Six Knots Worth Learning First

There are thousands of knots. You need a handful, tied without thinking: in the dark, with cold hands, under load. Learn these six, then practice them until your hands know them. Verrill’s century-old Knots, Splices and Rope Work illustrates each one step by step.

Joining two ropes

Square (reef) knot. Right over left, then left over right. Good for tying bandages and bundles; not for joining ropes that will carry a load, because it can slip or spill. Verrill warns against its lookalike, the “granny,” which is “useless” and “deceptive.” See Chapter II.

Sheet bend (the weaver’s knot). The right way to join two ropes, even of different thicknesses: a bight in the thicker rope, with the thinner rope passed up through, around, and tucked under itself.

Tying off to a post, tree or ring

Clove hitch. Two turns around a post, crossing over themselves. Fast to tie and adjust, and the start of most lashings, but it can work loose if the load shifts. See Chapter III.

Two half-hitches. Around the object, then two half-hitches around the standing part. A secure, simple tie-off for a tarp ridgeline or a boat painter.

Timber hitch. A loop that tightens around a log or bundle as you pull. For dragging logs and poles, and it falls apart easily when the pull stops.

A loop that won’t slip

Bowline. The “king of knots”: a fixed loop that won’t tighten or slip under load and is easy to untie afterwards. For rescue loops, anchoring a line around a tree, or hanging a food bag. Verrill covers it with the other loop knots in Chapter IV.

Practice

Keep a 3-foot piece of cord by the couch and tie each knot ten times a day for a week, then with your eyes closed. A knot you have to look up is a knot you don’t know.