Advice needed to find lost anchor.

[ABCer]

Here is the situation.

Two anchors of 20 and 25 kg joined by a chain are in about 2,5 - 3 m deep water on a sandy beach. Used them as a mooring point.

A round float on a rope was marking the position. One night the marker disappeared - I suspect by ill design. The speed boat drivers probably didn't like the inconvenience? Or some fisherman liked the float?

Advise how to retrieve the anchors. (If they are still there? same people might like to 'find' the anchors as well?)

Can't go dive 3 m deep at my age and with bad heart.

Anchor cost about 10,000 bt. Rent of scuba ?

What about a metal detector? Not sure it will work in water at this depth? And how much is rent?

Tried to catch with a grapple. So far no dice, - visibility is poor. Maybe I'm looking for something that isn't there?

Very upsetting. Could leave the boat on water for weeks. Now pulling it out with every use is not an option.

If I start again and buy new - some bastard will be the happier.

Any practical advice?

And thanks for inevitable wisecracks

[chrisinth]

Did you have the lat & long of the anchor assembly (as you were using it as a mooring)? I would get myself (or fabricate) a large substantial grapnel, set up a grid around the position and trawl across the position until you hook the connecting cable between the anchors.

Even if you don't know the exact position, doing a grid trawl should get you somewhere. Again, if you know any boats fitted with a good fish finder sonar, that could bring results, the shape of the anchor and cable should paint.

[ABCer]

Did you have the lat & long of the anchor assembly (as you were using it as a mooring)? I would get myself (or fabricate) a large substantial grapnel, set up a grid around the position and trawl across the position until you hook the connecting cable between the anchors.

Even if you don't know the exact position, doing a grid trawl should get you somewhere. Again, if you know any boats fitted with a good fish finder sonar, that could bring results, the shape of the anchor and cable should paint.

Thanks, chrisinth.

Not having a GPS I don't have the exact point. Mine is a small 23ft sailing trimaran. No electronics - daysailer.

Already made a grapnel. In April my friend is bringing his inflatable. Will do the grid trawling.

I visually know the point, give or take 10m. as it is on the beach in front of my condo.

Are you sure the chain and anchors will show on a fish finder? If they are there they could be under sand.

Yes, there are heaps of fishing boats around. Most are fitted with sonars.

[negreanu]

Wouldn't worry about it. There are plenty of Anchor's on Thaivisa.

[Seastallion]

2.5m deep? Even if you can't dive, you should be able to snorkel around (as you know the approximate location) and see them,....or is the water too murky?

Probably a dumb suggestion and question....of course the water is too murky or you would have found them by now. Nonetheless, it is quite shallow. How about snorkelling around towing/dragging a magnet on a piece of string?

[chrisinth]

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

Quote

Quote

Did you have the lat & long of the anchor assembly (as you were using it as a mooring)? I would get myself (or fabricate) a large substantial grapnel, set up a grid around the position and trawl across the position until you hook the connecting cable between the anchors.

Even if you don't know the exact position, doing a grid trawl should get you somewhere. Again, if you know any boats fitted with a good fish finder sonar, that could bring results, the shape of the anchor and cable should paint.

Thanks, chrisinth.

Not having a GPS I don't have the exact point. Mine is a small 23ft sailing trimaran. No electronics - daysailer.

Already made a grapnel. In April my friend is bringing his inflatable. Will do the grid trawling.

I visually know the point, give or take 10m. as it is on the beach in front of my condo.

Are you sure the chain and anchors will show on a fish finder? If they are there they could be under sand.

Yes, there are heaps of fishing boats around. Most are fitted with sonars.

Thinking about it, I believe fish finders use active sonar and are based on echo sounders, which (again I believe) is based on detection by noise. A side scan passive sonar will definitely show your anchor array.

Perhaps more knowledgeable mariners could verify the pros & cons of sonar for you before I send you down the wrong road...............

[speedtripler]

the cheapest opption would be to pay a thai witha snorkel to swim down and look for them .......

only about 2.5m would be nothing for a young person

unfortunately they may have been stolen along with the float ,10,000thb for a few minutes work woould

be very tempting for the average thai........

[seajae]

mate, I have riased /found lots of anchors over the years although some were a couple of hundred year old. If you know the general area you just use scuba and do a grid search , once you find the chain you just follow it back to the anchors, attach another chain with a shackle and then dig arounfd the anchors so that they will be able to be lifted. On a dive I did when doing a course('77) with the SAS in Australia I found an old anchor from a barque that had been wrecked on the island(Rottnest) and organized the salvage(I had done several already with my dive mates before joining). We simply dug around the anchor them when cleared we cut the old anchor chain, tied several vests to the anchor and popped them. They neutralized the weight and we(6 divers minus our fins) walked the anchor back into shallow water then used a winch to drag it onto the beach, I believe it now sits in front of the SAS dive wing. You could use the same principle, neutralize the anchor weight after digging around it then winch it up.

Edited February 27, 2014 by seajae

[transam]

Not deep. Get someone to dive in with a line and hook. Put the hook in the ring then you pull it up from up top.

[HooHaa]

given that your average dive instructor makes about 500 baht per day, you should just fin one throw him a thousand baht and point out where your anchors were.

[ABCer]

the cheapest opption would be to pay a thai witha snorkel to swim down and look for them .......

only about 2.5m would be nothing for a young person

unfortunately they may have been stolen along with the float ,10,000thb for a few minutes work woould

be very tempting for the average thai........

speedtripler, 3 weeks ago I have asked a bunch of Thai Marines on an inflatable with a motor to trawl around for it.

They turned out to be VERY nice guys. Went to the spot and started diving around. Couldn't find anything - too murky and hard to stay at the bottom without weights. Gave them a bottle of Vodka just for the effort and for being nice.

Unfortunately the lack of communication didn't lead to what I wanted them to do - grid trawling with a grapnel I made.

As to me - I have hardly enough oxygen on the beach. Yes, it is possible they stole those bloody anchors. But before I buy new I would like to know for sure and make sure the new ones do not follow the same road.

I was thinking of filling a volume of stones with cement, but there are two problems with this:

- holding will be only by weight, not like grabbing the sand;

- if I make it heavy enough how I deliver it to a spot about 100m off the beach and drop it?

Thanks anyway. Keep thinking, mate.

[ABCer]

mate, I have riased /found lots of anchors over the years although some were a couple of hundred year old. If you know the general area you just use scuba and do a grid search , once you find the chain you just follow it back to the anchors, attach another chain with a shackle and then dig arounfd the anchors so that they will be able to be lifted. On a dive I did when doing a course('77) with the SAS in Australia I found an old anchor from a barque that had been wrecked on the island(Rottnest) and organized the salvage(I had done several already with my dive mates before joining). We simply dug around the anchor them when cleared we cut the old anchor chain, tied several vests to the anchor and popped them. They neutralized the weight and we(6 divers minus our fins) walked the anchor back into shallow water then used a winch to drag it onto the beach, I believe it now sits in front of the SAS dive wing. You could use the same principle, neutralize the anchor weight after digging around it then winch it up.

Thanks, seajae. The problem is not to pull them out. The problem is finding them.

In poor visibility and covered by sand, I might miss the bloody thing even with an aqualung, which I do not have.

Once I found them - everything is OK. AND I'm not sure they are there.

[transam]

mate, I have riased /found lots of anchors over the years although some were a couple of hundred year old. If you know the general area you just use scuba and do a grid search , once you find the chain you just follow it back to the anchors, attach another chain with a shackle and then dig arounfd the anchors so that they will be able to be lifted. On a dive I did when doing a course('77) with the SAS in Australia I found an old anchor from a barque that had been wrecked on the island(Rottnest) and organized the salvage(I had done several already with my dive mates before joining). We simply dug around the anchor them when cleared we cut the old anchor chain, tied several vests to the anchor and popped them. They neutralized the weight and we(6 divers minus our fins) walked the anchor back into shallow water then used a winch to drag it onto the beach, I believe it now sits in front of the SAS dive wing. You could use the same principle, neutralize the anchor weight after digging around it then winch it up.

Thanks, seajae. The problem is not to pull them out. The problem is finding them.

In poor visibility and covered by sand, I might miss the bloody thing even with an aqualung, which I do not have.

Once I found them - everything is OK. AND I'm not sure they are there.

If the buoys were stolen the ropes would be floating around still. If no ropes then your anchors now belong to someone else. Concrete and ring is the only way forward.

[ABCer]

mate, I have riased /found lots of anchors over the years although some were a couple of hundred year old. If you know the general area you just use scuba and do a grid search , once you find the chain you just follow it back to the anchors, attach another chain with a shackle and then dig arounfd the anchors so that they will be able to be lifted. On a dive I did when doing a course('77) with the SAS in Australia I found an old anchor from a barque that had been wrecked on the island(Rottnest) and organized the salvage(I had done several already with my dive mates before joining). We simply dug around the anchor them when cleared we cut the old anchor chain, tied several vests to the anchor and popped them. They neutralized the weight and we(6 divers minus our fins) walked the anchor back into shallow water then used a winch to drag it onto the beach, I believe it now sits in front of the SAS dive wing. You could use the same principle, neutralize the anchor weight after digging around it then winch it up.

Thanks, seajae. The problem is not to pull them out. The problem is finding them.

In poor visibility and covered by sand, I might miss the bloody thing even with an aqualung, which I do not have.

Once I found them - everything is OK. AND I'm not sure they are there.

If the buoys were stolen the ropes would be floating around still. If no ropes then your anchors now belong to someone else. Concrete and ring is the only way forward.

Yes, transam, I agree.

The problems are few.

- concrete will only work as weight. No grabbing bottom.

My 23ft sailing tri is very light but the windage is substantial. Afraid it will drift.

- once I complete concreting how to deliver and drop it? no barge, no big boat, no lifting device.

Theoretically a simple task. Practically???

[impulse]

I've never had a personal diving problem that couldn't be solved for a 6 pack- but I was a beer whore.

Barring a good Samaritan needing to pay something forward, I'd get a big treble hook and some rope from a fishing shop, do some draglining, and hope I grabbed the chain.

You may start off with a fishing rod and a big, sacrificial treble hook to narrow down where it's at. You'll cover more water if you can cast a few dozen meters. Once you have it located, it should be straightforward.

[tom21]

use a grappling hook. if the bottom is sand and you know the general area just trawl with the hook on the bottom

[speedtripler]

if its only metres offshore and 2.5 metres deep unfortunately i would bet its been stolen but still worth a 500 thb

to send a diver down to check

it sounds crazy but things cheaper than 10,000 get stolen all the time

ive had helmets worth under 1000 stolen by cutting the strap from under my bike with a knife in public places never mind remote

areas like your place sounds like

[weegee]

the cheapest opption would be to pay a thai witha snorkel to swim down and look for them .......

only about 2.5m would be nothing for a young person

unfortunately they may have been stolen along with the float ,10,000thb for a few minutes work woould

be very tempting for the average thai........

speedtripler, 3 weeks ago I have asked a bunch of Thai Marines on an inflatable with a motor to trawl around for it.

They turned out to be VERY nice guys. Went to the spot and started diving around. Couldn't find anything - too murky and hard to stay at the bottom without weights. Gave them a bottle of Vodka just for the effort and for being nice.

Unfortunately the lack of communication didn't lead to what I wanted them to do - grid trawling with a grapnel I made.

As to me - I have hardly enough oxygen on the beach. Yes, it is possible they stole those bloody anchors. But before I buy new I would like to know for sure and make sure the new ones do not follow the same road.

I was thinking of filling a volume of stones with cement, but there are two problems with this:

- holding will be only by weight, not like grabbing the sand;

- if I make it heavy enough how I deliver it to a spot about 100m off the beach and drop it?

Thanks anyway. Keep thinking, mate.

Use old truck tyres tied together with chain or wire cable....they will bury themselves after a few tides...and you will never move them ever again.

[seajae]

old engine blocks are great too, use two with a length of chain between them. Did the old anchors have a couple of metres of chain or just rope running from them.

[seajae]

double post

Edited February 27, 2014 by seajae

[sirineou]

Design a 3 meter long grappling device, paint it red, wait until the wind is blowing from the west, and there is a full moon,

Take the grappling tool and throw it away

Then pay a kid 200 baht and have him dive all day for your anchor, tell him 100 bht bonus when he find it.

Buy a case of beer, and drink it while watching the kids having fun.

[Carib]

Go over the area with a recovery magnet, I am sure in a yachting environment one will be available somewhere.

If it can`t lift them it will help pinpointing.

Edited February 27, 2014 by Carib

[DanBlack]

Which bay were you moored in. Makes a difference on the recovery strategy

[ABCer]

Dear friends.

Thanks to one and all for taking interest.

Some of ideas are good.

Here is what happened yesterday:

Driving along the road I have noticed some Thai workers digging in bases for replacement el. carrying poles.

They were of truncated pyramid shape weighing about 1 ton. They used a small excavator to dig and lower them in.

Idea! I stopped and talked to the guy in charge. Getting one at 2000 bt - no problem. Good I didn't order one.

Because after this I went to see an owner of a fishing boat. Couldn't explain what I wanted, so I took him to the site and showed him the concrete block. Than I took him to my condo office and the girls gave him the explanations. Than I showed him the spot I wanted him to drop it in the water. Bingo! The great idea stinks! As I thought - for a job like this I need a bloody barge with an ample lifting device, plus there is a problem of putting the dam_n weight onto it.

Please NOTE: I am off to see Angkor for a week. After coming back will reappear again here. Don't think me being a pig. Meanwhile have fun.

See you in a week. Hope to find a practical solution here because I am getting frustrated.

Have a good week, everyone.

Edited February 28, 2014 by ABCer

[Thongkorn]

Wouldn't worry about it. There are plenty of Anchor's on Thaivisa.

Do you mean. W - Anchors. try asking a local who can swim if they will go down and find the Anchor, but be careful how you ask them to go down for you.