Niles H.

Came across a good tip the other day: Keep a couple of short lengths of paracord handy at all times (or 3mm and 2mm cordage, or something similar). This makes it easy to learn and practice and gain facility with tying new and useful knots -- in spare moments, or as the spirit moves you. Or while in a waiting room. Or in camp, or in a tent during a storm....

Just tried this. It works. The guy in the mountaineering department cut me some four-foot lengths of cord, and I've been enjoying learning some very cool knots. The cordage is very light and easy to keep in a pocket. And it can even be useful for lashing things on a bike or a pack.

He showed me how to tie a Prusik knot, which can be very useful when camping. And a double barrel knot.

He highly recommended a website, www.animatedknots.com

I just checked it out, and this site is very, very well done. The animation really helps in learning the knots. You can even slow it down. And it works even on a Kindle.

If anyone has any other ideas or recommendations -- good sites or resources, or ways of learning, or even some other good knots to know, or anything else related to this subject -- please feel free to post.

Niles H.

Here is the version of the Prusik that was shown in the mountaineering department, which can be useful for suspending and adjusting a bug nest from the ridgeline of a tarp, among other things:


The guy in the store said that there were other useful variations on the Prusik. This one looks useful, and looks to be a top favorite knot for outdoor uses:

Steve0000

The most useful knots I use are the bowline, figure eight, clove hitch and reef knot. The figure eight is especially useful as it can be used to join ropes and also to make loops. All are easy to learn.

bradtx

Niles, The Boy Scout manual, a boating manual and youtube.

Brad

perspiration

I use two half hitches all the time for tying up tent stakes

andrewclaus

Get two different colors of cord.

The taut line hitch from the Boy Scout manual is one I use all the time.

downtube42

When I was teaching Boy Scouts knot-tying, it was necessary to be well practiced at least one knot ahead of the Troop. It's hard work looking like a knot guru. Nightly practice while watching TV, particularly during commercials. Yeah, commercials. How quaint.

John N

Since I use knots infrequently but still know the value of them, I put a knot tying app on my phone for when I need them. Not as good as knowing them by heart, but at least I can still manage one.

berner

As a sailor, now retired, knots are a subject of great interest and fascination. It is amazing that cordage, which is really a single dimension, can produce hundreds of variations. It may be that cordage and knots are actually more than a single dimension. In any case, knots are very useful but it is rarely necessary to know more than 4 or 5 except for specific uses such as caving, sailing ships, commercial fishing gear and other special uses. I do enjoy learning new ones and marvel at the ingenuity of some people.

LeeG

Truckers hitch

MMACH 5

There are several animated knot apps for the iPhone. Knot Guide, KnotsGuide, WhatKnot and Grog Knots are the ones I have. I haven't used them in a while so I can't remember which one I like better.

Niles H.

The two colors idea is a good one -- with two differently colored practice cords, you can see what is going on better (for many knots).

Two different diameters are also good to have. Some knots, like the Prusik, are meant to be used with one larger and one smaller diameter.

I went with 2mm and 3mm, which is working well.

(You could also just get a couple of extra strands to practice with. They are typically just 10-20 cents a foot.)

Niles H.

Andrew Skurka has a variation on the trucker's hitch that he likes to use in many situations. I'll try to find the link.

chefisaac

You are a wealth of information sir! Keep it flowing!

Niles H.

Here is the variation on the trucker's hitch that Andrew Skurka likes to use,

https://andrewskurka.com/2012/tarp-guyline-system/

Niles H.

Thank you, Chef.

There are some great tips in this standing-room-only talk that Skurka gave at Google HQ, many of which can be applied to bike touring,

And he demonstrates the knot, starting at about 47:20,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FGQTcQhL08A

Jamoni

https://zombiehunters.org/forum/viewt...ilit=knotology

Sixty Fiver

Knowing how to whip cord is also very useful as this will let you carry it on any cylindrical object and keep a quantity of cord at hand... there is 8 feet of 550 paracord on my Fallkniven (black handle) and 6 feet of cord on the smaller Mora sheath.

It has come in very handy when I needed to tie things down.



If you carry an axe you can carry a lot more cord... mine has about 40 feet of cord which also acts as a shock absorber and added grip.

hueyhoolihan

1 mph = .868976 knot

they're all pretty much alike...

srsly,

i once braided a riding bridle with rawhide. four or five fancy knots and braiding patterns. learned everything i needed to know by reading a book i found at the local library.

BTW, i use one very simple knot all the time. my granny taught it to me. can't remember the name right now , but it will come to me...

Western Flyer 

I think you may have your numbers reversed. 1 nautical mile is approximately 1.15 statute miles. A nautical mile equals 1 minute of rotation of the Earth at the equator. Knots are not a measurement of distance but of speed. A boat traveling at 10 knots will cover 240 nautical miles in 24 hours.

But getting back to tying knots, I believe Ashley's Book of Knots is still considered the Bible of knots.

tru1shot

I think I have to agree with all the resources listed here, I've always been a fan of the BSA manual and sailing/seamanship books myself...

When I was in Scouting my troop would have competitions tying knots blindfolded or behind our backs for speed, and ten years I can still vividly remember how to tie every knot we competed with. Might be a good way to help tie down the memory by using senses other than sight. Pun intended.

fuzz2050

I'm a big fan of the Prussic. It's insanely useful while camping, and for other things as well. Bowline, Square knot, figure-8, lark's head and a fisherman's knot are also useful.

All my guy lines are a small closed loop attached to the tie out point, and then prussic-ed to a line with a bowline at the end. It means I can quickly adjust the tension from inside the tent, or tarp. If the weather is really awful and the rain nearly horizontal I can stake through the closed loop and really batten down the hatches.

Niles H.

Sounds good. I'd like to learn that one. But I'm not sure I've got this part right: and then prussic-ed to a line with a bowline at the end. Maybe if I were more familiar with it, it would be clearer to me. Can anyone fill that part in a bit more?

I like the Prussic a lot -- there's something both very tricky and very useful at the same time. And it looks great too.

Niles H.

They are fascinating to me as well. Some of them are completely new to me. I had no idea knots could do some of these things.

Niles H.

Great pictures. Thanks for posting them.