Climbing Knots
As a Beginner's Climber you might wonder why you should learn to tie knots and in
what situations you should use them. Or how you should decide to Learn which Knots.
Here we try to give some answers on these questions you have.
The Rope is a Key Tool in Climbing. Without knowing your Knots, you
will not be able to use your Rope safely.
As Climbers are trusting their lives to the Knots that they tie in ropes,
it is wise to have an idea of the strengths of the main knots that are being used.
As explained in the What Gear Do I Need? chapter,
Knots in a rope will always reduce the breaking strength of a rope and therefore
the Safe Working Load. A low Knot Breaking Strength will therefore be a
characteristic of a good knot. In each description of all the knots on www.Outdoorfunstore.com, the breaking strength
are indicated.
However, this is not the only criteria. Which knots you should learn depends on many factors.
The Knot should reduce the breaking strength of a rope as little as possible
The Knot should be easy to remember
The Knot should be easy to tie
The Knot should be secure enough not to spill and come loose
The Knot is easy to untie even after being under a heavy load
To find out Which Knots you prefer, you should try out a couple of Knots
and find it which ones your personally prefer, of course taking into consideration
the factors mentioned above. To start off, learn the The Five Essential Climbing Knots .
After, tie some Knots of each type of Knot to discover which knots you like best:
Single Loop Knots,
Double Loop Knots,
Hitches,
Stopper Knots,
Bends
When to use Knots
In the table below a number of situations is given to illustrate when you should use
knots. It should give you an idea of the importance of knots and why you should know
a couple of different knots.
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When you want to attach the end of a rope onto a bolt or carabiner, for instance when you want
to anchor yourself to a bolt on a boulder, then it is necessary to know a good couple of
Double-Loop Knots. The Figure of Eigt on a Bight is such a knot.
To learn more about Double Loop Knots, click here.
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To attach a rope to your harnass, there are a couple of tie-in knots you can use.
Single-loop knots such as the Rewoven Figure of Eight or the Bowline Knot are ideal as tie-in knots.
To learn more about Single Loop Knots, click here.
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It might happen to you that you drop your belay device on top of a rock. It is therefore
very important to learn a couple of Friction Hitches, like for example the Italian Hitch. These knots
can be used with a HMS or a pear-shape carabiner to fucntion as an alternative belay device.
To learn more about Friction Hitches, click here.
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When you have climbed a pitch, you might want to anchor yourself quickly
via the rope to an anchor without using a sling. Hitches such as the Clove
Hitch are ideal for these situations.
To learn more about Hitches, click here.
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When the rope is not long enough, you might want to tie two ropes together via Bends.
The Tape Knot is such an example
To learn more about Bends, click here.
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