Page 68 - Outward Bound Ropes, Knots, and Hitches
P. 68

Boating Knots: Loops










                     loop simply has to be untied later, the bowline is a great
                     choice. The bowline, however, reduces the strength of a
                     line or cord by as much as 40 percent.
                        Originally  the  bowline  was  used  to  secure  a  ship’s
                     square  sail  forward  and  closer  to  the  wind.  It  was
                     mentioned  in  The  Sea-man’s  Dictionary  of  1644.  It  is
                     useful in jobs big and small, from securing string before
                     tying a package to securing a gear bag to be hauled up
                     a cliff by climbers. The size of the loop, from very small
                     to very large, is determined by the tyer. More trustworthy
                     variations of the bowline, such as the double bowline (see
                     page 56) and the triple bowline (see page 58), are also
                     covered in this book.



                               Bowline XX: Step 3                Bowline:
                                                                      XXStep 4

















                       Adjust the main loop to the       Finish with an overhand stop-
                       XXX
                                                          XXX
                       required size, and tighten the    per (see page 6) to add security
                       knot.                             to the bowline.








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