Stuck Anchor in Deer Harbor-gctid820999

[Knot_Happy]

Well it was almost a perfect two weeks. Finished it off with two days on the hook in Deer Harbor. When I went to pull the hook it was stuck harder than I have ever experienced. After trying the typical maneuvers I called in a diver, turns out along the west side of the harbor direct across from the marina there is a sunk sailboat about 26ft in length waiting for the unaware. Apparently it has been there for some time but it is not marked, or indicated on any charts. Anyone visiting the Harbor should be aware.

I managed to swing my chain under it and really snagged it hard. We ended up leaving it tied to a fender and are now planning our strategy to get it retrieved. Since it is an Ultra anchor, with Ultra swivel and all 300 ft of my rode it is worth several $k. Anyone know a good salvage dive team that might be able to lift bag the boat, or perhaps somebody might have some other ideas that might be useful for a reasonable fee?

[Norton_Rider]

I sent you a PM.

[Norton_Rider]

I sent you a PM.

[Papa_Charlie]

Well that sucks. You could have a diver remove the anchor from the road and at least salvage it without the chain.

One good thing, you didn't have to worry about dragging your anchor.

[stargazerwa]

Is it in such a position that a line can be attached to the head by a diver and then you pull it out backwards with the winch?

[simbad]

What a bummer. i nearly anchored in DH recently. Thanks for the heads up and letting others know. You'd think they might marknit or add a buoy to prevent that happening.

Nightmare!

[Pcpete]

If you have a real good GPS location I would think it's not more than contacting USGC Sector 13 to report a discrepancy. That should, imo, cause a note about an unmarked wreck.

[Knot_Happy]

Well so far no luck in retrieving the anchor,

A) Contacted the Dept of Natural Resiurces, they are responsible for clearing waterways of derelict vessels and wrecks, they appreciated our input, but classified this as a level 4 not a hazard to navigation and very unlikely they will do anything to remove it.

B) contacted the coast guard, they took the information and were appreciative, again it was considered a low risk to navigation and are not likely to invest in marking it with a bouy.

C) as for retrieval, it was suggested to try and get a large vessel with a Crane on deck to try and pull it free, the vessel owner is understandably concerned over his liability as we learned that if he disturbed the wreck and it floats free he would be responsible to remove the wreck.

D) salvage diver quick conversation was it is likely to heavy for lift bags

E) still have a call to a recommended diver and will discuss if it is worth searching for the chain on the anchor side of the wreck, while we know where the chain goes under the wreck from our bitter end, the water and bottom are very murky causing poor visibility, the chain is likely somewhat buried in the muck and it is in 40 ft of water the depth starts limiting how much time the diver can stay down.

F) so far it is looking like a very expensive lesson. I had recently read "Happy Hooking" and they talked about trip lines and how they can really be worth the few extra minutes and effort should you get your hook stuck. I put it on my to do list to get a small bouy and line and did not follow through and to be honest I likely would not have used it due to my misguided perception that that is something you need in a remote anchorage. I did buy a slip ring and had it on board, but it was not useful in this situation as It needs to get past the wreck to be of use.

So, anyone have a good source for 5/16 windlass chain? Anyone have an anchor lying around they want to be rid of? I need something around 50 to 60 lb.

[Pcpete]

Happy, the bottom time at 40 feet is pretty long is about an hour. The bit about the lift bags is not as gee-whiz as it sounds. It's just a heavy duty balloon that the diver can manipulate using air from his regular. I'm thinking most of the commercial divers are busy, just like the mechanics, with what's "active". Maybe one of those October jobs. As to getting from now until then, there's this guy, https://seattle.craigslist.org/sno/b...245130538.html at Dagmars and I seem to remember almost tripping over sone big ones at the shop in Poulsbo.

I found a few others 22kg is about 48 pounds https://seattle.craigslist.org/sno/b...263949970.html

https://seattle.craigslist.org/see/bpo/d/cqr-75-found-out-the-hard-way/6265296960.html

There were a bunch more for chain, rode, etc. including a few butt ugly ones. I searched Anchor under boat parts.

Good luck.

[kwb]

Why would you leave it all there?

If it is really stuck - pull until it is as far up as you can get it and cut it off as close to the waterline as you can. Then you lose whatever depth is there for chain and obviously the anchor, minimizing your losses.

[green650]

Did you put a buoy or anything on the rhode where you cut it?

I have dive gear, not sure when I'll have time though.

[Knot_Happy]

"kwb" post=821236 wrote:
Why would you leave it all there?

If it is really stuck - pull until it is as far up as you can get it and cut it off as close to the waterline as you can. Then you lose whatever depth is there for chain and obviously the anchor, minimizing your losses.

We left it intact for now with an intent to retrieve it with some expertise. Truth is the chain is a nominal cost the anchor is where the real loss is. Currently the chain helps find the location.

[Knot_Happy]

"green650" post=821238 wrote:
Did you put a buoy or anything on the rhode where you cut it?

I have dive gear, not sure when I'll have time though.

I will PM you.

[builderdude]

Someone suggested this already, if the anchor is spendy it could be removed from the chain by a diver and brought up with a separate line. The diver could help diagnose the angle at which the chain needs to be yanked out from under the sunken boat once the anchor is removed.

[rbcooper]

Really sorry for your problem. We all should expect a similar episode at some time in the future. This is especially true for those that anchor out a lot. Do you have the specific GPS coordinates of the wreck. It won't help you but will be a tremendous help to any others that may try to anchor in Deer Harbor.