Hope me bring enough rope.

September 10, 2008 7:05 PM

This question is about rope for camping trips.

For a canoe trip: I was in Canadian Tire looking at rope in the camping section. What kind of rope should I get that I might easily be able to find in such a store? How many feet might I need?
I don't know any fancy knots in particular, are there any that I would need that I may not just figure out through trial and error?
I saw some slippery yellow braided rope that may have been polypropylene rope, and some thinner rope that may have been nylon. Those seem to be the 2 main types of rope on their website.

posted by dino terror to sports, hobbies, & recreation (9 comments total)

What do you plan to DO with the rope? That may well determine what kind and size of rope you need.
As for knots: a square knot, sheet bend and bowline are some basics that everyone should know, and have many uses. I'd pick up a Boy Scout handbook (very cheap secondhand) for a good overview of useful outdoor oriented knots and ropework. If its a subject that interests you, the Ashley Book of Knots is the most complete book on the subject and well worth the cost.
posted by blaneyphoto at 7:15 PM on September 10

When I backpacked, I used "cord", available at any sporting goods store. It is like the size of a thick shoelace (but much stronger). More useful than "rope", IMO, for setting up tarps, lashing sweet walking sticks together, etc.

As for knots... learn the bowline and the tautline hitch; these are probably the only that you really need, other than a square knot.
posted by rossination at 7:28 PM on September 10

If I remember right from my scouting days (not too far off) the yellow nylon-like rope was cheaper but was a little harder to tie good knots with.

While the Scout handbook would be great reference material, you can probably find everything you need online. If you go with the book, the advanced stuff should be in the "Pioneering" section.

Look into two-half-hitches for tying rope to poles, trees, etc. Think of clotheslines.

Tautline's are useful for tying tents to stakes, because they are adjustable and can be slid tighter and looser.

Make sure you know how to tie up a bear bag (it's not just for bears)...
posted by PixelatorOfTime at 7:31 PM on September 10 [1 favorite]

As mentioned above the use dictates what kind of rope you need.

Polypropylene is fairly cheap, low stretch, and has the unique quality of floating on water, making it good for boat lines.
Nylon is strong, and has a fair bit of stretch, making it good for when you might have something with a shock load (think towing something).
Polyester rope has similar strength to nylon, but stretches very little.

If you are in a town with any sort of sailing club its worth going to a ship chandlery rather than the hardware store for rope. The prices tend to be way cheaper, and the rope way stronger.

A knot that I think is fantastic for camping, tarps etc is a rolling hitch. It lets you make an adjustable knot that you can slide to tighten down a tarp. It serves the same function as those godawful plastic tighteners that catch on clothing and everything else. It also doesnt jam easily, and is quick to untie.
posted by Pink Fuzzy Bunny at 7:32 PM on September 10

Standard backpacking cord is called parachute cord. It has a good strength to weight to size ratio. If you're going to buy specifically rope, you'll want a version that is resistant to holding water in it's core., it will likely be slightly more expensive.
posted by iamabot at 7:45 PM on September 10

Square knot. Sheet Bend, and Bowline.
What blaneyphoto said, with links!
posted by Floydd at 8:14 PM on September 10

Useful knots:

Clove hitch - this knot does well at anchoring one end of a line tightly to a pole or tree, as when you want to set up a clothesline, hammock, or tarp.

Bowline - forms a very secure loop, doesn't slip, and yet is easy to untie. Can be used to make a tautline hitch, so your clothesline doesn't sag and drop your clothes in the dirt, or a trucker. A sheet bend is really just a bowline that is tied with two different lengths of rope instead of a single rope; it's excellent for joining two lines together. A "rescue bowline" is one big enough to fit around the body and can be thrown to someone in trouble in the water and used to drag them out.

Round turn and two half hitches- another good way to attach a line to a pole or tree.

Less useful knot: Square knots are highly overrated, IMO. They are easy to learn and tie, and so people want to use them. But they have serious limitations. They capsize (come undone) very easily, so you should never ever use them to secure any line with weight or tension on it. They can be useful for making bundles, such as rolling a tarp and tying small lengths of line around it to keep it from unrolling. You can easily "pop" the knots out and open the tarp quickly. On boats the square knot is called the "reef knot" because it is usually used only for reefing and furling sail, where you want to be able to loosen the lines right away. Otherwise it is avoided for safety reasons. Don't use squares to tie things to your car, or for anything you are really depending on.



The difference between tying real knots and winging it with made-up knots is huge. Knots are a way of engineering rope to do a job - they're time-tested and they really work when used in the right job. Large mangles of granny knots piled together are no substitute. Take the time to learn these basics and they will really serve you well in all kinds of situations.
posted by Miko at 8:37 PM on September 10

Get the nylon rope. Get as much as you can comfortably carry. It's the sort of thing you find uses for. Even if you can't see a need now, it's best to have some around.

I took mine on three trips before I used it, but the fourth trip would have been much soggier without it. Then I loaned it to a friend to use to build a raft on the fifth trip.

Thanks for reminding me I need more rope.
posted by jeffamaphone at 10:22 PM on September 10

Mmm, thank you one and all for the helpful responses!
posted by dino terror at 8:40 AM on September 11