How To Tie A Rolling Hitch Knot

Do you want to know how to tie a rolling hitch knot? The rolling hitch is a knot used to build a firm hold on a rope or pole. It works because of the friction and it performs better when the load is parallel to the holding line.

To tie a rolling hitch knot you will need:

• A rope or pole (This will be the main line. It can be any kind of line able to hold the weight you are going to put on the system.)
• A piece of rope or webbing. (This will be the vector you will tie to the main line.)

1. With the main line horizontally in front of you, take the smaller rope and make it go around the main line once. You will have a loop and two ends, left and right.
2. Make the left end go across to the right and go around the pole again on that side. You will see the pole crossed by two lines now, forming an X.
3. Take the loose end and make it go from the back of the pole to the front by the upper opening of the X and again to the right. What you should see now is a set of parallel lines crossing a single line or an X with a double side and a single side.
4. Make a third turn around the pole and tuck the loose end behind the second turn and on top of the rest. What you see now is a pair of Xs.
5. Put some load on the working end, which is the opposite to the one you used as moving part. This way you will tighten the knot and get to a maximum of friction.

Tips:

• This knot may be quite hard to untie after loading or exposure to water or elements. Check the rope after being used for this knot, as it may suffer stress in punctual section due to uneven load.
• As with any knot, practice makes perfect, so do practice tying the knot several times to make sure it comes out right when you need it.