Water Bowline
Bowline whose collar is a clove hitch. The extra security is the clove, not more bulk.
Intermediate · Polyester / Nylon rope / Polypropylene / Natural fibre
Connection card
Water Bowline
For fixed eye in the end.
This card does not say how strong the knot is. A retention figure comes from a bench, in one material, at one diameter, tied by somebody who ties it all day — and the line in your hand is none of those. What it does tell you is whether the thing you have just tied is the thing the record describes.
What this plate is telling you
Bowline whose collar is a clove hitch. The extra security is the clove, not more bulk.
Save this as a picture and it works with a dead signal and a nearly dead battery, which is when a joint is most often tied badly. The rest of this page — the steps, the seating sequence, the failure modes and the bench — is for the evening before.
Why this knot
What it earns its place with, what it costs, and what to reach for instead.
- A dry dock eye you will untie in thirty seconds (plain bowline is enough)
- HMPE
- Making the second loop the opposite way round, so the pair is not a clove hitch
- Passing the end through only one loop of the clove hitch, on the way up or on the way back down
- Tightening the collar and eye but leaving the clove hitch open around the end
- BowlineBeginner
A fixed loop in the end of a rope, such as a mooring line to a ring or post
- Figure-8 LoopBeginner
A fixed loop tied in a bight of rope, for a loop that can be dropped over a post and checked by tracing the two strands through the knot
Before you start
- ·Animated Knots says the clove hitch grips the tail more securely, so it is less likely than a plain bowline to shake undone when unloaded.
- ·The clove hitch takes the place of the small loop. The collar is still the turn around the standing part, as in an ordinary bowline.
- ·If the two loops do not show an X across the front like a clove hitch, the knot is a plain bowline with extra rope in it.
- ·Leave a long tail, as for an ordinary bowline. Animated Knots gives a bowline tail of 12 times the rope's circumference.
Step 1 of 4 · move 1 of 2. Make a loop in the standing part, bringing the rope back across in front of it
Space plays or pauses. Keys 1, 2, 3 and 4 set the speed. Arrow keys change the move.
swipe to step
01.1
Make a loop in the standing part, bringing the rope back across in front of it
- Hold:
- Left hand holds the standing part where the loop begins
- Move:
- Right hand takes the rope round once and back across the front of the loop
Make a loop in the standing part, make a second loop the same way round beside it, and lay the second on top of the first so the pair forms a clove hitch.
Two overlapping loops in the standing part that show an X across the front like a clove hitch, with enough rope beyond them for the eye.
Making the second loop the opposite way round. There is no X across the front, and the pair will not close on the working end when the knot is loaded.
Fix: Shake out the second loop, twist it again the same way round as the first, and lay it back on top.
Why: The clove hitch takes the place of the single small loop in an ordinary bowline. Animated Knots says the extra grip on the tail makes the knot less likely to shake undone when unloaded.
- Loops not formed as a clove — No extra security — wet collar walks like a plain bowline. The two standing-part loops must sit as a clove hitch.
arrow keys work
Tying procedure — Water Bowline
Step 01 / 4
Make a loop in the standing part, make a second loop the same way round beside it, and lay the second on top of the first so the pair forms a clove hitch.
You should now see: Two overlapping loops in the standing part that show an X across the front like a clove hitch, with enough rope beyond them for the eye.
If it goes wrong: Making the second loop the opposite way round. There is no X across the front, and the pair will not close on the working end when the knot is loaded.
Fix: Shake out the second loop, twist it again the same way round as the first, and lay it back on top.
Why: The clove hitch takes the place of the single small loop in an ordinary bowline. Animated Knots says the extra grip on the tail makes the knot less likely to shake undone when unloaded.
1First loopStep 1 of 4 · move 1 of 2
Make a loop in the standing part, bringing the rope back across in front of it
Hold: Left hand holds the standing part where the loop begins
Move: Right hand takes the rope round once and back across the front of the loop
- 1X across the front2Second loop
Step 1 of 4 · move 2 of 2
Make a second loop the same way round and lay it over the first, as a clove hitch
Hold: Left hand holds the first loop and the crossing
Move: Right hand makes a second loop the same way round and lays it on the first
You should now see: Two overlapping loops in the standing part with an X across the front, like a clove hitch, and plenty of rope beyond for the eye.
Step 02 / 4
Push the working end up through both loops of the clove hitch from underneath.
You should now see: The working end coming out on top of the clove hitch after passing through both loops, with the eye forming below.
If it goes wrong: Passing through only one of the two loops. Look along the end: if one loop lies beside it instead of around it, the clove hitch cannot grip.
Fix: Back the end out and push it through both loops together, holding them overlapped so they do not slide apart.
Why: Going through both loops means both parts of the clove hitch close on the end when the eye is loaded.
1Up through both loops2EyeStep 2 of 4 · move 1 of 1
Push the working end up through both loops of the clove hitch from underneath
Hold: Left hand holds the clove hitch so its two loops stay together
Move: Right hand brings the end up the middle and out through both loops from below
You should now see: The working end standing up out of the top of the clove hitch after passing through both loops, with the eye hanging below.
Step 03 / 4
Take the working end around behind the standing part, then bring it back down through both loops of the clove hitch, beside the strand where it came up.
You should now see: The working end passed around the standing part and back down through both loops, with its tail finishing inside the eye.
If it goes wrong: Leaving the end above the clove hitch after going around the standing part, or bringing it down through one loop only. The tail can pull free once the eye is loaded.
Fix: Feed the end down through both loops, following its own strand, before you tighten anything.
Why: The turn around the standing part forms the collar, and the return through both loops locks it. Leave a long tail, as for an ordinary bowline.
1Behind the standing partStep 3 of 4 · move 1 of 2
Take the working end around behind the standing part and back to the front
Hold: Left hand holds the clove hitch and the end where it came up
Move: Right hand takes the end behind the standing part and round to the front
- 1Down through both loops2Tail inside the eye
Step 3 of 4 · move 2 of 2
Bring the end back down through both loops, beside the strand where it came up
Hold: Left hand holds the collar against the standing part
Move: Right hand pushes the end down through both loops, next to its first pass
You should now see: The end has gone round the standing part and back down through both loops, and its tail finishes inside the eye.
Step 04 / 4
Hold the eye and the standing part and pull, then tighten the clove hitch by working each of its loops down onto the strands of the working end.
You should now see: A clove hitch clamped firmly around the working end, the collar snug on the standing part, and an eye that keeps its size under a hard pull.
If it goes wrong: Tightening only the collar and eye and leaving the clove hitch loose. The loops sit open around the end, and the knot behaves like a bulky plain bowline.
Fix: Work each loop of the clove hitch down by hand until it bites on the strands inside it, then pull the eye and standing part apart again.
Why: Animated Knots finishes the knot by tightening the clove hitch. The extra security comes from the clove hitch closing on the tail, so a loose clove adds bulk without that grip.
1Clove hitch2CollarStep 4 of 4 · move 1 of 1
Pull the eye against the standing part, then work each loop of the clove down tight
Hold: Left hand holds the eye; the standing part is held or made fast
Move: Right hand pulls, then works each loop of the clove hitch down onto the end
You should now see: The clove hitch clamped round both strands of the end, the collar snug on the standing part, and the eye holding its size.
What this is based onReference review, not yet tied
- Record
- Reviewed 2026-08-14. 2 sources are cited for this record.
- Drawing
- Checked against published references and found to be this knot. Not yet tied from the drawing. Recorded 2026-09-21.
- Known limits
- None that stop a reader following it were confirmed in the plate audit of 2026-09-24; smaller findings were not all re-checked.
- Older drawing
- An older drawing of this knot is withdrawn and shown nowhere. The audit's reason: Captions and drawing show a single small loop plus a round turn — the round-turn (double) bowline. The water bowline is the clove-hitch form, which is what the steps teach.
- Strength
- Not established. No credible, comparable strength data exists for this knot, so no figure is shown.
Watch the tie
Strong Secure Water Bowline - How To Tie OneWhyKnot · Opens on YouTubeExternal video from a creator we follow — not produced by us. Nothing on this page loads from YouTube until you follow the link.
Seating sequence — where failures are born
The step list compresses the finish. Run these phases in order, one at a time.
01 Form
Build the structure loose enough to see every turn.
None. Shape first.
02 Dress
Nest every turn. Crossed parts will walk or jam.
Light — hold the shape.
03 Set
Load the standing part so the intended turns take the strain.
Working load, not a snatch.
04 Check
Confirm the lock still breaks or inspects as the job requires.
None extra.
05 Commit
Only load it after the structure reads correct. Wrong means remake.
Working load, not a snatch.
Finished structure — what correct looks like
Drawn from a rope model of this knot: which strand passes over which comes from where the rope actually lies.
- Structure
- Fixed eye with a clove-hitch collar on the standing part; tail up through both clove loops, around, and back down
- Standing line
- Clove seated on the standing part — that clove is the lock, not extra bulk
- Tag end
- Tail exits down through the clove, long enough to backup
- Wraps
- Two nested clove turns, not two random overlapping loops
- Seating
- Dress the clove tight against the standing part before you trust the eye
Verify before you load it
Every line is pass or fail. One fail means retie — do not load a knot you argued with.
- 01Fixed eye with a clove-hitch collar on the standing part; tail up through both clove loops, around, and back down
- 02Dress the clove tight against the standing part before you trust the eye
- 03Tail exits down through the clove, long enough to backup
- 04Two nested clove turns, not two random overlapping loops
- 05Loops that do not form a clove are a plain bowline with leftover rope
- 06Clove tight, tail long, backup if the job is serious
Field notes — dark, cold, gloves
- ·Dress is the lock. A pretty knot that is not dressed is not finished.
- ·HMPE usually wants a splice, not a hitch you learned in polyester.
- ·If you cannot break or inspect it under the load you expect, it is the wrong job.
When this family fails, it fails as these. The recovered end still outranks the name.
Fixed eye whose lock is a collar seated on the standing part.
- !Open collar — the eye capsizes under cyclic load
- !Cowboy / wrong-direction loop
- !Tail too short to backup, or a Yosemite finish on an unfinished bowline
- !The second loop is the wrong way round, so the loops do not close on the working end under load
- !The end goes through only one loop, up or down, so the tail can pull free once the eye is loaded
- !The clove hitch is left loose around the tail, so it adds bulk without the extra grip
Loops not formed as a clove
No extra security — wet collar walks like a plain bowline
The two standing-part loops must sit as a clove hitch · step 01
Clove left loose
Fat undressed collar capsizes under cyclic wet load
Dress the clove, not just the eye · step 04
Tail left up or missing a clove loop
Unfinished water bowline, no lock
The working end must go through both clove loops and return down · step 03
Collar walks when wet
Check
- ?Two nested clove turns around the standing part
- ?Tail long enough
Then
- →Retie the clove first
- →Backup the tail on a serious job
Loops not formed as a clove
Check
- ?No extra security — wet collar walks like a plain bowline
- ?Inspect step 01
Then
- →Retie. Do not dress a defective structure and call it seated.
Clove left loose
Check
- ?Fat undressed collar capsizes under cyclic wet load
- ?Inspect step 04
Then
- →Retie. Do not dress a defective structure and call it seated.
Tail left up or missing a clove loop
Check
- ?Unfinished water bowline, no lock
- ?Inspect step 03
Then
- →Retie. Do not dress a defective structure and call it seated.
Same failure class, different geometry. Open the plates — Diagnose still starts from the symptom.
Get it right with everything in your favour0/5 clean
Nothing logged on this knot yet, so it starts on the bottom rung.
Good light, dry hands, a table. Until the sequence is automatic here there is nothing for the harder rungs to test — you would only be learning that difficult conditions are difficult, which you already knew.
How · Tie it, check it against the list, log it. Five clean and the ladder opens.
Nothing marked. Log it clean, or mark what happened first.
Strength, and where the number comes from
Not established
No test separates it from the plain bowline, and Animated Knots — the source the old sentence named — publishes no strength percentages for any knot.
Percentages come from published tests on their own line, their own knot-tyer and their own pull rate. Yours is a different system. Treat a figure as a reason to test, not as a result you already have.
- Animated Knots — Water Bowline
- WhyKnot — Strong Secure Water Bowline - How To Tie One
Cited tying video already attached to this record.
Record reviewed 2026-08-14
Vetted references
- Animated Knots — Water Bowline
Animated Knots by Grog
- Strong Secure Water Bowline - How To Tie One
WhyKnot
Related knots
Check the finished knot against what correct looks like before you load it.