Anchoring in the Fraser River

Anchoring in a boat is a necessity if you want to boat-fish for sturgeon on the Fraser river and its tributaries. Most times, anchoring is just another task, a stuck anchor is just an annoyance, and all works out well in the end. However, there will be instances where sturgeon anglers find themselves in a pickle when anchoring, or retrieving their anchor in the Fraser river, including myself. You are in moving water – the speed at which moments can go awry is breathtaking. Here are some tips to help you have a successful, enjoyable and most importantly, safe outing.

Anchor styles vary, but the most commonly used anchor in the Fraser is a 4-claw anchor. Simply, these anchors work. You can find them in varying sizes and weights to suit your needs. Danforth style anchors are common on salt water crafts, where sand or mud is common in mooring areas. However, Danforths are of little value to our needs, particularly when you are fishing in gravel or boulder type substrates; they simply do not grab as well in those types of bottoms -they simply skip along the cobbly substrate or drag through it. Not to mention, they have a nasty way of “kiting” down to the bottom, meaning, where you dropped it, is not necessarily where it’s going to land.

If you are manually pulling a 4-claw anchor, it is highly advisable to use the breakaway version. This is where your anchor chain is attached to the “bottom”, or “upstream” portion of the anchor, where the main cross bar has the 4 tines welded to. There should be a welded steel loop or eye in the center of the crossbar to attach to. Most hand-retrieved Fraser river style anchors have this, unless your anchor is to be used with a windlass or winch. When attaching your chain to the anchor, have it in your mind that this will be “permanently” attached. An appropriate size anchor shackle works well in this instance. Do not use a carabiner – they can fail, causing a lost anchor. When you put the bolt through the anchor shackle and chain, ensure to tighten the bolt well. A proper anchor shackle will have a hole at the end of the “through-bolt” – wire this end through the bolt and around the shackle to stop the bolt from turning and eventually loosening.

After attaching the chain to the main cross bar, run your chain down the stem. There should be another steel loop welded to the end of the stem. At this loop, wrap a heavy-duty zip tie through the chain and the loop. The purpose of this set up is to provide the opportunity for the zip tie to break, allowing you to pull the anchor up from the upstream end of the anchor, which offers a higher degree of success in removing the anchor from any hang-up that you may encounter (you are essentially reversing out of the snag or hang-up). I had never lost an anchor to a snag or hang-up using this method. I’m sure many will agree that this set up is quite effective for the “hand-bomber”.

The next critical part of the anchor rig is to have an anchor or bow roller installed at the bow, and to ensure it is dead center. They are not overly expensive, and I believe any cost for a good bow roller is well worth the price for safety’s sake alone – it allows for a safe deployment and a much easier retrieval of your anchor. This will keep the boat straight when retrieving the anchor. Pulling anchor from the side or over the gunnels is dangerous and can cause your boat to capsize. Often times, a complete bow roller comes with a little nest for your anchor to rest on. This nest is handy, clean, and keeps the anchor in place when travelling. An anchor nest allows for more room in the boat and provides a safe place to store your anchor while travelling on the river.

Chain and rope are the next pieces to consider. A general rule of thumb is to use a chain length that is 1 – 1.5 times the length of your boat – you can vary this once you know your boat weight and fishing location preferences. Choose a size of chain that you are comfortable in handling. After the chain, good quality rope that lays flat and coils easily, and that has no “memory” is the best – pay for good rope. I recommend 5/8” or ¾” Gold Braid rope as it is easy to grab and pull, it lays flat and does not have memory or coils. Again, an appropriate-sized shackle can be used to attached the looped end of the rope to the chain. At the boat-end of the rope, add a quality carabiner. The carabiner will allow you to quickly disconnect your anchor from your boat, should you need to do so in an emergency such as incoming barge traffic or drifting debris. An important tip: Use a large and hi-vis float with a section of rope that you can attach to your main anchor line (make this float and rope section shorter than the length of your boat to avoid engine entanglement). Should you need to disconnect, you simply detach the anchor from the boat and send the attached float over the bow. The float will allow you to come back to your anchor position to retrieve your anchor, or to simply re-attach to your boat. This is a slick and effective manner to detach your boat from your anchor. The length of anchor rope will vary on the depths and speeds of water you will be fishing. I can recommend that 80 – 100 feet of rope will be adequate. Of note; over time you will find that your rope loses its stretch, which will serve to make anchor pulling actually easier.

When deploying your anchor, do so from the front of the boat whether you have a roller on front or not. With or without a roller, ensure that your feet are not caught up in the “byte” of loose rope, to avoid foot entanglement. Take your time, and let the rope slide out of your hand. Experience and knowledge of the spot you are anchoring in will determine how fast you deploy your anchor.

When retrieving your anchor, your anchor roller is truly an ally in this regard. The roller will funnel the rope to the center of your bow, allowing for better boat control and ease of retrieval. The roller ultimately provides a high degree of safety. If you do not have a roller, ensure you are pulling your anchor rope from the very center of the boat. Do NOT pull from the side of the boat! If your anchor becomes stuck, you can manually pull it hard enough to break the zip tie or you can utilize your boat by powering up and moving gently forward to break the zip tie – again, an anchor roller is your friend. When using the motor, you must be cautious and watch for any bow dip; do not bury your boat’s bow below water line. If you can’t retrieve it safely, throw the float out and come back for the anchor with a friend who has a bigger boat.

Before I deploy my anchor, I generally look over the area I’m planning on anchoring in. Are you close to shore where there are several trees down in the river? Are you seeing snags at the surface in the area you are planning to anchor in? Can I see clumps of debris on the bottom with my sounder? If you are seeing these obstacles, please be aware of the risk in getting your anchor stuck.

For me personally, I choose to fish areas where the water is not moving at a fast pace – this is for safety and for “fishability”. My general rule of thumb is, if I can idle in gear and move upstream, the water speed is suitable and not too fast. Your rule may be somewhat different, depending on the size of your boat.

If you are using a windlass or anchor winch, your safety features are increased significantly, however, you must still use a common-sense approach to anchoring, particularly in unfamiliar waters. While this method utilizes the 4-claw anchor, the breakaway system is not utilized near as much in this method – the power of windlasses can break the zip-tie breakaway. Instead, anchors with windlasses usually have a bar along the stem that permits the anchor chain to slide back and forth on, acting in a similar fashion as a breakaway to allow you to pull the anchor from the upstream end.

Once anchored, you are now immobile – the river current is bringing floating debris to you. Keep an eye upstream of any large branches, logs or washed away trees drifting down to you.

As well, if you’re anchored in a navigation channel, be aware of the barge traffic running the route. It is up to you to avoid being in their path, so keep an eye out for them – and make their life just a little less stressful. Anchoring is tricky business at any time, but none more so in moving water or in windy conditions. No fish is worth risking your life over. Play it safe and become experienced and familiar. Over time, you will become more comfortable and confident with how and where to anchor.

Whether you are looking for a day trip fishing or you want to stay longer, we can arrange everything from your pickup at the airport in a limo, to your hotel accommodation and the best guided fishing tours in the Fraser Valley. Please contact Marc or Maggie on Toll Free: 1-877-887-4366 or use our contact form.