Knots for every occasion (aka. why I wish I’d been a boy scout)

When I was a kid, my friends and I weren’t really the boy scout types.

My introduction to camping and outdoor survival was probably not the same as most. For us, it was more about getting away from the oldies so we could get our drink on. We grew up in a rural town, surrounded by awesome camping spots, so under the guise of camping, we’d get up to all sorts of shenanigans.

As a result, there was no real passing on of knowledge, and definitely no learning from books. We just figured shit out for ourselves when we needed to. We managed to survive years of risk-taking behaviour as well, so common sense was obviously the main thing we needed.

However, when it came to later life and I started heading out into the wilderness alone, it quickly became apparent that there were a huge number of gaps in my knowledge. Since then, I’ve managed to fill most of those gaps. It’s not that hard, especially in the internet age. There’s always a blog to read or someone to ask, when you don’t know something.

Knot tying, on the other hand, is something that has so far escaped me. It’s probably mainly due to my terrible memory. I’ve tried to learn but it just never seems to stick.

If only my parents had sent me to cubs and scouts when I was little.

A couple of weeks ago, someone from PT Winchester (a manufacturer and distributor of rope and velcro, among other things) sent me this infographic that explains a whole bunch of knots that are useful for outdoor activities really well. I don’t normally share stuff like this but, on this occasion, I thought it was worthy.

Hope it helps you learn some valuable skills. I’ll definitely be referring back to it.

Got any other knot-tying tips? Or any comments or corrections? Let us know in the comments section below.