Pile hitch

With the pile hitch you lay a bight – a doubled loop of rope – around the post. The bight is taken once around the post beneath the two strands and then dropped over the top. The bight now lies like a ring around the post, with the two strands running across it.

Under tension, the strands press the bight against the post. This clamping and the friction on the wood hold the knot. Because nothing is tucked through anything else and everything simply lies on top, the knot is very quick to tie and just as quick to release: ease the tension, push the bight up and lift it off.

A correctly tied pile hitch sits low on the post, not at the top edge. The bight encircles the post like a ring, and the two strands cross over it and run off together in the same direction. When you pull on both strands, the knot should tighten and not slide.

Dress the knot after dropping it over: pull the bight a little to make it hug the post, then slide the knot down a bit. The 'tail' here is the bight itself; it should not be so tight that it slips over the top when things ease slightly. A quick test: pull hard sideways and see whether everything stays in place.

The pile hitch shines when things need to be quick and there are posts with a free top: barrier lines between several posts, a line to a fence post, a guyline on a stake. Because you need no end, you can run one long line over many posts and fix it to each one individually.

It does not work on trees or posts without a free top; there a clove hitch or a round turn and two half hitches is better. It is also unsuitable where the pull can go upwards – for example a line running up at an angle to a higher point. On a tent stake the direction of pull can change with the wind; check it regularly then.

Typical mistakes: the knot is left too close to the top of the post, or the load pulls upwards. In both cases the bight can simply slide off. Smooth, painted or wet poles offer less friction, and the knot can creep. Also check that the post itself is firm – a wobbly stake or a rotten post is more likely to give way than the knot.

Barrier lines should be easy to see so that nobody trips over them, especially in the dark. The pile hitch is a knot for lines and gear. Life-safety use of knots only after proper training with certified equipment.

A chair leg, a broom handle or a post in the garden will do. Form the bight, take it around once and drop it over – after a few tries it takes just seconds. Then try what happens when you pull upwards: you will see at once why the direction of pull matters so much.

The pile hitch is described in many knot books but is not widely known. It is worth knowing alongside the clove hitch, because within its small range of uses it is simply faster.