Kayak Anchor

Saltwater Kayak Fishing
1

The kayak we recently bought came with a 3lb. foldable grappling anchor. It seemed to work fine but we need an anchor for our other kayak. Trying to stay in place and fish was kind of a pain without anyway to stay put. Since I have to buy one, is the foldable grappling anchor the best overall choice or is there a better alternative.

Thanks

2

Before buying anything, see what you have sitting around. A 5 to 10 pound barbell will work in a pinch. Some quickrete poured in an old coffee can…many options. I have my old 8lb mushroom anchor and it works just fine.

John

1996 Sunbird Spirit 170 - 112 Johnson
15’ Ocean Kayak Scupper Pro

3

I started using a 5lb steel doughnut weight from a barbell set but it wouldnt’ hold in strong winds/current. I got a 3lb foldable grapple and it works great and is 2lbs lighter. The first day I used it I got it snagged up on some bottom rip rap and couldn’t pull it loose. Had to add a line to the anchor and paddle to shore where I could stand on exposed rip rap and pull hard to get it loose. Next day that I had it out the threaded pin that attaches the shackle to the anchor worked itself loose and I left everything but the shackle on the bottom.

So my advice would be get another grapple, tie the anchor line to the bottom ring and lash that line to the top shackle with some 20lb mono. That way it will work as designed (pulled from the top shackle) but if it gets stuck you’ll be able to break the mono and pull from the bottom to free it up.

Second I took a punch and mashed the threads a bit to make sure the shackle pin won’t come loose again.

4

I am going to get a small ‘bruce’ anchor for my kayak…I’ll tie the rope to the bottom eye and lash it to the top of the anchor with a zip tie, in case it gets hung up I’ll be able to break it free.

5

A 5 lb dumbell works great, and you can wrap the rope around it.

6

A stake out pole works best as long as your depth is adequate for placing it. I use a stake out pole and a 5 pound dumbell as mentioned in the previous posts. You can get the kind wrapped in soft rubber and not worry about scarring up your boat.