Knots for the Outdoors

Updated Jan 2 2005

Two useful knots are the double sheet bend and the clove hitch.  The double sheet bend is handy for extending the length of a guy rope or attaching a guy to a tarpaulin (just make a bight in the corner of the tarp in the shape of the thicker cord in the photos below).  The clove hitch is good for securing the necks of bags, and can be used to tie your bike up to something on a ferry or train to stop it falling over.

Double Sheet Bend

Ideal for joining ropes of different sizes together, or extending a guy rope on a suspended tarpaulin so that it reaches another tree that you can tie it to.

	1.  Form a bight with the thicker cord and lead the working end up through it...
	2. .. and in a couple of loops around the bight before ...
	3. .. trapping the working end under the section that came into the bight. Then straighten the knot up a little, pulling the loops down towards the end of the bight to to end up with ...
	4. ... a neat double sheet bend.

Clove Hitch

In this illustration, the thicker cord is standing in for the rung/branch/pole you are trying to the rope to.

1. This one starts with you arranging the cord around the pole in a simple loop like this...
	2. .. next use the working end to create another loop around the pole above the first loop...
	3. ..then feed the working end back into the loop so that it runs parallel to the incoming line of the first loop and pull the knot tight.

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