This article is intended to be your annual checklist. If this is the first time you have inspected your ground tackle, then it will very likely require much more than an inspection.  Ground tackle includes your anchor, rode (chain/rope) and windlass with its accessories. Before relaunching or setting out for your first cruise of the new year, invest some time in inspecting your ground tackle and performing any maintenance and repairs that will ensure you will less likely suffer any failures and will sleep well at night. Your primary anchor: if it is a one-piece design, simply look carefully for…

Every ocean-going vessel needs to have a dependable anchor windlass to take the hard work out of deploying and retrieving the anchor. We can choose between a traditional manual windlass or a modern electric model capable of handling extreme stresses in every type of anchoring situation.   Despite what you may have heard about manual windlasses, operating one does not require super-human powers. Quite to the contrary, a manual windlass is designed to make the job of raising the anchor easy, eliminating the strain you would otherwise endure by pulling up the hook and chain with your bare hands.  For…