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What is the issue?
Anchors and chains spill out fast. So fast in deep anchorages that the entire chain may shoot out past the ‘bitter end’ before you can react. Thus the anchor and chain have gone, or are deep-sixed in sailing parlance.
Why address this?
You cannot afford to loose an anchor and chain in this fashion.
How to address this?
Place a secure eye into the chain locker. Attach this to the bitter end of the chain with a short length of line with a pair of bowlines on each end.
The connector line should be of a length that allows it to pull just clear of the chain locker so that it is clearly visible when all the chain is out. It should be strong enough to just hold the chain and not the weight of the vessel itself, this must be achieved by belaying the chain around a chain post. This is to enable the line to be light enough to be quickly cut should the anchor need to be dumped in an emergency situation.
Contributor:
Michael Harpur, Yacht Obsession.