The Survival Knots

The most common types of sailing knots are slip knots, square knots, cleat knots, stopper knots, clove hitches, sheet bends, half hitches, rolling hitches, bowlines, and midshipman’s hitches.

In this article, we’ll cover 10 of the most common naval and boating knots, their uses, and how to tie them. We’ll provide step-by-step knot-tying instructions without complex terminology, and we’ll also include photos of the process.

The information in this article is based on first-hand sailing experience and historic Naval knot guides. Additionally, we tied each of these knots for demonstration purposes prior to compiling this article.