Page 249 - Geoffrey Budworth, Jason Dalton "The Little Book of Incredibly Useful Knots"

Load-releasing hitch

This hitch is designed to be placed into an anchor system, or safety line. It uses many wraps

between two carabiners to allow a person to slowly unwrap them and release some of the load,
until the weight is on the lowering system again. The X in the knot is important so that the hitch
does not release completely, even if it is let go of while unwrapping.

Begin by making a long sling out of webbing with a water knot (see pages 20–21), clipping one end

into the line to be tensioned and attaching a carabiner to the anchor about 1½ ft (45 cm) away (1).
Then make an X in the loop where you want to start the hitch (2), and clip the anchor carabiner
carefully into the X, in line with the system (3); it is vital, for safety reasons, to get this step right.
Bring the long remaining end of the loop up toward the hitch and through the lowering line’s
carabiner, then back through the anchor carabiner (4). Start wrapping the remaining webbing

around the system to create the friction that will allow you to release a heavy load (5). When you
get to the top, use a third carabiner to clip the loose end to the lowering line’s carabiner, to finish
the hitch (6).