Crew candidates sometimes ask what the minimum number of knots is to be useful aboard a charter yacht. Six knots handle nearly every situation a deckhand encounters. Know these cold — meaning tied in the dark, one-handed, or with hands cold from spray.
Bowline
The bowline makes a fixed loop that does not slip under load and can be released after strain. It is the most important knot on a sailboat. Use it to attach a sheet to a clew, make a loop in a dock line, or create a temporary becket. The classic mnemonic — the rabbit out of the hole, around the tree, back down the hole — is reliable. Practice until you can tie it in five seconds.
Cleat hitch
One full turn around the base, two figure-eights over the horns, one locking hitch. This is the knot for every dock line, every halyard, every sheet that lands on a horn cleat. The locking hitch holds under shock load but still releases cleanly. Practice until you can tie it in two seconds without looking.
Clove hitch
Two loops over a piling or rail, each crossed over the other. Quick to tie and release, useful for temporarily securing a fender line or making a line fast to a piling when time matters. Not for permanent use — it can slip under uneven load — but reliable for short-term holds.
Figure-eight stopper knot
Tied at the end of any line that passes through a block or clutch, it prevents the line from running through. If a sheet runs out of its block, the figure-eight is what stops the end from disappearing aloft. Check all sheet ends before departure; if the stopper knot is missing or has loosened, tie one before casting off.
Round turn and two half-hitches
Used to secure a line to a piling, ring, or rail. The round turn takes the strain; the two half-hitches lock it. Useful for making a fender line fast to a lifeline stanchion or temporarily securing a line to any fixed cylindrical point.
Reef knot
A joining knot for two lines of the same diameter — left over right, right over left. Its practical use on a charter vessel is tying a sail gasket when the main is furled. It should lie flat and release easily when one end is pulled sharply. Do not use a reef knot where jamming under load is a risk; use a sheet bend when the lines differ in diameter.
General information, not legal or licensing advice. Check current rules with the cited sources.
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