Tie Off With a Clove Hitch Knot

A clove hitch is a simple knot to tie and can be used in camping, boating and climbing. It’s useful to pass through a caribiner when climbing, and is the knot to use when you need to tie anything to a pole. There are many ways to tie the clove hitch, but here are two.

Tie using two loops

1. Make a loop shape in the rope.
2. Shape an identical loop to the right of the first loop in the rope.
3. Bring the two loops together, crossing the second loop over the first so that they form a knot.
4. Place the hole that passes through the two loops (now a knot) over the post.
5. The knot will tighten around the post when either of the rope ends is pulled.

Tie using the rope end

1. Take the end of the rope and pass it over and around the post.
2. Cross the rope end over and around the post again, crossing over the rope that is already on the pole in an “X” pattern.
3. Return the rope to the front of the pole, passing the end under the rope that just went around the pole.
4. As with the two-loop version, this knot tightens when either end of the rope is pulled.

Tips

Clove hitches are easy knots to tie, but not always the tightest or most secure knots to use in a given situation. You can use the clove hitch for a lot of purposes, but make sure that you know some more secure knots to use when necessary.

Resources

http://www.animatedknots.com/cloveclimbing/index.php?LogoImage=.&Website=

Lesley Graybeal is a life-long nature and travel lover who spends her free time hiking and climbing in the Appalachians and the Rockies, and has also enjoyed mountain hikes in New Zealand, Ireland, Switzerland, South Korea, and Tibet.