Blake's Hitch

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Uses: Blake's Hitch is a Friction, or Slide and Grip, hitch. It is used by arborists for ascent and descent. Like other Slide and Grip Knots, the strain should only be taken on the line below the hitch. Blake's Hitch itself should not be used for traction because pulling directly on the hitch loosens it and allows descent - possibly out of control if unexpected.

Tying It: In practice it is an advantage to wind the first two turns while your thumb is inserted up alongside the climbing rope. This maintains a pathway to make it easier to thread the line. Note: This final threading must pass behind the main rope.

Other stopper knots may be used instead of the figure 8. This might be wise as the figure 8 is not very secure and the Blake's Hitch tends to slip.

Origin: Blake's Hitch was originally described by Heinz Prohaska in Nylon Highway #30 in May 1990. However, it has become widely known as Blake's Hitch and this name is used here.

Pros and Cons: Like the Rolling Hitch, Blake's has the advantage that it can be tied in the end of a piece of rope instead of requiring a Prusik Loop. However, without the protection of the added stopper knot it tends to pull loose too readily.

Disclaimer: Any activity that involves ropes is potentially hazardous. Lives may be at risk - possibly your own. Considerable attention and effort have been made to ensure that these descriptions are accurate. However, many critical factors cannot be controlled, including: the choice of materials; the age, size, and condition of ropes; and the accuracy with which these descriptions have been followed. For this reason no responsibility is accepted for incidents arising from the use of this material.

Updated:
Jun 24^th 2009