# Knots and Hitches



## bwest (Mar 13, 2008)

What are your favorite knots? Tying gear down on your car. Securing your rafts on the Grand Canyon. Tying up your friends while they're drunk. Rapelling down that sketchy portage in a remote canyon. Whatever you like to use, whats easiest, most functional, fun to tie.


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## MT4Runner (Apr 6, 2012)

I never could tie a truckers hitch reliably, so cam straps have always been my mainstay for gear on the car.

I love the bowline and figure 8 for tying loops. I like the bowline's smaller size, but love the look of a clean double-passed figure 8.

I also like the double fisherman for joining two ends of a line. I've had them on my perimeter lines, but will probably go to flat tape or tubing this season.


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## glenn (May 13, 2009)

8, 8 on a bight, butterfly, tucker's hitch, clove hitch, double fisherman's, prusik, water knot, girth hitch, "no-knot". I'm probably missing a couple but I feel like these are the basics. If you know all of these 90% of any rope situation can be handled with the proper application/variation.


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## crispy (May 20, 2004)

trucker hitch is best for tying something to a car - or a truck, that is why it is called a truckers hitch

seriously, it is worth learning. it is just an overhand knot with a slip loop pulled through (secure other end with a bowline first). then take the end though the loop, pull and tie a few half-hitches

only thing to watch out for is crushing any gear with the extra purchase you have - have seen a few expen$ive carbon windsurfing boards die this way


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## pilom (Dec 28, 2010)

Its all based on what you are trying to do. 

Connect 2 ropes end to end: Double Fisherman's Knot
Connect a rope to a pole: 2 half hitches
Connect a rope to a pole so you can tighten the rope: truckers hitch
Put a loop in the middle of a rope: butterfly knot

I would say that those 4 are all best practice knots. I'd be curious to hear why any other knot serves those purposes better.

The only one I'm on the fence about is:
Put a loop on the end of a rope: Bowline vs. Double Figure 8 

I know climbers always use Figure 8 but rescue workers use Bowlines to lift people for extractions. I guess the figure 8 just gives a little bit more confidence that it won't come untied?

But regardless you have those 5 knots, you can do all tasks you should use knots for. After those 5, you should have other equipment IMO.

Edit: OK I forgot "put a stopper in a rope: Basic figure 8." Granted I'm not sure this is really that good of an idea, but I use two of them to keep my throwbag at the right point on my rope. So 6 knots is all you need.


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## BarryDingle (Mar 13, 2008)

The bowline,cause you never know when you'll be at the bottom of a cliff

How to tie a Bowline - YouTube


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## MT4Runner (Apr 6, 2012)

IMHO a figure 8 is easier to untie after its been loaded than a bowline.


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## BarryDingle (Mar 13, 2008)

The more the merrier...

How To: Tie a Figure 8 Knot - YouTube


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## TriBri1 (Nov 15, 2011)

I'm a huge fan of the clove hitch to tie up the raft to a sand stake if there is going to be a water fluctuation. Bowline, if there is no sand stake or risk of water fluctuation. I use a truckers hitch for tying down the raft and for guidelines on tarps. (Although I have gotten lazy and use figure 9 quite a bit these days.


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## Fash (Jul 21, 2010)

TriBri1 said:


> I'm a huge fan of the clove hitch to tie up the raft to a sand stake if there is going to be a water fluctuation. Bowline, if there is no sand stake or risk of water fluctuation.


A trick a friend taught me before my Grand trip was to use a prusik for this. Bowline attached to boat, then a prusik tied around the bowline near the sand stake, then attach the other end of the prusik loop to the sand stake (I use a carabinder). Your bowline is now adjustable limited only by it's length. And the adjustment happens near the stake which should keep your feet dry. And if you're worried about the prusik holding, you can tie off the loose end of the bowline to the stake.


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## Wavester (Jul 2, 2010)

The clove hitch is probably one of the most usefull knots around, especially for firefighters and on the river. Easy to tie and get off, there are 2 ways that you need to learn to tie it though, around an object and directly onto an object and remember its a directional knot that needs tension to function correctly. Next most functional is a figure eight and then a bowline. 






TriBri1 said:


> I'm a huge fan of the clove hitch to tie up the raft to a sand stake if there is going to be a water fluctuation. Bowline, if there is no sand stake or risk of water fluctuation. I use a truckers hitch for tying down the raft and for guidelines on tarps. (Although I have gotten lazy and use figure 9 quite a bit these days.


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## hojo (Jun 26, 2008)

MT4Runner said:


> IMHO a figure 8 is easier to untie after its been loaded than a bowline.


If this is the case then I'd hazard that you're tying the bowline incorrectly. There should be no binding with a bowline as it's one of the easiest and strongest loop knots which comes apart rather more easily than an 8 on a bight or even a butterfly.

For the OP: I'd say go online and learn as many knots as possible. I have actually used a sheep shank to shorten a sled line while snowshoeing once. You never know when that one obscure knot will come in handy. Having said that, I'll add my other 2 cents:

Clove hitch AND the constrictor knot. Clove hitch can loosen but the constrictor will stay tighter under load cycles.

Anchor-less is great for quick tie-offs and for fast z-drag anchoring.

Trucker's hitch can be done with an overhand but using an 8 (quick twisting does the trick) is more appropriate (imo). Once you learn it, you'll love the speed.

Alpine butterfly

And two that don't get much notice but are great for setting up tarps are the buntline and tauntline hitches. Buntline for attaching to a corner of a tarp w/o a grommet and the tauntline to create tension.

Learn em all! http://www.netknots.com/rope_knots


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## beware209 (May 15, 2010)

Fash said:


> A trick a friend taught me before my Grand trip was to use a prusik for this. Bowline attached to boat, then a prusik tied around the bowline near the sand stake, then attach the other end of the prusik loop to the sand stake (I use a carabinder). Your bowline is now adjustable limited only by it's length. And the adjustment happens near the stake which should keep your feet dry. And if you're worried about the prusik holding, you can tie off the loose end of the bowline to the stake.


If you sleep on the boat try the prusik on the boat end of the bow line. If you're tied to tammies this also prevents you from having to approach rattler habitat in the dark.


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## pilom (Dec 28, 2010)

I'm surprised to hear so much love for the clove hitch. It is designed to pull along a pole not away from it (so tying off to a stake isn't correct, correct would be tying it at the top of a flagpole to mount a pully) and it needs constant tension to stay tight (so tying off a bobbing raft will make it looser).

Two half hitches is a much better knot for tying off to a stake. It doesn't untie under intermittent load and it is designed to pull perpendicular to the stake. If you need to make it adjustable either suck it up and do a truckers hitch or do an extra turn on the first half hitch and you have a taught-line hitch. 

The Clove hitch is not designed to tie off a raft!!!


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## Wavester (Jul 2, 2010)

I agree about not using a clove hitch to tie off a boat...but it does have many other uses and it's a down and dirty knot. Really just 2 apposing half hitches. I would use a bowline to tie a boat up..easy knot to tie around an object a figure eight follow through would be the only way to tie it around an object like a tree. Someone else mentioned using a Prussik on the bowline as a tensioner. Works great, here's a good picture.
Bowline Prussic loop for a river raft


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## Fash (Jul 21, 2010)

Yup, that's it. Except I like to tie the prusik at the sand stake end of the line, so you don't need to get near or in the water to adjust.


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## okieboater (Oct 19, 2004)

The prusik is neat.

Another trick I was taught by a rafting bud on a GC trip was this.

put the sand stake in the sand, pull the raft up on the beach with your line attached securely to the raft (I like to take a couple wraps around the frame then a couple knots around the line, as it will be easier to untie the knots as the wraps take the strain off the knot) , at the point where the boat line is at the stake, tie a inline figure 8 knot loop and attach this loop to a biner then the biner to the sand stake. Now take the remaining line and run it across the beach to a very secure tie down. What this does is keep the beach clear of a knee hi trip wire and backs up the stake.

we had a sand stake pull out on one trip, fortunately someone was on the raft but woke up out in the river, ended up downstream of camp.

I have a painter line attached to the bow of the boat for normal tie down But have a 200 ft line in a bag for those wide sandy beach tie downs.


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## jimr (Sep 8, 2007)

Plus one on the clove hitch... EDK(European death knot) over double fisherman knot.


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## Issip (Apr 7, 2011)

hojo said:


> Learn em all! Rope Knots - Best Knots Animated and Illustrated


Cool website, I like Animated Knots by Grog | How to Tie Knots | Fishing, Boating, Climbing, Scouting, Search and Rescue, Household, Decorative, Rope Care, because their animations are standardized and you can go one step at a time while you're learning.


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## MT4Runner (Apr 6, 2012)

hojo said:


> If this is the case then I'd hazard that you're tying the bowline incorrectly. There should be no binding with a bowline as it's one of the easiest and strongest loop knots which comes apart rather more easily than an 8 on a bight or even a butterfly.


I tie them just like in the image at the top of the link you just posted. I think it's easier to "break the back" of the longer 8 on a bight. If an overhand knot is a 3 on a 1-10 scale of being difficult to untie after loading, IMHO an 8 is an 8 and a bowline is a 7...not much harder. Easier to tie a slip into an 8, though.


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## montuckyhuck (Mar 14, 2010)

MT4Runner said:


> I tie them just like in the image at the top of the link you just posted. I think it's easier to "break the back" of the longer 8 on a bight. If an overhand knot is a 3 on a 1-10 scale of being difficult to untie after loading, IMHO an 8 is an 8 and a bowline is a 7...not much harder. Easier to tie a slip into an 8, though.


Don't really care what you think in this instance. Bowline is easier to untie once weighted than any incarnation of a figure eight. Want to argue? Great! I have worked for THE most elite rope rescue technician team in the country aka YOSAR.... Google it....my favorite hitch, Munter Mule backed with overhand on a bite. Turs into a belay device even when loaded.


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## montuckyhuck (Mar 14, 2010)

Also, wild mile is a class III until 4,000 cfs... then it is IV....


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## MT4Runner (Apr 6, 2012)

Huh?


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## raferguson1 (Feb 13, 2007)

*Sheet Bend*

I did not see anyone mention the sheet bend, probably the best knot for tying together ropes of different diameters. Many knots are simply not appropriate for ropes of different diameters. The double sheet bend is preferred if the difference in diameters is large, and is probably more secure in any case.

My rule of thumb is that climbers knots are not easy to untie even if not loaded, while sailor's knots are generally easy to untie even after they are heavily loaded. The figure 8 vs the bowline is a good example of this.

The ring bend is like a prusic, except with one turn instead of two, often is more than adequate, a possible substitute for the clove hitch.

One cool thing about the clove hitch, is that you can quickly tie it and drop it over the end of a post or stake, even if you don't have access to either end! I can't think of any other knots with this feature.

Richard


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## montuckyhuck (Mar 14, 2010)

MT4Runner said:


> Huh?


My dumb sarcasm doesn't always come across right in text. But seriously, there is no way an eight tied any way is easier to untie once loaded.


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## montuckyhuck (Mar 14, 2010)

raferguson1 said:


> One cool thing about the clove hitch, is that you can quickly tie it and drop it over the end of a post or stake, even if you don't have access to either end! I can't think of any other knots with this feature.
> 
> Richard


except an alpine butterfly, or an overhand on a bite, or an 8 on a bite, or a munter mule, or anything else on a bite.....


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## MT4Runner (Apr 6, 2012)

montuckyhuck said:


> My dumb sarcasm doesn't always come across right in text. But seriously, there is no way an eight tied any way is easier to untie once loaded.




If you can convince that kid that the Swan is a III, all other III's will be boring by comparison! :lol:


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## fishnut (Jun 28, 2010)

Ditto on the Bowline, Seetbend, Tent or Rolling hitch, Clove hich, and two half hiches. Ahfter 30 years of offshore sailing and a few miles on the river, I have learned that it is best to learn to tie a few basic knots well in the worst of conditions than a litany of specialised knots poorly. One advantage of the Bowline is that you can tie it one handed if you have to.


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## TriBri1 (Nov 15, 2011)

fishnut said:


> One advantage of the Bowline is that you can tie it one handed if you have to.


This always makes me laugh, it seems to be the whole basis for learning the bowline in Boy Scouts to the point that I did not think it had any other purpose outside of helping me out of a crevasse/well/ditch/cave with a broken arm. I know that is it an immensely useful knot, but as a kid...


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## glenn (May 13, 2009)

Figure 8 can be tied one handed as well. While I know and tie both the 8 and bowline/bowline w/ yosemite backup regularly, I am much less likely to screw up the 8 because the visual check is more idiot proof.


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## fishnut (Jun 28, 2010)

Boy, it's way to easy to bait the figure 8ters around here!
Then they miss the important piont of learning to do a few things well as you are learning and then move on.


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## jmacn (Nov 20, 2010)

The prusik idea for bowline tension is really only useful if you're sleeping on your boat. It also takes constant monitoring. If you are expecting fluctuations like on a GC trip, try this: First, all rafts should be married together at camp side by side w straps to frames. This has a number of advantages but for dealing w a big overnight fluctuation, you've got one big tidy package to manage instead of individual boats. I prefer to use a taught line hitch to tie bow lines to a sandstake, or clip into a biner on a length of webbing if tying off to trees or rocks (let the webbing take the abuse from tammies or rocks not your bow line). Wether the water is coming up or going out determines where the hitch gets tied along the bow line so you have room to take advantage of the tensioning abilities of that wonderfully simple knot. Ok, so here comes the out of the box method to manage the big overnight drop in water level- lets say you have 5-6 rafts married together. Before you all go to bed for the night, move the sandstakes, or webbing tie off of the upstream and downstream boats. You'll want to run those bow lines out upstream and down as far as you can and attach them as close to the water's edge as you can. If there's a handy rock outcropping to tie to just offshore all the better. Pounding a stake into the sand that is currently 6 inches underwater but will be 30 feet away from the water in the morning is not going too far. You can estimate the best angle based on how shallow the water is around the flotilla. You're looking to create an obtuse angle, beyond perpendicular, to the other sandstakes directly in front of the flotilla. Now tightly tension the up & downstream bowlines, and loosen the remaining middle bowlines far enough to account for the expected drop. What you've got now is a flotilla that will lap back & forth at the waters edge and will automatically let itself out as the water drops out. It is key to have enough slack on the middle boat's bowlines to account for the drop, but you still need them tied off incase you lose one of your tensioned anchors overnight. This method takes some practice, but once you understand what is needed, this system is completely worth the effort and will work. Had you gone w the prusik method, all it takes is one thoughtless (drunk) boatman to strand the whole party high and dry.


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## wayniac (Mar 31, 2007)

*knots*

Great thread- and obviously some good energy around the "favorite" list. I had a group of scouts at the house for some shore based river safety work a while back. I like to tell people to learn a few really good knots- and learn them really well. I think this was mentioned earlier. So I think I can remember how to do a clove hitch- and now that I've seen how many people really like that knot- I'll go back and have a look. But it's the knots you know that you could do in your sleep that will get you out of trouble. My favorites- and I have these down cold-- figure 8, double figure 8, bowline, double bowline, prussik, water knot, butterfly, trucker's hitch- no knot when you can't do anything else- so I really don't bother with much else- but always open to try out a new one . Figure 8 on a bight when you are pressed for time is my favorite- make the loop really big and throw it around a rock when you have to secure a boat- or something to clip into when you want to bag someone without being dragged into the river. I've yarded on all these knots- and they all seem hard to get out when you really get after it.
wayne


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## RiverCowboy (Mar 14, 2011)

*!*



montuckyhuck said:


> Don't really care what you think in this instance. Bowline is easier to untie once weighted than any incarnation of a figure eight. Want to argue? Great! I have worked for THE most elite rope rescue technician team in the country aka YOSAR.... Google it....my favorite hitch, Munter Mule backed with overhand on a bite. Turs into a belay device even when loaded.


I thought teams accredited by the Mountain Rescue Association were the most elite teams in the country...

I would purport that under a 1KN load the difference between untying a bowline and an eight is undiscernable. Under a 2KN rescue load, bowline would be easier. I don't know of a tech rescue scenario where you would load an eight with 2KN though. 

Why hasn't anyone mentioned the biggest difference between a bowline and an eight though? Because we're too busy bragging about our volunteer experience living in a tent in Yosemite!

(Answer: a bowline should have a safety/backup knot to be used in lifeline applications, because it can slip).


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## Theophilus (Mar 11, 2008)

One if my favorites is the Highwaymans Hitch .http://youtu.be/MoaLHjiCGuo


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## spider (Jun 20, 2011)

Good thread + 1 on the bowline not, I've used it a lot as my tag line knot on the ends of beams. Those lines get yanked around pretty good and even a 3/8 rope will come apart easy with gloves on. I need to practice some of the others though. Handy to have in your bag of tricks.


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## rvboater19 (May 23, 2011)

*Bowline*

I have taken whips on both and in my experience the bowline is easier to un-tie. With that being said, I use the figure when I am climbing a majority of the time.


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## Avatard (Apr 29, 2011)

I like my Munson knot. Why would you ever wanna untie it????


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