by Wendy Hinman
WHICH ANCHOR TO CHOOSE? Steve Goodwin and Garth Wilcox talk anchors in Steve’s shop.
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hoosing the right anchor is a decision that can perplex even the savviest boat owner. A good anchor offers immense peace of mind and can save our boats from ruin. We count on this essential piece of equipment to ensure that our boat will remain in place while we sleep, and that it will be where we left it when we return from an expedition ashore, under water, or out in the dinghy. Aboard our 8,000-pound 31-foot Tom Wylie sailboat, Velella, we carried a 17-pound, aluminum Spade anchor. Because ours was a light, small boat, we didn’t want to carry too much weight on the bow, yet we wanted an anchor that would be secure in a wide range of conditions during a multi-year offshore voyage. It was our home, after all — small and modest as it was. We also were counting on the 240 feet of 5/16-inch chain that rested farther aft to keep us safe. My husband Garth had read about the Spade’s impressive performance for its weight in Practical Sailor, though the anchor wasn’t widely distributed at the time. In 1999, we ordered one from the manufacturer in Tunisia, hoping for the best. It arrived without incident and turned out to be a good investment. That 17-pound Spade anchor kept our little sailboat safe over most of the 14 years we owned her. We subjected
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Velella and her anchor to many intense situations during our seven-year circumnavigation of the Pacific, including storms, typhoons, waves, and docks that threatened to turn our home into kindling. We never dragged anchor over muddy, coralstrewn, rocky, or sandy bottoms. Several years into the voyage, while we were in Fiji in 2003, we noticed some welding cracks on the Spade’s shank. Garth corresponded with the French manufacturer in Tunisia to get advice about re-welding the shank, so we could solve the problem in our remote location. The company immediately sent us a new anchor and it arrived quickly to Musket Cove, a resort and yachting center in Fiji. The new anchor (and the re-welded original we kept for a spare) held us throughout the rest of our 34,000-mile voyage and beyond. We certainly put the Spade to the test. We’ve since sold our beloved Velella and are currently building a new 38-foot world cruiser designed by Garth (a naval architect) in our backyard workshop on Bainbridge Island. We hope to enjoy many more adventures aboard a larger, 14,000-pound boat. Though our new boat is not yet finished — and, no, we cannot predict exactly when it will splash — we are again considering which anchors will best suit our needs. Happy with the Spade’s performance, over the last few years
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