Setting up your anchor means matching the anchor type, chain length, and line to your boat so it holds when you drop it and releases fast when you hook a running fish. In this How 2 Tuesday I walk through the anchor systems I run on my three Yellowfins, a 17 skiff, a 24 bay boat, and a 36 offshore boat. The recipe is the same idea scaled up: a plow or rock anchor for the bottom you fish, chain roughly the length of the boat, and a manageable anchor line that clips to longer sections so you can deploy an anchor ball and leave the rig to chase a tarpon or sailfish. I also cover the breakaway rig and the safety mistakes that sink boats.
Listen now: press play in the player above and follow along.
Build it as a system. Pick an anchor that suits your bottom, often a plow style, and carry a rock anchor too if you fish rocky areas. Use chain roughly the length of your boat, since more chain lets you get away with a lighter anchor. Then run a manageable utility line, about twice your typical depth, that clips to longer sections. Finish with an anchor ball so you can untie, clip on the ball, and leave the rig to chase a fish.
A good rule of thumb is roughly the length of your boat. On a seventeen-foot skiff I use about twelve to seventeen feet of chain, on the bay boat about twenty to twenty-five, and on the thirty-six about thirty to thirty-six feet. More chain helps the anchor lie flat and bite, so you can run a lighter anchor and still hold. I do not mind pulling a slightly heavier anchor if it means it sets the first time and rarely slips.
Because you do not want a thousand feet of line piled in the boat when you hook a fish you have to chase. Run a manageable utility line, say fifty to sixty feet on the skiff or eighty to a hundred on the bay boat, with a clip on the end, then add longer hundred- and two-hundred-foot sections as needed. Splice the connections smooth rather than knotting them so an anchor-ball retriever can ride over them cleanly.
An anchor ball is a floating poly ball you clip to the anchor line so you can drop off the anchor and chase a running fish, then return and pick the rig back up. The size depends on current and scope, since a hard tide can pull a small ball completely underwater and hide your anchor until slack tide. A bigger ball on the offshore boat, a small one on the skiff, and a mid-size on the bay boat works well.
It is a rig that lets you free a stuck anchor by pulling it out the same way it went in. You attach the chain solidly to the bottom of the anchor, then secure it loosely at the top with zip ties, monofilament, or strong nylon string. When the anchor hangs up, pulling hard breaks the top attachment so the anchor pivots and slides out backward, just like backing a hook out of your finger the way it went in.
The biggest one is anchoring from the stern in a small skiff or kayak under a strong tide. The anchor sets, the current loads the transom, and it can pull the stern straight underwater and sink the boat. Always anchor from the bow, and carry a knife so you can cut the line free if the wind or tide builds and you cannot pull the anchor. An anchor can swamp a boat shockingly fast.
I anchor a 17 skiff, a 24 bay boat, and a 36 offshore boat, and the recipe scales: the right anchor, chain about the length of the boat, and line matched to the depth. I explain how the requirements shift between the three in the episode, so press play in the player above.
The whole point is being able to drop off the anchor and chase a tarpon or sailfish. Modular, spliced line sections and an anchor ball let me untie and go in seconds instead of fighting a thousand feet of rope. I detail the retriever and the ball sizing in the episode, so press play in the player above.
From plow to rock to Danforth anchors, plus the breakaway rig and the deadly mistake of anchoring a small boat from the stern, this is where setup becomes safety. I cover why a knife is mandatory in the episode, so press play in the player above.
Anchoring has a lot more to it than most people think. Pick the right anchor for your bottom, use enough chain, build a line system you can clear fast, and never anchor a small boat from the stern, and you will hold where you want and be ready to chase the fish you came for.
How 2 Tuesday is my weekly series where I break down one fishing skill at a time, from knots and casting to gear, tactics, and the habits that make you a better angler. Watch and listen to every How 2 Tuesday episode from Tom Rowland.
anchor · anchor ball · plow anchor · rock anchor · Danforth · anchor chain · Yellowfin · breakaway rig · tarpon · skiff · How 2 Tuesday · Saltwater Experience
I'm Tom Rowland, a professional fishing guide based in the Florida Keys, host of the Tom Rowland Podcast, and the longtime host of the Saltwater Experience television show. On the podcast's How 2 Tuesday series I break down one practical skill or lesson at a time, from fishing technique and gear to the habits that make you a better angler, in short, focused episodes you can put to use right away.
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