Knots have been around since the earliest times. „Ötzi“, the man from the ice, already used twisted plant fibres and leather straps to build his tools. Later, straps and ropes were used to bridle riding and draught animals. Knot craft reached its high point in the age of the great sailing ships. The standard work on knots for seafaring, by sailor and illustrator Clifford Ashley, runs to over 600 pages and shows more than 2,000 different knots.
As a mountaineer or sport climber you only need to know a fraction of these knots, even though mountain and cave rescue use considerably more specific ones.
In this blog we present six basic knots that are enough for mountain sport. They are the figure-eight knot, the bowline, the Munter hitch and clove hitch, the Prusik and/or Marchand, and the cross friction hitch with a sling.
These six knots should be mastered blind and safely by mountaineers and climbers, ideally both tied in a bight and re-threaded.
For mountain sport the tie-in knots are the ones used most often. A good tie-in knot has to stand up to every possible load. It should be simple to tie and simple to check during the partner check or on a climbing course. What matters is that it also holds once it has loosened a little. It should also come undone easily after a fall (in sport climbing).
Leave enough rope end after the knot!
After heavy loads knots do not just tighten, they always creep outwards a little as well. That is why a long enough rope end behind the knot has an important safety function.
The rule of thumb for the length of the rope end is that it should be ten times the rope diameter. In short: when tying in, the rope end should be at least 10 cm (or a hand's width) long.
Tie knots cleanly and dress them!
Knots must never be twisted! That applies in particular to the figure-eight knot when tying in. All strands have to run parallel. Twisted knots do not necessarily hold less well, but under load they often pull tight so awkwardly that they can hardly be undone again. On top of that, twisted knots are not as easy to check during the partner check, because the „confusing“ shape of the knot does not match the „familiar“ one.
Pull the knot up tight!
So that the knot does not loosen or come undone by itself, it is very important to pull it up properly. Loosely tied knots are a source of danger you must not accept. So that this „tightening of the knot“ also works for less strong people, the four strands have to be pulled one at a time.
The figure-eight knot (instructions, pictures 1-9):
The figure-eight knot is used in climbing on a doubled strand of rope and is one of the simplest and most basic knots in mountain sport. It owes its name to its shape, which clearly recalls the figure „8“. The figure-eight knot forms a secure fixed loop and is therefore called a „figure-eight loop“ among specialists, to avoid confusion with the „figure-eight knot“ tied in a single strand. Sometimes you also hear the name „double figure of eight“.
In climbing and in mountain rescue the figure-eight knot is used as a secure connection between the climbing rope and the harness. A figure-eight knot is tied into the end of the rope so that about a metre of rope end is left free. This end is then pulled through the tie-in loop attached to the harness and re-threaded back parallel along the figure-eight knot. This form is called a re-threaded figure-eight knot.
The opening of a knot (the eye) is not seldom made too big. As a result the knot dangles about. That is annoying and gets in the way, but it also invites mistakes in use. So the eye, or the opening of the knot, should be kept as small as possible.
The double bowline (instructions, pictures 10-18)
In climbing the double bowline serves as the tie-in knot on the harness. It is easy to open even after frequent or heavy fall loading. The shape of the knot, however, is not as easy to check for correct execution as that of the figure-eight knot. For safety reasons the single bowline must not be used as a tie-in knot! The double bowline does not have that drawback.
The double bowline is easy to undo even after many falls. That is why it is quite popular with sport climbers who fall a lot. The knot also holds if the rope slips out of the last loop, because a single bowline is still there.
The Munter hitch or HMS (instructions, pictures 19-24)
Important: you must be able to set up the Munter hitch belay with one hand as well.
With the Munter hitch you can belay your rope partner leading and seconding. There is by now a whole range of dedicated belay devices on the market for this job. Even so, the Munter hitch is simple and quick to set up.
These devices often work better and more smoothly than knots, so that in some areas they have already replaced them. But wherever weight and bulk matter, where you want to cover the widest possible range of uses with as little kit as possible, knots are still unbeaten.
The clove hitch (instructions, pictures 25-30)
The ideal knot for self-belaying. The length of the self-belay can be adjusted at will without undoing the knot. It also comes undone well after heavy loading.
The clove hitch is suitable for attaching a rope to a fixed object and is relatively easy to open again.
Important: the clove hitch too should be possible to tie with one hand only. That counts at awkward belay stations and in rescue work.
The clove hitch can be loosened and shifted without effort; under load it pulls tight and locks in both directions. You should be able to clip it into the carabiner with one hand, because sometimes you want (or need) to hold on with the other.
The friction hitches: Prusik and/or Marchand/cross friction hitch with a sling
These friction hitches pull tight under load and can be pushed along when unloaded. They are used as a back-up when abseiling, in crevasse rescue on glaciers, as a progress-capture device in hauling systems, or as a movable anchor point on ropes.
With two friction hitches you can climb up a rope: you attach two accessory cords (or slings) to a rope with friction hitches. Then you hang your weight in the first loop and push the second one up. Next you load the second loop and push the first one up. With this method you can work your way up step by step.
Prusik (instructions, pictures 31-35)
The friction hitch of choice in rescue work and as a back-up when abseiling. If the grip of the well-suited 6 mm accessory cord is not enough, a third wrap has to be added to the two. The Prusik also works with slings.
For friction hitches you should use accessory cord whose diameter is about a third to a half of the diameter of the rope you are attaching the hitch to. If the cord diameter is smaller, the grip becomes too strong and you will struggle to undo the tightened knot easily.
If the cord is too thick, the knot may not grip enough.
Use: friction hitch for a backed-up abseil and for self-rescue or rescuing a partner. It grips in both directions. If the Prusik starts to slip under load, a third wrap has to be added.
Marchand/cross friction hitch with a sling (instructions, pictures 36-41)
It is also called the sling friction hitch. With this knot even modern, very narrow slings grip perfectly. Slings thus replace accessory cord in many cases and are often even superior to it, especially in handling.
Number of wraps: three; on very smooth and thin ropes wrap four turns upwards.
Related at Mountainspirit: Climbing, Find a mountain guide
