Jump to content
  • GUESTS

    If You  want access  to member only forums on FM, You will need to Sign-in or  Sign-Up now .

    This box will disappear once you are signed in as a member.

Anchor Question


HuskerBob

Recommended Posts

I recently purchased the "Digger Anchor" to help keep me in my spot out on the flats. I used it last night and for some reason I can't keep from drifting. The instructions say to let out 5 times as much rope as the depth of the water and I did that, but to no avail. Can anybody give me a clue? It really sucks when you can't stay on the spot you marked with fish!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Some people use a 5' chain in front of the anchor to help it dig into the mud. Then again how big is your boat and was there white caps? grin.gif

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Try using 2 or more anchors if one won't suffice. I have found a heavy 'river style' anchor works well along with the digging style anchor.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Another issue you could have and I am not familiar with the type of anchor you are describing, but you have to let the anchor down with some tension otherwise the chain will end up doubling back and you will be draging the anchor backwards. Some of those anchors are like kites in the water until they hit the bottom and dig in. You have to keep tension from the time the they get in the water to the time you tie it off. Hope this helps.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

How big of a boat do you have, and how heavy of an anchor is it. I know that you have to let out a ton of line sometimes in order to get them to dig. The chain helps.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

i have 2 digger anchors and a warrior 1890. on rocks, usually one holds depending on wind. ive never tried to anchor in mud but imagine they would work as good as any other. maybe you have to use 2?

regards,

minnesotatuff

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I also have a Digger Anchor. Remembering from when I first got it the paperwork said NOT to use chain any with it. When they say a 5 to 1 ratio of line to depth they mean it. If you are fishing on the flats and say the depth is 30' you would need 150' of anchor rope. It's okay to fish the flats when it's calm but when the wind picks up forget it. You're better off fishing the rocks then anyhow. Conclusion, it's best suited for fishing rock bottoms.

On a side note, how was the fishing on the flats? Most of the boats I saw Saturday must have been after 'skis. What boats were out on the flats fishing for 'eyes were few. Landing nets, I didn't see one even from the launch boats. Besides the narrow slot I beginning to believe Mille Lacs has become a dead sea for the time being.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks for the replies. I have 17' Tracker with a 90hp evinrude. There were no white caps last night but the wind was fairly strong out on the flats. There were 3 launch boats and about 3-4 smaller boats there as well. We only caught 2 from 10pm to midnight. I did throw out 150' of rope as the instructions state. I probably should have thrown out the other anchor but I wanted to see if that thing could hold as advertised. I'll have to keep playing around with it I guess.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Take it back and get a 25lb Richter, that thing will hold a bus out down there.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I agree with 18 " Crappie. Take it back and get something different.

Check Cabela's.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have used all different anchors. I swear by the PRO ANCHOR its been awesome and easy to use plus you dont have to have 3 ft of chain on the end to scratch up the boat. The only thing is that you should have twice the rope out as the depth.

Tom

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I run an 1890 Warrior (love the boat) smile.gif, I have a waterspike (lightweight and very effective), 4' chain, 100'-3/8" solid braided rope, and it is a must to tie directly off the bow of the boat. If that doesn't hold, you probably shouldn't be out there.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have two Water Spikes and take with whichever size I think I'll need for the day. I only use a 100' rope, but I do have a chain attached. Like mentioned earlier, I think it is important to keep tension on the anchor as it slips down or it will flip over and not work. I also slowly let out the last 20' of rope and "feel" the anchor catching and digging into the bottom. Tie to or through the bow eye to get the lowest possible angle.

EJ

Link to comment
Share on other sites

No matter what if you use your anchor in rocks/wind often you better use chain on the anchor side(3to5 feet)or you will be getting wet retreaving your anchor every year or so.c63 smirk.gif

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have same anchor and had the same problem out on big sandy. After a few tries I had it figuered out. Make sure you have begun drifting in the direction of the wind and your bow is pointed into the wind then drop anchor. Drop fairly slow but not slow enough that there is too much slack, a little is what you want till you hit bottom. Once you hit bottom Let out a boat load of rope, then as you drift keep slight tension to lock anchor in place. When there is a few feet of rope left, grab rope to check the hold, should be there and then slowly release rest of slack. Holds me in white caps, course I'm not out on mille lacs!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I just got a waterspike this year also and I definitly agree;

Quote:

If that doesn't hold, you probably shouldn't be out there.


Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest
This topic is now closed to further replies.


  • Your Responses - Share & Have Fun :)

    • leech~~
      Nope not me.  May want to go nextdoor and ask around?  
    • smurfy
      Looks to me like Leech brought his chair home!!😅😆
    • Brianf.
      I'm not there, so I can't tell exactly what's going on but it looks like a large area of open water developed in the last day with all of the heavy snow on the east side of wake em up Narrows. These two photos are from my Ring Camera facing north towards Niles Point.  You can see what happened with all of snow that fell in the last three days, though the open water could have been wind driven. Hard to say. .  
    • SkunkedAgain
      Black Bay had great ice before but a few spots near rockpiles where there were spots of open water. It looks like the weight of the snow has created a little lake in the middle of the bay.  
    • LakeofthewoodsMN
      On the south end...   Thanks to some cold spring weather, ice fishing continues strong for those still ice fishing.  The bite remains very good.  Most resorts have pulled their fish houses off for the year, however, some still have fish houses out and others are allowing ATV and side by sides.  Check social media or call ahead to your favorite resort for specifics. Reports this week for walleyes and saugers remain excellent.   A nice mix of jumbo perch, pike, eelpout, and an occasional crappie, tullibee or sturgeon being reported by anglers. Jigging one line and using a live minnow on the second line is the way to go.  Green, glow red, pink and gold were good colors this week.     Monster pike are on a tear!  Good number of pike, some reaching over 45 inches long, being caught using tip ups with live suckers or dead bait such as smelt and herring in 8 - 14' of water.   As always, work through a resort or outfitter for ice road conditions.  Safety first always. Fish houses are allowed on the ice through March 31st, the walleye / sauger season goes through April 14th and the pike season never ends. On the Rainy River...  The river is opened up along the Nelson Park boat ramp in Birchdale, the Frontier boat ramp and Vidas boat ramp.  This past week, much of the open water skimmed over with the single digit overnight temps.   Areas of the river have popped open again and with temps getting warmer, things are shaping up for the last stretch through the rest of the spring season, which continues through April 14th.   Very good numbers of walleyes are in the river.  Reports this week, even with fewer anglers, have been good.  When temps warm up and the sun shines, things will fire up again.   Jigs with brightly colored plastics or jigs with a frozen emerald shiner have been the desired bait on the river.  Don't overlook slow trolling crankbaits upstream as well.   Good reports of sturgeon being caught on the river as well.  Sturgeon put the feed bag on in the spring.  The bite has been very good.  Most are using a sturgeon rig with a circle hook loaded with crawlers or crawlers / frozen emerald shiners. Up at the NW Angle...  Ice fishing is winding down up at the Angle.  Walleyes, saugers, and a number of various species in the mix again this week.  The bite is still very good with good numbers of fish.  The one two punch of jigging one line and deadsticking the second line is working well.   Check with Angle resorts on transport options from Young's Bay.  Call ahead for ice road guidelines.  
    • CigarGuy
      With the drifting, kind of hard to tell for sure, but I'm guessing about a foot and still lightly snowing. Cook end!
    • PSU
      How much snow did you get on Vermilion? 
    • Mike89
      lake here refroze too...  started opening again yesterday with the wet snow and wind...  very little ice left today...
    • Hookmaster
      A friend who has a cabin between Alex and Fergus said the lake he's on refroze. He texted me a pic from March 12th when it was open and one from 23rd when it wasn't. 🤯
    • SkunkedAgain
      I don't think that there has been any ice melt in the past few weeks on Vermilion. Things looked like a record and then Mother Nature swept in again.   I'll give my revised guess of April 21st
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue.