The Basics of Boat Anchoring
Understanding anchors and proper anchoring technique is essential to safe boating. Having your anchor and its accompanying equipment well organized and developing the basic skills to deploy and retrieve it will enable you to stay secure on the water. In the next few pages, we’ll take a close look at some basic anchor types and the techniques for using them. While this article is limited to small craft, the principles given here will take you a long way toward better securing habits for any boat.
Anchor Anatomy
Like most nautical equipment, the anchor can be described by its individual components. The flukes penetrate the bottom. The crown connects the flukes to the shank. The stock runs at right angles to the shank and allows the flukes to dig into the bottom. There are both stock and stockless anchors.