Boat Stability at Anchor

[SalishSailor]

We are shopping for a R29 or R31 for cruising in Puget Sound/SalishSea and beyond. We have anchored frequently in our 31 sailboat, often in high winds and moderate sea state. Not always comfortable but safe with sufficient scope. We would be interested in Ranger 29/31 owner's experiences anchoring in similar conditions.


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[dbsea]

I have to assume the sailboat is quite a bit heavier due to the keel? I have a CW 30 CB, which has a dry weight of 11,000lbs and probably somewhere around 14,000lbs with gear, fuel, water, food, etc. I can say that while on the hook, the wind and waves have a fairly sizable impact on the boat bouncing around. I have to wear earplugs while sleeping to not be kept awake. Safe and secure, yes, quiet / comfortable, not so much... My boat buddy has a 42' Ocean Alexander sedan, and that thing is like a tank in comparison and barely moves and is much quieter inside...

 

[b&jsrubiconii]

We have an R29CB. We use a bridle when anchoring for the night. Boat gets rocked around pretty good in fairly light chop. It's not unmanageable however. It is a tad noisy due to the water hitting the chine on the bow and the underside of the swim platform. Not sure it matters, but these experiences have all been out at various anchorages in the California Channel Islands. We sleep well regardless, as we have complete faith in our Rocna.

 

[bergroup]

We can't mess with fluid dynamics. While a bridle system may help, almost ALL boats with the owner suite in the bow are subject to water "slapping" against the bow. That is why many boats above 40' have the desired mid-ship or aft cabin owner suite.

I love our 2022 R-27OB, but sleeping in her takes some getting used to. Between waves hitting the bow and the constant bilge pump activations, prolonged sleep is somewhat of a challenge.

 

[SJI Sailor]

+1 to all of the above. Our C30S also swings quite a lot -- the light weight and shallow keel is more responsive to wind and current oscillations than heavier trawlers or deeper sailboats. Them she gets hit by waves at various angles. Uncomfortable sometimes, rather than unsafe in my experience.

On a mooring buoy the lines (we use two, one from each side of the bow) are often wrapped around several times in the morning if there has been any wind. That swinging is the main issue in my experience.

If the winds go above 15 knots or so with any fetch at all -- e.g. a bay open to the wind -- then she bounces enough that I wake up, and then an anchor watch seems prudent. So it depends on how much wind you mean. If "high" means 20+ knots then I expect anchoring would be quite uncomfortable due to the oscillation and waves. We try to dock when we expect those conditions.

 

[Bobby P.]

I'll chime in on this. I love the R31 CB, but she dances like a Sugar-plum fairy in the wind and current.

The 31 CB also has a higher center of buoyancy, due to the bridge. It sometimes makes for a long night if you are a light sleepper.

Bobby

 

[dbsea]

I'll chime in on this. I love the R31 CB, but she dances like a Sugar-plum fairy in the wind and current.

The 31 CB also has a higher center of buoyancy, due to the bridge. It sometimes makes for a long night if you are a light sleepper.

Bobby

Love the description, Bobby! My CW 30 CB does the same. It's almost unbearable in heavy winds, and I usually give up trying to sleep in those conditions...And like SJI Sailor I try to plan for being on an SYC Outstation dock or other marina when out in the San Juans / Canada and there's any more than 10-15kn of wind in the forecast.

 

[Bobby P.]

This might be a better fit for another topic, but in a heavy wind storm i dropped the bridge, seats and mast. It made a considerable difference in movement during the storm. I also did the same when doing a long passage in unfavorable conditions. It really helped improve sense of control and ride.

Bobby

 

[fishheadbarandgrill]

No problem in our r29 is those conditions. We moved from a Catalina 380 to the R29. the R29 sails (swings) on anchor like any other powerboat without a 4-6' keel plus the weight difference.

 

[srhawk454]

Re: safety - put enough chain on the bottom and you will be fine esp. with Rocna/Mantus hooks.
Re: noise - since our boats are not aft/mid-cabins, you will hear some wave slapping at night which is expected.
Our R31S has a bit lower profile than CBs so we do not feel too much movements and never felt uncomfortable at night during ~15kts winds.
I have Mantus bridle and after using it for the first time woke up with the Gordian knot around the mooring buoy. Took me a good 30mins to solve the riddle, was close to cutting one leg off to free the bridle. Bought anti-tangling chafe gear (you can get one from dbropes.com), added to the bridle, never had this problem again.

 

[SalishSailor]

Thanks for the comments. I expected the boat to swing at anchor and maybe Bobby P. describes it best - "she dances like a Sugarplum fairy." But I didn't think about the hull noise. I didn't experience much of that with the smooth-hulled sailboat. The suggestion to reduce topside windage makes good sense. I rigged a riding sail toward the aft end of our sailboat and that stabilized the boat somewhat but can't envision anyway to do that with the Ranger.

 

[FlyMeAway]

Another former sailor here (last boat was a Catalina 36).

I find anchoring in my R-31CB substantially less pleasant than anchoring in my C36. My spouse had a marina bias in the C36, and while she hasn't anchored out with me in the R-31 I will say the experience was worse enough that I'm not sure I want to try it with her. The tug rolls more, it yaws more, it pitches more. It spins more at anchor. The forward island berth sleeps head-to-bow vs. head-to-stern (like a v-berth), which means your head is a few feet farther from the CLR and so IMHO you feel it a tiny bit more more (it's sleeps more like a stern berth, but a forward island berth is common now in modern sailboats too).

Another thing that I think is under-appreciated is that when you're in the salon, you're fairly high above the water and also have lots of visibility. This can create motion sickness at anchor much more than in a typical sailboat, where you are mostly below the waterline when in the salon (of course, on the other hand motion sickness in a sailboat cabin while under way is much worse than on a powerboat). I have since read a fair bit in the sailing press about this issue in deck salon boats, and compare that to the same effect in power boats, so I suppose I should have been ready for it (it's a typical power boat thing) but having little to no experience on larger power boats I was very surprised.

One sort of neutral thing is that I find anchoring is always noisy, regardless of the boat. The R-31 has a bit more water noise against the hull, but it doesn't have the whistling and slapping rigging of my sailboat (even with the command bridge). So net-net it's about the same.

In summation, while I was an enthusiastic about anchoring on my C36 I try to avoid anchoring as much as possible or only stay in quiet, calm anchorages. I'd be much more comfortable in heavy weather on my sailboat than on the Ranger Tug.

But, YMMV.

 

[Bobby P.]

One not-yet spoken advantage of anchoring the Ranger/Cutwater is that you can work your way into far more protected areas, avoiding wind and other boat traffic. We, on the Chesapeake Bay, call this “gunk-hollin”. We often find excellent well-protect anchorages and nestle in for a great night of sleep while watching the larger-drafted boats bounce and yawl in more common anchorage locations. Believe me, we’ve been there in larger past boats, both a deep keeled sloop and a larger trawler - ain’t no fun! We also do this in the Florida Keys. On a windy day when we can’t go out to snorkel a reef, we nuzzle into the mangroves and enjoy the calm warmth and catch some red snapper for dinner. Not a bad “windy day” on the water.

There is certainly an art to anchoring different types and styles of hulls. The trick is to master the one you’ve got.

We love and prefer to anchor out.

Bobby