ANCHORS AWAY and further away the better.
Been there, done that and am no better off for doing it! My old 30' Hunter sailboat loved the 33 and the 44 Bruce until our harbors filled with ell grass. The Bruce after that would hook on the bottom until pressure was applied and then bring up a 100# chunk of ocean bottom.
So after graduating to a 40' completely enclosed Silverton aft cabin, I ventured into muck and mud where no sensible mariner would think about. First with a 55# Delta....POS so I moved to bigger and better with an 88# Delta with the same miserable experiences.
Time for a modern, hi tech anchor so I then moved to an 80# Manson Supreme! SUPREME DISAPOINTMENT! OH, all anchors on my Silverton have 5/16" HT chain along with a HUGE Maxwell windlass powered with 24vdc. The windlass has the power to rip gonads off elephants!
My latest experiences with Mr. Supreme occurred at Lake Tashmo and Lagon Pond on Vineyard Haven. Both of these places have a mix of mud and a complement of ell grass. At Tashmo, I used a scope of at least 6, set the anchor with twin 454's pulling the chain until it resembled a steel rod. That sucker was meant to stay put and stay put it did until.....
Yes the wind changed from out of the E to out of the SW. I was actually watching my GPS which had formed 3/4 of a circle when the #$%^& plot changed it zigzags! The pig slipped!!!! Later in crowded conditions I reset it again with twin 454's and we slept through the night with me constantly checking the GPS.
Next afternoon we moved to Lagon Pond and caught the 3:15 bridge opening. Exciting moments with a 20+ wind blowing down the pond and 1 foot of chop along with again pleasant crowded anchoring conditions. WELL IT DIDN'T! That sucker would NOT set period!
Wifey and I searched several additional places to secure the POS to no avail. Finally we succumbed to life's luck and grabbed an unoccupied mooring for the night. Yeah, we should have searched out the owner and paid for the night but I put valor behind me and we moved to inside the town's breakwater where we were fortunate to get a mooring that would accommodate a 40' power boat.
DISGUSTED!
So I joined the Trawler forum and read positive responses pertaining to the Fortress. I was fed up! Got online with EBay and ordered an FX 55 Fortress and I just don't know what the heck else I need to do to sleep at night. Time will tell!