1.5 Miles Due West of Rock Hall to Rock Hall

We had a bit of a ride through the night. The wind velocity steadily increased from the time we anchored until around 0200 when sustained winds in the low to mid-twenties with gusts into the low thirties lasted until about 0500. Waves increased to averaging 4 feet. At about 0230 the anchor started to drag.

Boat US Towboat

We anchored in 10 feet of water with our Rocna 20 and 150 feet of chain out. The bottom must have been pretty soft since we had never dragged before. We were on the edge of a silty shoal. So, we were not totally surprised that we were dragging under the existing conditions. What did surprise us was the speed at which we were dragging. Our Navionics software showed us moving at 1 knot and we could watch our boat icon moving across the electronic chart. Immediate action was required to stop our movement.

Dwayne decided dropping our second bow anchor was the best option. Preparations were made to do so prior to going out on deck. First, we called the Coast Guard to inform them of our situation and intentions so should anything happen while on deck a quick call could be made if assistance were required. Bonine was taken as a precaution to prevent sea sickness. Then, Dwayne dressed for the cold and windy weather. Then he donned his automatically inflatable life preserver, attached a tether to it, slipped a flashlight in his pocket and put a headband light on his head.

Carla served as the spotter in the cockpit and watched Dwayne crawl forward on his hand and knees to the bow to eventually deploy the second anchor, a Fortress 33 with 100 feet of chain. The boat was moving fast enough while dragging the Rocna that the Fortress was able to set and from that point on the boat was securely anchored. We dragged a full half mile before getting the boat finally hold in place for the rest of the night.

Dwayne went back to bed once it appeared we were not moving further. Carla stayed up to read and monitored the electronic chart to make sure we indeed were not dragging again. She returned to bed when the winds started to decrease in speed at around 0500.

At about 0700, our friend, Suzanne called with information about a diver we could contact to remove the line from the fouled propeller and perhaps clean the boat's bottom at the same time. Dwayne contacted the diver who said he only dove in the summer and we'd have to find someone else to do the job. As far as he knew, there was no one else in the Rock Hall area diving. As a result, we had to arrange to have the boat hauled out of the water.

Dwayne consulted the Active Captain data and decided to contact Haven Harbour Marina to see if they could do a short-haul and power wash sometime in the late afternoon as it would take several hours for the waves to settle and improve conditions for the tow to the marina. They said they could work us into their schedule. Then, Dwayne contacted Boat US Towing to arrange for the tow to Rock Hall. The towboat was coming out of Baltimore and would take an hour to arrive at our location. Dwayne requested the tow to arrive at 1300 so we'd arrive at Haven Harbour Marina travel lift at 1500 for the haul-out.

Haven Harbour Marina Skif - To The Travel Lift

Everything went well the rest of the day. Dwayne and Carla ate breakfast, hauled in the Fortress anchor just as the tow boat arrived. The tow bridle was secured to Foreign Affair and the primary anchor brought aboard. The towboat's captain did a fine job of getting us into Rock Hall harbor where we rendezvoused with the skif from Haven Harbour Marina that would guide us into the Travel Lift. The Travel Lift crew was standing by with slings in the water. Soon, Foreign Affair was in the air and moved to the wash deck. Less than an hour later, she was back in the water and in a nearby slip for the evening. It was a very smooth operation from start to finish.

Crab Pot Lines Foul Propeller and Rudder

Ready for Power Wash

A Clean Bottom

We called Suzanne and Frank as soon as we were tied off in our slip to invite them out for dinner. They happened to also be at the marina when we called. Frank had just finished working on a boat docked near us. We spent some time visiting before heading off for dinner at Pasta Plus. We stopped at the Dollar General store next to the restaurant to pick up more provisions prior to heading back to the boat. It was a good and productive afternoon.

We took showers after dinner and watched some TV. The marina wifi was working well. So, we spent some time on the web. Life couldn't have been better today.