Page 83 - The Complete Rigger’s Apprentice

wires. It is begun with three loose turns around the the loop. Pass the loop up to the top of the knot
hand (Figure 3-16). Put the turn that is closest to and draw the slack into the ears, which have now
your wrist over onto your fingertips. Pick up the new become two loops. Note that in the doubled version,
closest turn, and put it over, then under the other the two standing parts can be pulled on together or
two turns. Draw up by pulling on the loop and both one at a time, but they must not be pulled apart.
standing parts. The Alpine Butterfly Knot is strong,
secure, compact, and is the foundation of a beautiful The Jug Sling Knot
double-loop form, the Double Butterfly. In a world where plastic and glass containers come
with built-in handles, this knot might seem unneces-
The Double Butterfly sary and its inclusion here whimsical, but I do have
This knot (Figure 3-17) is a little tricky to tie, but some reasons for showing it. First, it is an excellent
its splayed loops make it preferable to the Bowline example of applied friction. Second, if you’ve ever
on a Bight for some slinging applications (ladders, had to carry a gallon jug any distance, as from a
pallets) and for sitting in. Either knot is good as an store to your boat, you know that those convenient
emergency bosun’s chair. little ring handles aren’t good for anything but crip-
To make a Double Butterfly, start with a loose pling your fingers. Third, this is the best way to
single one and drop the two “ears” down into secure a wine bottle for a cooling tow astern.
So, clear a space and lay down some line as
Figure 3-17. The Double Butterfly. Unlike the Bow- shown in Figure 3-18. Form an eye by twisting the
line on a Bight, this knot will remain stable if the load legs twice. Reach into the eye, palm down. Snag
comes on only one of the standing parts. the middle of the bight and pull it out, turning your
hand palm up as you do so, to encourage the mess
to take the form shown in 3-18D. Pull the leftmost
turn back and to the right, turn the knot over, pass
one bight under, adjust a bit, and the knot appears.
Bend the two ends on one side together through
the bight on the other side to form a wrist strap.
As long as the line is scaled to the bottle size, this
knot will hold on even a hint of a lip with absolute
security.
Besides its original purpose, the Jug Sling Knot
can be turned to carrying a thermos, slinging a mar-
lingspike, or for emergency shroud attachment. It
even makes a decorative button frog.

The Angler’s Loop
By way of showing the permutations old knots go
through, here is an Angler’s Loop history: It started
out as the name implies, as a knot for fishing line,
back when the line was made of gut. The line was
rendered obsolete by the introduction of synthetic
line, but the knot adapted, and is still in use for its
original purpose. Then someone started using the
knot for large line, because although it jammed,
it was very quick and easy to tie, whether by the

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