Page 52 - The Pocket Guide to Equine Knots

common to see traditional packers with sawbucks, panniers, and diamond hitches tied
neatly around tarps that cover the entire load, though many still do it that way, and the skill

and knowledge of these packers is to be emulated and preserved.
Perhaps the growth in the Decker/manty method is due to its versatility. Nearly anything
can be mantied, and with some loads, such as duffle bags or backpacks, you can
sometimes forgo the manty tarp, simply basket hitching them directly to the Decker
packsaddle. Although assembling a bunch of miscellaneous items and packing them neatly

into a bundle intended to be transported on the back of a horse or mule over hill and dale
may seem intimidating, mantying a load that stays together is relatively simple.
The process starts with a piece of canvas approximately seven feet by eight feet. An

outfitter I know, tired of purchasing expensive canvas for his large string of mules, began
using orange plastic irrigation dam material, and said it held up fairly well. Canvas, though,
is traditional and nicer (perhaps especially for me, because in the course of irrigating a
ranch I use all too much of the plastic). Also, natural materials always seem more
appropriate and easier on a horse wherever they contact an animal’s skin.

Canvas manty tarps can be hemmed or unhemmed; on some of ours we’ve added
grommets so that they can double as easily-tied tarps for cooking shelters and such. We
also use them in camp to cover our saddles, and they make good ground cloths under tents

or sleeping pads.
It’s good to practice mantying with something simple, such as a bale of hay. But building a
load of miscellaneous items is not difficult. Place items diagonally on the tarp, laid out on
the ground. Create a stack of gear approximately thirty to forty inches long, perhaps sixteen
to twenty inches wide, and around a foot thick (step 1).

Manty, step 1.

Bring the bottom of the tarp up (step 2), then each side, and finally the top down, over
the load (step 3). In my workshops, I’ve noticed many women are particularly neat at

putting manties together, perhaps because they’ve shouldered more of the gift-wrapping
duties at Christmas time.
It’s easier to build a good manty if you avoid many small items, placing them instead in
bags or boxes. When that’s difficult, I try to place a tent pole or other rigid object on each
side of the load within the manty and perhaps on top as well. I’ve cut small saplings for the

purpose in the past. When you basket hitch the load to the Decker, these will prevent your