Doubling up on anchor power

Anyone who usually anchors in tidal rivers could be forgiven for abandoning any ideas of setting an extra hook. It’s all very well reading about swivels, rolling hitches on the bight of a cable below the water, and ‘Bahamian moors’, but the possibilities for any of these to lead to tangles and grief can put you right off. With good reason. It’s a different story in an open roadstead, lying head to wind. There, hanging off your best bower and not liking the look of the weather, it’s very simple to load the biggest spare anchor into the dinghy with a length of chain and the longest warp you possess. Make the end fast on board then row away as far as you can, paying out as you go. Drop the anchor so that it makes around 30° with the bower cable. Back on board, heave in until the hook takes and you see the bower cable just starting to dip. The load is now on both anchors.