lose.
Use 2 anchors
I have never been keen on two anchors. A second anchor at the bow is almost guaranteed to wrap around the first anchor, making a quick departure almost impossible. I know many use a stern anchor as a second anchor but that also has its drawbacks as if the current (or the wind, if stronger) changes you can be left side onto the prevailing force, which is inherently weaker. I prefer to have a primary anchor that I really trust, with the second as an emergency back up.
For situations like that your scope should 7 to 1 ,snubbed and throw out a stern anchor and be on watch, we f
Did that in Croatia it's all rocks .
What was that white stuff that you ruined a perfect cup of coffee with?
Magic carpet have been in the med and use an app contact them
I've seen this so many times over the years but when all said and done it nearly always comes down to inexperience. It can happen to anyone but mostly not. When I anchor in the dark I always circle a range on the plotter to check the distance of others as its really hard to judge just by coming in and stopping based on mast lights. Never guess. Before a storm go around and check who has what scope out, ask everyone to pay out the same agreed length. If someone doesn't want to to play the game then you have the option early to move. NEVER anchor near a charter boat unless you have met the skipper!
Practice bad weather anchoring and make sure you know your ground tackle. Seen so many youtubers just go out and buy the biggest anchor they can because that is what they have seen elsewhere and fit it but clueless on techniques.
Also bays are renown for high waves and rips causing contrasting movements! Doh! that's why surf breaks are in bays mostly. Get out to sea and run down wind way safer than a over crowded anchorage.
IBIZA boats on the rocks, sort of goes together.
Run a safety line around mast and or back to winch blocks - strong points of the boat in case foredeck windlass pulls out
Never anchor off of your windlass...use a snubber to hard points lower on your bow.
Do you ever take the motor off the dingy in a big blow? Might it capsize in big waves?
Good question John. Normally when we are under passage for any distance more than a few miles, we take the motor off and put the tender on the bow. If there were big waves we definitely would because of capsize worries.
@@SailingZephyr You will loose it, handle it this way in future ... weather changes ... quickly ... ...
Do you ever bother with life jackets when it's rough at sea?
Absolutely. We have auto-inflat jackets that we pretty much live in when conditions are getting sketchy. Our trip from Azores to Cadiz was very rough and we never took them off. :)
This is more of a question. You spoke of the guy abandoning his anchor. Would it be a good idea to have a buoy of some type tied to the anchor rope/chain at some point, should you have to quickly release your anchor in an emergency so you can find it at a later date?
That’s a great question? Anyone?
@@SailingZephyr Have a buoy on a rope available, you don't want that flying around the deck in a storm, nor it in the water as a propeller hazard. If tied part way along the available chain, it interferes with releasing more or hauling in, when time is of essence.
Think its always good idea to have a buoy tied on anchor. Its just you have to adjust always depending on depth. It also gives the idea to other boaters where is your anchor and this way keeps idiots away. You have to ensure that the buoy you use is well seen, small and very light weight, so its not affecting the hold of the anchor.
@@arvischilf2950 You didn't think about that idea thoroughly. When you pick the anchor up, the float line goes around the propeller, great safety feature.
@@grancito2 Sorry man, but I cant see how the line could get even close to my prop when I pick the anchor. The only way it can get close is when boat starts to turn in light winds and holds on the weight of chain and this way may float on top of the anchor. But then again when you use such feature you must be ready for what can happen and avoid it. Like in so many other features you use when sailing.
I just don't get all this crazy music during the blow. Let the camera capture the situation.
We appreciate the feedback. We are new to video making and welcome any ways we can improve.
@@SailingZephyr I understand. It would be nice to let us feel and hear what you feel and hear. The sounds of the boat, the sea the wind etc. Music is nice if it is chosen correctly and set in with the right volume. Enjoy your adventures!
The one thing I never hear comments about from cruisers about anchoring is this. It is not your anchor that keeps you in position rather the weight of the chain. The anchor simply keeps the end of the chain in place, it's the weight and friction of chain on the seabed that does the rest. Not having enough scope out is the main reason vessels drag anchor. For me, seven times depth is the required scope, not the three or four, sometimes five that is often quoted. Seems to have become lore that 200-300ft of chain is sufficient for any boat up to 50ft in length. Fine for up to 10m depth...
Floating your chain off bommies is another common practice which tells me people are anchoring in the wrong place - it simply negates the purpose of the anchor chain.
IMHO of course.
Depends how heavy your chain is.
This statement is completely incorrect. Clearly anyone who believes only anchor chain is holding the boat simply has no clue on what is actually going on and why anchor rode is important. Anchoring on a lee shore is not a good idea either which is what is shown in this video. This is not extreme conditions for the med and is encountered regularly in the Aegean when the Meltemi is blowing. Armchair sailors should not comment.
@@bobbieg6992 I'm talking about chain only anchor rode and the fact that it is the weight of the chain that keeps a vessel securley anchored, not the anchor itself. You didn't address this at all in your reply and talked about anchoring on a lee shore and Med weather conditions which has nothing to do with my comment which was aimed rather at lack of scope.
Using a 150ft rope anchor rode with a boat-length's worth of chain to the anchor is a waste of time IMHO, apart from a very light boat or dinghy as you do then rely on the anchor itself to hold the vessel in place and don't gain the weight, friction and catenery advantage of chain weight.
PS. I sailed as a deck officer in the British MN for 10 years.
Mark Lacey as the rode increase the holding power of the ANCHOR increases. When the wind blows hard enough the catenary in the chain is pulled out and the angle of pull on the anchor shank digs the fluke deeper into the sand, mud or whatever when there is sufficient rode. Insufficient rode and the angle of pull can actually break the anchor out of the ground. Try anchoring and motoring back hard on the anchor (ideally with a snubber taking the load off the windlass bearings and onto the cleats). If the anchor has not set the anchor WILL drag regardless of the chain on the sea bed. Maybe you should email ROCNA and MANTUS explaining why their expensive anchors are unnecessary. I always ensure the anchor is set by reversing against it and ensuring it is dug in and the boat is holding. I carry a ROCNA anchor the next size up for my boat which replaced the 20KG delta that I have used over the years. Given swinging room I will lay 4 to 5 times depth of water. In strong winds (40 to 50 knots) I will lay more. The chain is not holding the boat on its own. It will move along the sea bed creating 'angel wings' in the sand as the boat swings around in the gusts. I sail and anchor every day continuously for 7 months of the year on a 13m sailing boat and done this for the past 10 years. If a boat drags through lack of rode it is not due it insufficient weight of chain on the sea bed. Just to be clear I am talking about chain rode not rope and 10mm chain at that. Rope is ok but it needs enough chain at the anchor end to keep the rope off the seabed where chafe on rocks could cause it to fail. So,at least I agree with your 'boat length of chain' statement but probably for different reasons I don't know what experience you have but your comment is dangerous to those who may take notice and act on it. I almost didn't reply to this as will turn into another 'how to anchor thread' and there are hundreds already on forum sites.
@@bobbieg6992 Which is basically what I said. Sufficient rode maintains the position of the vessel at anchor. And certainly, when the wind blows hard the weight in the catenery is taken up and increases the linear pull on the chain. And, yes, insufficient length of chain will cause the anchor to pull out in high winds. With sufficient rode, i.e. 7 x depth the ANCHOR in this case digs in further and holds the chain (and subsequently the vessel) in place. It is ludicrous to suggest that my comment infers the anchor is superfluous. Insufficient scope is something I notice all the time in cruiser videos. For you to suggest that recommending increased scope at 7 x depth when the standard out there seems to be 4 or 5 x depth and having chain rode only rather than combined chain and rope rode is dangerous I don't understand at all.
Mmm I like pancakes
Did I just here you say that in 60 mile hour 4 ft waves or bigger it will be no problem jumping up on deck and pull up enough chain to release the snubber let out more scope reattach the snubber and get back to rereading the Christmas Story. Are you listening to yourself. If your wife was listening to that she should have been scrambling up the hatch jumping overboard and swimming for her life. You are taking way to much for granted. If you guys make it it won’t be because your prepared it’s called blind luck and neither of you are equipped to see it.
Awesome mate. Heading over there now.
Oversized anchor people!.
I think i would drop an anchor off the stern also
Hi NO YOU NEVER DO THAT because if your bow anchor drags and your stern anchor holds then you could go beam onto the seas.
If the wind direction should change your boat will not swing to the wind, will be very uncomfortable and most importantly other boats will swing onto you
excuses , excuses , every video sorry we didn't have time to record video .......
Sorry David. We will aim to do better at capturing more going forward. Appreciate you watching. Have a wonderful weekend.