How to Tie a Towline

Add a towline to your canoe if you want to pull floating objects, like a cooler or some wood.

If you're trying to tow a skier behind your motorboat or a log or two behind your canoe for an outdoor project, you want to secure the towline to your boat. If you know how to tie a slipknot, then you're ahead of the game when it comes to fastening the line so that it won't come off at the wrong time.

Instructions

1. Pick up the line, and find a one-foot section about a foot from one of the ends, and hold that section in your hands. Make sure that it's the end opposite the handle, if it's a towrope for a water skier. Then, twist the line in the hand closer to the end so that the line forms a loop and so that the shorter end is farther away from you than the longer end.

2. Hold the top of the loop between your thumb and index finger. With your other hand, reach through the loop and grasp the line. Pull the line through the loop until the slipknot tightens. Make sure that the end of the line doesn't come through the loop. You should end up with a loop at the end of your knot.

3. Hook the loop around the hook on your boat, and pull on the long end of the line to make the knot fit snugly against the hook. When you pull the line, the knot will "slip" up until it hits the hook -- hence the name.

Tips & Warnings

• A slipknot can also be used on the other end of the line to secure the item you're towing. If you're pulling a towline for skiers, of course, there will already be a handle at the other end of the line.

References

• IWillKnot: The Slip Knot
• Indoor Climbing: Tie a Slip Knot

Resources

• YouTube: How to Tie a Slip Knot (Video)