We’re sitting in Newport RI today as it gusts close to 40 knots. I’m quite confident in our anchor and chain and while I have the anchor monitor running I’m not expecting to see anything but a perfect line. The plan is to stay here for two weeks or so and by the end I’m expecting to find a perfect circle on the monitor.

One thing we can not be sure of is the quality of our neighbors’ anchors and skills. And that’s where the laser range finder comes in. Key is to purchase a waterproof one but any golf range finder will do and we’ve picked up ours quite cheap on Amazon.

We use it every time we anchor. First when picking out a spot to make sure we have enough room, then after the anchor is set to get a “lay of the land” and then when anyone comes to anchor near us. I always check their distance, mostly since I always feel as though folks anchor too close but if they’re 200 meters away then I can check my feelings and trust the numbers.

And then finally we use it at times like this, when the wind is up and there is a chance that someone will drag anchor.