Yesterday night we anchored in a tiny cove in preparation to round the corner on the Gulf of Panama. As we snooped around in 24 feet of water we found a nice, but tight place to drop the hook. I motored forward, slowed to a stop and started to drop the anchor while backing down. I got about 25 feet of chain out when the windless when THUNK and all motion of outgoing chain stopped. A quick inspection of the gypsy and chain stripper revealed no jam, so I tried to pull a few inches in and observed the links would not go down the hole. It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out the chain must have jammed in the tube. So I bolted down to the forward stateroom to open the doors to the anchor locker. Sure enough there were three lengths of chain heading into a tube designed to let one length pass through it. I figured just pulling down on each of the lengths would free the obstruction. Grab, yank, yank, yank. Grab a different one, yank, yank, yank, Hmm, grab the third one, yank yank, yank. Hmmmm, Grab two, YANK, YANK, YANK. Nothing. Ok time for the big guns. About this time the wife yells down. Scott, you need to come up here, we are getting too close to the rocks. Remember I said I had started to back down on the chain? Well, in the excitement I never shifted out of reverse. When I arrived at the pilot house I quickly realized I'd left the boat in reverse gear so I shifted into forward to stop my momentum toward the rocks. Now, lets think. 25 feet of chain hanging down. Check the depth, 15 feet. Hmm, better swing the back of the boat around and back out. Well it all worked like a champ, I got the boat and dangling anchor in deeper water and went back to clear the jam. A few attempts finally freed the links and we returned to anchor without incident. Later, while standing in the bridge reflecting on how the incident played out I realized how important it was that Marian was alert enough to insist on calling me to the pilothouse. I went into the saloon and said "Marian, thank you for warning me about the rocks. You really saved the day". I think she was pretty proud of herself and I sure wasn't going to miss the chance to tell her she had really made a difference. Another lesson learned, don't let a panic response cause you to leave the helm without knowing exactly whats going on. Of as they fly boys say, in any emergency the first order of business is FLY the Plane. Scott Bulger, Alanui, N40II, Seattle WA 47 miles from Flaminco Yacht Club, Panama