Skip to content
KA

Diagram

Clove Hitch

Boat hitch

Hanging a fender off a rail or stanchion, or a quick tie you stay beside and adjust. For a boat left at a piling, use a round turn and two half hitches instead.

Hitch · Beginner · Polyester / Nylon rope / Polypropylene / Natural fibre · 4 steps

ApplicationsHow to tie it
Clove Hitch, finishedClove Hitch, finished

Finished structure

Drawn from a rope model of this knot: which strand passes over which comes from where the rope actually lies.

  1. Pass the end round the post and bring it back across the front of the standing partThe rope goes once round the post and its end comes back across the front, lying diagonally over the standing part.
    1Across the standing part
    Move 1 of 1Pass the end round the post and bring it back across the front of the standing partYou should now see: One turn round the post with the end lying diagonally over the standing part, ready to go round again.

    Step 01

    Pass the working end around the post or rail and bring it back across the front of the standing part.

    You should now see

    One turn around the post with the working end lying diagonally over the standing part, ready to go around again.

    If it goes wrong

    Bringing the end back behind the standing part instead of over it. The second turn then has no crossing to trap, and the knot falls apart when you pull.

    Fix: Unwrap it and make the turn again, laying the working end over the standing part as it comes back around.

    Why: This crossing is what the second turn traps. Without it the two turns only lie next to each other on the post.

  2. Take the end round the post again, the same way round, beside the first turnThe end goes round the post a second time, the same way round, and comes back to the front below the first turn.
    Move 1 of 1Take the end round the post again, the same way round, beside the first turnYou should now see: Two turns side by side round the post, going the same way, with an X on the front where the end crossed.

    Step 02

    Take the working end around the post a second time, going the same way round as the first turn, so it lies beside the first turn.

    You should now see

    Two turns side by side on the post running the same way, with an X on the front where the working end crossed the standing part.

    If it goes wrong

    Going around the second time in the opposite direction. From the dock it looks almost the same, but there is no X, and the hitch lets go once it is loaded.

    Fix: Unwind the second turn and wrap it again the same way round as the first, checking for the X across the front.

    Why: Turns running the same way pinch each other where they cross. Reversed turns do not grip each other and slide off the post.

  3. Tuck the end under the crossing so it comes out beside the standing part, then pullThe end passes under the diagonal crossing and leaves to the right, just below the standing part, which leaves to the left.
    1Under the crossing
    Move 1 of 1Tuck the end under the crossing so it comes out beside the standing part, then pullYou should now see: Two turns packed together with the diagonal on top, and the end and standing part leaving the middle in opposite directions.

    Step 03

    Tuck the working end under the second turn, where it crosses, so it comes out next to the standing part. Pull both ends to close the turns together.

    You should now see

    Two turns packed tight against each other with the diagonal on top, and the end and standing part leaving the middle in opposite directions.

    If it goes wrong

    Pulling only the standing part, so the turns stay spread apart along the post. A gap between the turns means the hitch is already starting to roll.

    Fix: Push the two turns together by hand and pull both ends again. Leave a tail several inches long so there is rope to spare if it slips.

    Why: A clove hitch has no locking part; it holds only because the two turns pinch each other. On polished metal, wet plastic, or a load that keeps changing angle, that pinch can walk loose.

  4. Judge the load; for surge or an unattended line, back it up with two half hitchesThe finished clove hitch on the post: two turns the same way round, the diagonal across the front pinning both ends.
    Move 1 of 1Judge the load; for surge or an unattended line, back it up with two half hitchesYou should now see: Either a bare clove hitch for a short stop you are staying beside, or one backed up with two half hitches on the standing part.

    Step 04

    Judge the load before you leave it. If the line will surge or be left unattended, back the clove hitch up with two half hitches around the standing part.

    You should now see

    Either a bare clove hitch you are staying beside for a short stop, or a clove hitch with two half hitches tied snug on the standing part.

    If it goes wrong

    Leaving a bare clove hitch on a boat that moves on its line. It works loose while nobody is watching, and a short tail disappears through the turns.

    Fix: For anything longer than a short stop, untie it and use a round turn and two half hitches instead.

    Why: Animated Knots warns that the clove hitch can slip and can also bind, and advises two half hitches round the standing end as a backup. Stacking extra clove hitches on top can bind hard under strain.

Failure modes

When this family fails, it fails as these. The recovered end still outranks the name.

Round-turn hitch family

A round turn or stacked turns take the load; the lock only keeps them there — and still breaks by hand.

  • !No round turn — the lock is asked to carry surge
  • !Turns not stacked, so the hitch walks on a tide
  • !Expected to jam when the job was a release-able dock line
Fails when
  • !Left bare on a boat that surges or swings on its line
  • !Tied round polished metal or wet plastic
  • !Second turn taken the opposite way round
  • !Tail left short, so it pulls through the turns as the hitch slips
Geometry

  • Turns not crossed

    This is not a clove and will not hold

    The second turn must cross over the first · step 02

  • Spread / walking clove

    Walks off the rail under cyclic load

    A clove holds only while the turns stay stacked · step 03

  • Left unattended on a tide

    Fender or line on the bottom

    Animated Knots: not a mooring plan · step 04

If you saw this

  • Hitch walks off the spar

    Check

    • ?Turns stacked and dressed

    Then

    • →Back up or replace with round turn and two half hitches

  • Turns not crossed

    Check

    • ?This is not a clove and will not hold
    • ?Inspect step 02

    Then

    • →Retie. Do not dress a defective structure and call it seated.

  • Spread / walking clove

    Check

    • ?Walks off the rail under cyclic load
    • ?Inspect step 03

    Then

    • →Retie. Do not dress a defective structure and call it seated.

  • Left unattended on a tide

    Check

    • ?Fender or line on the bottom
    • ?Inspect step 04

    Then

    • →Retie. Do not dress a defective structure and call it seated.
Same family

Same failure class, different geometry. Open the plates — Diagnose still starts from the symptom.

This failed — start Diagnose

Not ideal for

  • ×Unattended mooring
  • ×Cyclic snatch
  • ×The only hitch on a night tide

Related knots