How to anchor a boat

To anchor a boat good, you need to use two anchors. One for the front and one for the back. What I do is drop the back anchor at least 20 feet behind where you want to anchor the boat. Then, I troll forward about 20 feet past where I want the boat anchored while letting out rope from the back and I drop the front anchor. Then, I pull the boat backwards with the anchor rope in the back while letting out rope in the front. Once both anchors are out and the back anchor is far behind the boat and the front anchor is far in front of the boat, I tie off both ropes tight and the boat is stationary.
Just dropping anchors under the boat will rarely hold. You must have plenty of rope out. It is very difficult to anchor a boat on a downward slope with wind pushing the boat toward the deeper water. In that case, you need to have enough rope to put the anchor on a level spot before the drop and allow the boat to drift over the drop. The deeper the water, the more rope you need. If the water is over 15 ft deep, it is probably best to use only one anchor - on the front so you don't take waves over the back of the boat. You will need at least 5 ft of rope for every foot of depth.

Lake Fork Guide

How to Anchor