Introduction Has this ever happened to you? You need to haul something on top of your car or secure a package that is trying to burst open. Maybe you learned the right knot back in your Scouting days, but now you're not sure whether it was the left end that went over the right or vice versa. You try to remember--a loop goes here, an end tucks in there--but soon the tangle you've created looks like a pile of spaghetti. A simple tug loosens the whole mess. This book offers 21 versatile knots to attach this thing to that thing and keep it there. There are hundreds of knots and knot variations, but you don't need every knot ever used by fifteenth-century maritimers and eighteenth-century frontiersmen. You need to hitch a horse to a post, tighten a tent guyline, haul a canoe, set up a hammock, or tie your boat to a dock. This book will help.

A few notes before we start: Safety The right knot can hold a guyline tight and a package closed, or it can save your life when you fall while rock climbing. This book is appropriate for practical uses of the nonfatal kind: It is not a substitute for expert instruction. If you are going to be dangling from a cliff, you must have professional instruction until you are knowledgeable enough to know how to choose the right rope and knot for a situation, how to tie the knot correctly, how to back it up properly, and how to check it for safety and soundness. The same goes for affixing heavy loads to moving vehicles, where a broken rope or failed knot could lead to damage or injury. Whenever you're tying knots, you're responsible for verifying that the knots you tie are correct and safe for the circumstances at hand. Rope Rope comes in different sizes, lengths, widths, weights, materials, and strengths. It is important to have the right rope for the job. For example, you may weigh only 180 pounds, but your climbing rope needs to be able to bear more than 2 tons of weight because when you fall, gravity and acceleration increase the load the rope must bear.

Thinner, lighter cords are used for lashings and tying off tent stakes. Ropes need to be clean and in good condition: Improper storage and dirt can weaken a rope. To prolong the life of your rope, protect it from dirt, sunlight, chemicals, and abrasion. To store a rope, coil it following its natural lay, and keep it in a bag. Practice If you can tie it, you can practice with it. Parachute cord is ideal for learning your way around a knot. Cord in different colors will help you keep the different bits of rope straight as you're learning. For hitches, you'll also need something to tie the rope to, such as a fence post, a rail, a dowel, or the arm of your chair.

You want to get these knots in your fingers so that they make physical sense to you and you can tie them in the dark. Essential vocabulary: The leading end of the rope (sometimes called the working end) is the end that you will move around to create the knot. The standing end of the rope is the end that usually lies still during the knotting process. A bight is a bend in the rope. A loop is a bend that crosses over itself to make a full circle. 1. Half Hitch The half hitch is not much of a knot on its own, but it is the foundation for other knots, including the clove hitch and the taut-line hitch, and can be used to secure other knots so they don't come undone. Step 1: Place the rope over a rail, with the standing end in back and the leading end in front.

Step 2: Cross the leading end under the standing end. Step 3: Bring the leading end over the standing end and through the loop that is formed. Tighten.