One of the most interesting articles in JRA Newsletter 55, is the account of Easy Go's stranding as a result of Hurricane Earle. If you sail enough miles, chances are you'll end up on the beach sooner or later. I've been there, got the scars, too. That being so, I sent some comments about the event to Bob and he was kind enough to suggest putting them up on the forum for further discussion.
So here they are: slightly edited.
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Get a 60 lb Luke anchor, or equivalent. (Henry Fuller of Cape Breton Boatyard, gets his from a place in Ontario, I think it is - about a third of the price of the genuine Luke, but identical in all other respects.) These are the ONLY anchor that will hold in kelp and, frankly, I wouldn't head further north without one.
(Luke anchors are based on a design by L Francis Herreshoff; Claud Worth designed something similar and the designs can be found in Sensible Cruising Designs by LFH or Yacht Cruising by CW; the proportions are cited in Cruising Under Sail by Eric Hiscock. The way in which these designs differ from the more conventional Fisherman/Yachtsman anchor is that they have very large, spade-shaped flukes. Those made by Luke and the outfit in Ontario, which I think are called Victory anchors, break down into three component parts: the arm/flukes, the shank and the stock. The arm and shank are both cast; the stock is a piece of round bar. Googling may produce a seller: if you have access to a foundry, you might be able to have one made.)
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Put out all your anchors. Anchors in the locker never did much good, either. If there seems no reason to spread them further round the boat, set some in tandem.
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If possible, ensure a soft landing!
This is by no means as frivolous – or as impossible – as it sounds. Admittedly, if you are already secured and have no engine, you might decide to stay put, but it might be worth looking round the shore and seeing if it is worth shifting berth in case the worst happens. Landing on mud is usually no more than an incident. Landing on rocks might be a catastrophe.
Dragging ashore is a horrid business and however careful you've been, you always end up feeling a bit of a fool. I think it was great that Bob could write about it so clearly and honestly.
Annie