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Anchors Away! How to Drop Anchor in Your Boat
For the fancy yacht owner, dropping anchor can be an incredibly easy thing – some anchors will operate at the push of a button. For the rest of us in speed boats, pontoon boats, or fishing boats, dropping anchor is a little bit more work to say the least. So if you’re taking out a boat for the first time and decided you need to drop anchor, how do you make sure you do it without embarrassing yourself or doing some damage to the boat? Here is a quick guide to dropping anchor.
First, choose your spot. You’ll want to go somewhere where you have an idea of the water’s depth: this will help you know how far the anchor needs to go. It’s one thing to drop your anchor in shallows, it’s another to drop it deep. You can also choose a spot based on where the fishing is. You don’t necessarily need to know the water depth, but if you have a good idea, it helps.
Next, prepare the boat. Slow down to your spot, stopping momentum so that you don’t drift away while you’re preparing the anchor. You’ll also want to consider any currents or tides so that you know where your boat will end up after you’ve dropped anchor. Make a mental note of where your anchor is so that you can position your boat accordingly. Remember that anchor ropes will generally become taut when there is a current present, and that your boat will likely drift in a certain direction.Once you’ve prepared your boat and have slowed down, it’s time to get your anchor ready. Most anchors will be tied to ropes; make sure both ends are secure. The rope should be adequately attached to both your boat and your anchor. You’ll also want to check the rope itself: is it knotted? Is it attached to anything that might go overboard if the rope dragged it over? Make sure the rope is clear of these things before you drop anchor.
Next, hold the rope over the anchor over the side of the boat and begin gently sliding it into the water. Once you have a bunch of rope cleared, you’ll be able to let it slide faster. Don’t simply throw it over. Don’t let the rope slide over your hands – you don’t want to get rope burn.
Once you’ve dropped the anchor and you feel it hit the bottom, it’s up to you to decide how much give it gets. You can tie the rope around a safe notch in your boat – many boats have a place on the side where you can do this. Or you can throw the rest of the rope overboard and let the current take you a bit further.
Photo Credits: FourthFloor
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How to Get Up Early and Go Fishing Comfortably
Some people love the early mornings – the way the dew on the grass looks and smalls, the early-morning sky tumbling by in its reflection on the serene fresh-lake water, and the great moments where the only sound around is the splashing of a freshly-caught fish. It sounds great, but for some people, making an early morning happen just isn’t in the cards.
If you can’t stand waking up to an alarm at five or six o’clock in the morning, you’re not alone. Some people just don’t seem to be “morning people.” But that doesn’t mean you’ll have to go without a comfortable, unforgettably early-morning fishing experience. Here’s how to pull it off without pulling out your hair.
First, don’t only set your alarm clock, set your “mental alarm.” As you lay down to go to sleep, remind yourself a few times that you want to wake up at a specific time, and literally tell yourself you’d like to wake up comfortably and ready to go. You might be surprised at the effect a simple mental reminder can have on you, especially if you combine it with a good seven or eight hours of sleep and the precaution of an alarm clock next to your bed.
Second, make sure you eat right the previous night. You don’t need to feel tired and bloated from the chili cheese dog you had the night before, so eat a light dinner and have some fruit – not ice cream – for desert. You’ll be amazed at the impact this will have on the way you feel in the morning. It’s also a good idea not to eat right before you go to bed.Upon waking in the morning, you still might find that you don’t feel you have enough sleep. It might be cold outside, and you don’t want to get out from under the covers. A great way to build momentum that will take you out of the covers is actually to prepare the night before. Sleep in your (safe) fishing clothes! Have a rod and your tackle box not too far from the bed. You might even want to try sleeping in your shoes. When you wake up, you’ll know that all you have to do is simply put your feet no your ground and you’re just about ready to go.
Photo Credits: kretyen
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Killing Time On a Camping Trip
It’s an ideal scenario: you’ve finally gotten the family away from the distractions of daily life back in the city, you’ve cleared enough time to have a great vacation, and you’ve brought all of the amenities you need to enjoy a comfortable camping trip. Then, your first morning, you wake up, fire up breakfast, lounge around on a chair, and the thought hits you:
What now?
It’s a perfectly normal situation to encounter, and it simply means that even while you’ve put aside some time for fun, you haven’t decided what to do with that time yet. Here are some ways for you to enjoy a camping trip and “kill time” the most fun and relaxing way possible.
First, make sure before your camping trip that you know what kind of activities are available in your camping area. If you’ve decided to “rough it” and head out into some deep, desolate woods, that’s fine, but you’ll need to define some activities ahead of time for that trip as well. Is there a body of water nearby? Are there boats to rent, jet skis available, good hiking trails, bikes to rent? Just asking yourself a few of these questions ahead of time will help you get started on the right foot.
Second, don’t waste time making decisions. It’s all too common for people to turn into “decisions, decisions” mode instead of simply taking action early and often. If you face a choice of fishing, hiking, or biking your day away, and family members are undecided on which to do, try this: make a decision for yourself and invite others to come along. Get your feet moving and get the activities under your belt. You’ll find that this kind of active momentum will probably carry you through the rest of your day.Third, know when it’s time to relax. If you’ve been active all day, you can still live a “full day” without staying active – it might be time to kick up your feet, light a campfire, and listen to some ghost stories. It’s one thing to relax when you’re stressed, but it’s another thing completely to relax after an exhausting day of fun, exercise, and activity. You’ll feel like you’re relaxing deeper then ever before and you’ll get a better night’s sleep.
If these sound like good ways to spend your next vacation, look into having your own camping trip, and then customize the trip to suit your tastes. Adventurers can find plenty of adventure in the outdoors, while relaxers will enjoy campfires and quiet nights under the stars. It’s up to you to decide how you’ll “kill your own time.”
Photo Credits: .:[CT]:.|.:[CB]:. |…
