Page 86 - Backpacker Magazine's Outdoor Knots
P. 86
PrusIK hITCh
Perhaps the best known friction hitch, this knot is
used by climbers to ascend a fixed line. The Prusik
hitch can also be used for adding a loop anywhere
along a line to hang things and easily adjust their
position. It can be used as a handle too, but only if
you pull on the loop because it slides when you grab
the knot.
With the Prusik and the Hedden hitches, they
work best if the loop is made of cord that is roughly
half the diameter of the rope. Thicker cord may
require more wraps to provide adequate friction. And
thinner cord has a tendency to lock so tight that the
knot is almost permanently fixed to the rope.
1. Pass a bight of the loop around the rope.
74 Outdoor Knots
BPM_OutdoorKnots_4pp.indd 74 8/30/10 2:40 PM
