True. That doesn't mean you need to carry it right at the bow.


derbyrm wrote:
But that's where the self draining storage compartment is shown by the
designer.


That's a good feature. I didn't think much of anchor wells
until we owned a boat that had one. Bolger's designs have
the added benefit of being able to get the weight down
lower. Still want to minimize weight up front.

The boat's not a one-design racer but it's small enough to
suffer if you were to carry too much weight up there.



Misunderstanding here! I gave up the idea of an all chain rode when I gave
up on my version of Badger. The short heavy length is what I'm thinking of.
Or a keggle.


Don't know what a keggle is.

We do a lot of anchoring in shallow muddy places. The set-up
we use for our "working" anchor is a shorter (40') length of
heavier chain. Bought from a farm-supply store at approx 1/2
marine prices (yes it is HT hot galvanized, same stuff).


I imagine that most of my anchoring will be along the shores of the Ohio
River, and there's some pretty nasty jetsum, up to and including houses and
sunken barges, in those parts.


You'll probably want a trip line. We rarely use one. Our
plan is to do an eastern loop (or Great Loop or
circumnavigate West Virginia) via the ICW, Hudson, Erie
Canal, Great Lakes, Mississippi River, down & around
Florida... up the Ohio for at least a short stretch, so
we'll see what it's like too.

Aren't there a lot of nice lakes in that area?




That's an idea I really like! I keep forgetting that I'll have all that
storage under the cockpit seats. Once it's rinsed off, it can go by the
battery bank (with proper insulation/protection/baffles).


Can you put in a self-draining shelf to put it on? The darn
things are almost always dirty & damp.

Here's my current project
http://community.webshots.com/album/82561569ZSrzNA

Fresh Breezes- Doug King