Hello,
Apologies if this is the wrong place to post this, but I didn't see a dedicated kayaking sub-forum, and most of the kayaking questions that come up in a search are in this "Boat Topics and Questions" section... happy to have this moved if there's a better place!
My question is about anchoring while kayaking. I have been doing a lot of ocean kayaking lately, and I've run into two separate anchoring issues that I'd appreciate some insight on, if anyone happens to know!
1) I buy those 3-pound fold-up kayak anchors, but every once in a while, they get just incredibly stuck. Out in my part of the ocean, there are some patches of sand, but there's a lot of rock or reef or something where there are holes that the anchor can drop down into and then never come out. I don't know if the anchor folds up to slip down and then the hooks unfold or what happens, but there have been times where there's literally zero play and the anchor won't move or come out from any angle, and i've spend hours trying to unstick them. It happens infrequently (I've been out in the ocean probably 200+ times and had 3 anchors get stuck), but I wonder if there's a better option for someone who wants to anchor on reef. I'm on the central coast of california, if that helps anyone who knows the topography in that area. The anchors are pretty cheap so I guess it's no big deal if I lose one every once in a while, but I also feel like, if I can lose fewer giant chunks of metal into the reef forever, I should try. I wonder if there's a better anchor design for these conditions?
2) My second question is about techniques to tether two kayaks together using the same anchor. I stick to smaller swells (1-2 feet max), but even in those conditions, having two kayaks tied up can be bumpy if they get moved in opposite directions by the water. My internet searches have turned up nothing on how to tether two kayaks together properly and safely, although I assume it happens pretty frequently? Like, people do this, right? My intuition is that some kind of bungee system is the way to go, and while it wouldn't be too hard to rig something up with shock cord to dampen the pulling of the waves, I wonder if there's a "proper" way to do this. for example, is there some kind of bungee material that holds up better to salt water? Maybe the cord needs a certain break strength, or maybe there are other considerations that I'm just not factoring in? If it's good enough to just go to the hardware store and buy a pack of bungee cords and use them to rig up a connector harness, then great, I'll do that. But I bet some folks out there know more than me and I'd love any input!
Thank you all in advance for any guidance or suggestions
Apologies if this is the wrong place to post this, but I didn't see a dedicated kayaking sub-forum, and most of the kayaking questions that come up in a search are in this "Boat Topics and Questions" section... happy to have this moved if there's a better place!
My question is about anchoring while kayaking. I have been doing a lot of ocean kayaking lately, and I've run into two separate anchoring issues that I'd appreciate some insight on, if anyone happens to know!
1) I buy those 3-pound fold-up kayak anchors, but every once in a while, they get just incredibly stuck. Out in my part of the ocean, there are some patches of sand, but there's a lot of rock or reef or something where there are holes that the anchor can drop down into and then never come out. I don't know if the anchor folds up to slip down and then the hooks unfold or what happens, but there have been times where there's literally zero play and the anchor won't move or come out from any angle, and i've spend hours trying to unstick them. It happens infrequently (I've been out in the ocean probably 200+ times and had 3 anchors get stuck), but I wonder if there's a better option for someone who wants to anchor on reef. I'm on the central coast of california, if that helps anyone who knows the topography in that area. The anchors are pretty cheap so I guess it's no big deal if I lose one every once in a while, but I also feel like, if I can lose fewer giant chunks of metal into the reef forever, I should try. I wonder if there's a better anchor design for these conditions?
2) My second question is about techniques to tether two kayaks together using the same anchor. I stick to smaller swells (1-2 feet max), but even in those conditions, having two kayaks tied up can be bumpy if they get moved in opposite directions by the water. My internet searches have turned up nothing on how to tether two kayaks together properly and safely, although I assume it happens pretty frequently? Like, people do this, right? My intuition is that some kind of bungee system is the way to go, and while it wouldn't be too hard to rig something up with shock cord to dampen the pulling of the waves, I wonder if there's a "proper" way to do this. for example, is there some kind of bungee material that holds up better to salt water? Maybe the cord needs a certain break strength, or maybe there are other considerations that I'm just not factoring in? If it's good enough to just go to the hardware store and buy a pack of bungee cords and use them to rig up a connector harness, then great, I'll do that. But I bet some folks out there know more than me and I'd love any input!
Thank you all in advance for any guidance or suggestions