You’re almost guaranteed to tie some kind of knot while camping – and a sturdy one can make all the difference. Keep a few of these knots in your back pocket for your next excursion; they’re sure to keep your guylines taught and tarps secure. Follow our simple guide to perfect your knotting skills. Remember: it’s always a good idea to bring a few extra tensioners and guylines.
Overhand
Use this simple knot on the end of guylines with tensioners.
Instructions:Using a strand of rope or guyline, take one end and make a small loop. Pass the short end of the guyline or rope through the loop. Pull to secure.
Overhand on a Bight
This twist on the overhand is best for tying guylines to a tarp or putting a fork in your rope.
Instructions: Take the end of a piece of rope or guyline and bring about five inches of it parallel with the long section of the rope. Hold the two pieces of rope together and make a loop. Pass the top of the folded piece and pass it through the loop. Tighten to secure.
Bowline
Tie this knot to achieve maximum security when connecting your guyline to a tarp.
Instructions: Take a piece of guyline and fold about five inches of the end to be parallel with the longer section. Create a small loop with the longer section, then pass the end of the guyline through the loop. Wrap the end over then under the long section of guyline before passing back through the loop. Pull the long section of guyline to tighten.
Taught Line Hitch
Lose a tensioner on your guyline? Not to worry! This knot is the perfect substitute.
Instructions: Loop one end of the guyline through or around a stake. Use the short end of the guyline to loop and wrap once around the long end of the guyline. Then, wrap the short end twice more around the long end of the guyline before pulling the knot tight. The multiple loops create an adjustable knot that makes adjusting rope tension easy.
Daisy Chain
While technically not a knot, the Daisy Chain will prevent tangles in your guyline.
Instructions: Take a guyline that is folded in half or forked. Make a loop, then take a small section of guyline, fold it in half and insert into the loop. Tighten to create a knot with a looped end. Then take another folded section of rope, and insert into the loop. Pull to tighten. Repeat to create a woven strand that comes apart easily when the end is pulled.
Put your knot-tying skills to the test on your next camping trip. Build out your campsite with Japanese-designed tents, tarps and furniture.
