Ultimate Kayak Fishing: Anchor Selection For A Rocky River Bottom - Ultimate Kayak Fishing

Greetings all.

I'm new to the forum and am looking to network a little and benefit from the wisdom of those seasoned 'yak anglers out here.

I live in the Piedmont region of NC and have starting doing some fishing from canoes/kayaks in the last few years. I took the plunge this year and picked up an '09 Tarpon 100 several weeks ago and have been working on outfitting it for the spring season.

I'm fishing the local rivers (Yadkin, Dan, New), enjoying getting to those underfished areas that are unreachable without a kayak/canoe. My question today is about anchors. The new Tarpon has this "SlideTrak" system that allows me to create my own anchoring system without too much modification to the boat. But before I went spending (another) $20-40 on an anchor, I wanted to poll the board for opinions. What's the best anchor to use in a river that's: 1) relatively shallow, 2) has a rocky bottom (occassional mud/weeds but mostly boulders of various sizes), and 3) flows at a rate around 2,000 cfs?

I'll be dropping anchor from the bow, running my anchor line through the bow handle of the boat, through a few slide track tie downs, and looping around a slide track cleat that I've made and installed within arm's reach of the seat. I've got a 20lb. mushroom that's just overkill for this little boat. From what I can tell, a 2.2lb bruce type (e.g., horizon claw) anchor is a good bet, maybe I'll up it to 4.4lbs. I like the fact that with the Bruce you can tie to the back side of the anchor and run your anchor line along the stem with tie downs (which you can break if the anchor gets hung, and pull the anchor up from the back side). I haven't had any problems with my mushroom getting hung up, but can see how it could happen. Plus, the mushroom doesn't stop me as fast as I would like, which I'm hoping a claw anchor will remedy.

I've looked at the commonly used "grappling hook" type anchors that get sold with most fishing 'yaks, but I'm a little cautious about them because I don't see a way to pull the anchor up if it gets fouled. Maybe I'm overthinking this. Any thoughts?

rat

Hi RiverRat,

First I have to say Welcome to the site and nice to meet you.

Anchoring is one of the "dangerous" things we do in a kayak so a word of caution is in order. Because kayaks are inherently unstable anchoring in moving water is a recipe for disaster. Aside from that I have used drift anchors to slow down the drift in the river. Old window sashes in duct tape dragging on the bottom slows me down enough to fish. If you use a Bruce anchor or a Grapple anchor (see picture) you need to use something lighter than a zip tie for the break off.

We where fishing Narragansett Bay last spring and most of the anchors where lost because we could not break 20lbs mono that we used to tie to the shackle. Your leverage sitting in the kayak is diminished and when the safety line (zip tie) break you may fall in because of the instability.

I use the anchor trolley setup that way I can have the anchor line on a quick release with a float on the bitter end of the rope. You need to have a way of quickly release the anchor and with the float on the line you can go back and retrieve it.

I use 1.5lbs , 3lbs and 5lbs anchors from the kayak.

Nils

I can only second Nils' comments. You should experiment with anchoring in slow water and experience some of the dynamics before moving on to faster water. One of my bigger "fear" moments was at anchor in relatively slow current. The leverage can sneak up on you. I might consider never anchoring a yak in river water. I guess it depends on the river...

Thanks for joining and making the post its good for all of us to think about.

Excellent points, thanks!

Hatchet, I've had a scary moment anchoring in this river, so I know what you mean. It only takes seconds to get in deep trouble! But I can't paddle and fish at the same time (and enjoy myself, anyway), and I like river fishing in these spots so much more than flatwater. Nils has me sold on the quick release/float idea. I can definitely see how that could be a necessity (lack of a quick release is what almost sunk me in the aforementioned "scary moment").

Anchoring's not always necessary in these spots--lots of rocks here, and often you can eddy out behind one, pull your yak up on it, and fish outside of the boat, right in the middle of the river. But I'd like to have the option to anchor, esp. when the water's not raging. Clear, 70s-80 here this weekend, hopefully I'll be posting pics of some lunkers next week.

Take care and thanks again. 'rat

yes, post us some pics!

This may seem like a crazy idea, but here it goes. I have about 80 feet of line around a tiny extension chord wrap up thing. I don't really know how else to explain it. On one end I have a small yellow marker buoy with some fluorescent tape for if I drop anchor at night. On the other end I have a 3 lb folding claw anchor. I let out the line I need and do a quick loop around a cleat to the rear to secure the line. if I need to drop anchor, I just undo the simple loop and let er rip. I always keep about 5-10 feet of extra line just in case.

Also, If I may suggest 3/4 inch schedule 40 PVC with a T joint at the top. You can use this to push around or stick it into your scupper and between some rocks to keep you in place. I use a 5 footer, I wouldn;t go any longer but you could go shorter.

As usual with UKF, you're getting lot of good advice here. Anchors are great tools, and like most good tools they can be VERY dangerous if used incorrectly or inattentively.

Anchoring in a current is roughly equivalent to being towed behind an unstoppable boat. Similar safety issues come into play. Small shifts of balance can translate into huge swings across current, and a rogue wave over the rail can sink your boat in a heartbeat, regardless of otherwise adequate flotation. It is absolutely essential that you can release the line instantly, under any amount of strain, with one quick yank of a safety release or slipped hitch. Or a slash of your knife (mine is non-folding and strapped to the front of my PFD).

Many people use too little rode (line) when they anchor. I think the minimum recommended guideline is an 8:1 scope for setting the anchor and 5:1 for holding. That means that in water 10 feet deep, you should set the anchor using at least 80 ft of rode, and once the anchor is secure you can haul in so that you have at least 50 ft of line out. That might seem like a lot, but the anchor will be more likely to hold. An anchor that breaks free, drags, and suddenly catches could dump you out of your boat or swamp you.

Always remember that your life and your boat are worth more than your anchor, so if you have to choose one to lose, choose wisely. As previously mentioned, a float on the line will give you a shot at recovering your anchor if you have to cut loose from it. As for freeing a stuck anchor, some people use a trip line attached to the crown of the anchor, with a small float at the other end of a line 1.5 - 2 times as long as the depth of the anchor.