Knot of the Week: Tarantula Hitch

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The Knot of the Week continues this week with a knot submitted by one of our users, Mr. Max, via our comments on the Highwayman’s Hitch post.

His brilliant knot, the Tarantula Hitch solves the tendency of the Highwayman’s hitch to pull through whenever weight is applied to the load bearing line of the knot.

Another wonderful benefit of this knot is that the release line cannot be pulled when the load bearing line in under heavy tension.

We’ve tested the Tarantula Hitch and it does in fact hold the weight of a 180 lb. person, but without putting it though further testing it’s hard to tell if it could be used as a lifesaving knot.

Tarantula Hitch » Hitches

(Strength: 4/Security: 4/Stability: 4/Difficulty: 3)

Please refer to our Knot of the Week introduction post for a description of what these ratings mean.

Ensure the Tarantula Hitch is tight, or it won’t hold whatever you’ve tied up. Also pay particular attention to the start of this knot, as the working end of this knot becomes the release end.

Uses:

• Tying up a Zodiac to dock cleats
• A situation where you need to release a knot with one hand
• Towing another boat or canoe that would need to be quickly released
• Tying up your horse to rob a stagecoach

Tying Instructions:

1. Begin with a loop and at least two feet remaining on the working end of the line
2. *The first photo is just a reference to show which section will become the working part
3. Make a turn around the desired object you’ll be tying up to
4. Continue the working end around the front of the loop you’ve made
5. Ensure at this point that as you’re pulling the working end around the object, the the line crosses behind the standing part
6. Form a bight in the working end and thread behind the standing part
7. Finally, pull the bight through the top loop and tighten up the Tarantula Hitch
8. Tug on the release end to make your quick getaway

View the gallery below and follow along with the steps above!

Check back next week as we continue our Knot of the Week series with the Sheepshank

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