When we entered Anders Olsens Sund we knew there was a southerly blow about to arrive. The wind was already becoming gusty and bringing with it lashings of supercooled rain. We knew we had to find a really good holding for the anchor if we were to sleep soundly as the blow went through.
With great care we felt our way into the Sound to seek water shallow enough to anchor in and yet sufficiently offshore to allow us to swing on our chain with wind shifts and gusts. A delicate balance but crucial to get it right.
The first anchor drop was in 13 metres and we set 60 metres of chain. It bit the bottom but when we motored hard astern it dragged and later came up with a scoop of thin mud.
Tim on the bow patiently and persistently set, raised and re-set the anchor in order to find the perfect holding. Each time it went down and set but the mud on the bottom wasn't strong enough to take the strain. After half a dozen or so attempts we dropped in 9 metres and set 80 metres of chain which is a generous scope by anybody's standards.
We had found a place with plenty of swinging room and with 3,000rpm in reverse it still stuck hard. We figured with that we could sleep soundly as the winds rose through the night.
Needless to say I didn't sleep soundly as the boat rocked and swung with the wind humming in the rigging. A couple of times my anchor alarm went off but these were false alarms triggered by poor gps reception. Nevertheless each alarm had to be checked to make sure our transits hadn't budged.
The morning broke with sunshine and a stiff, cold wind whipping up waves in the Sound towards us. To the east the jagged mountains of Greenland had acquired fresh snow and sat below lenticles of cloud in an otherwise blue sky. A sure sign of plenty of wind being about.
We pulled in a forecast from space and confirmed that today was a day to remain at anchor reading, writing , baking and dozing. Warm and dry in our deck saloon we can watch that our anchor holds and enjoy a spectacular anchorage. If the wind abates a bit this afternoon we may be able to get ashore in the dinghy and possibly fly the drone to make a unique photographic record of our visit to Anders Olsens Sund.
