Tie a Prusik Loop
Ascending knots
These knots are used to allow climbers to ascend a rope to get out of a difficult situation when mechanical/hardware ascenders are not available.
Prusik Loop
The Prusik loop is probably one of the better known ascending knots and
used in climbing, sailing and pot-holing. It is an easy knot to tie and
an important knot to learn as it can be considered a life saver if the chips
are down. It allows a climber to tie into a rope and ascend out of difficulty
and to safety by friction of two ropes against each other. Ascending a rope
is normally done with two Prusik knots, one which ties into your harness
and the other which is made into a foot loop normally using a Prusik and
a Figure of Eight on the Bight. The theory is whilst the weight of the body
is taken through the Prusik holding the foot loop, the climber stands up
and slides the Prusik tied into the harness up the rope and sits back, locking
the knot and securing the climber who can then pull the Prusik with the
foot loop up to a distance where the climber can then stand up again and
move the Prusik tied into their harness up again. This series of actions
continues until the climber is out of danger. It is a very tiring method
of ascending and a slow one but it can and does work in an emergency. Using
a thinner diameter rope or accessory chord of 7mm is the best to use for
a Prusik.
Step One:
Figure 1: Make a loop in a short piece of rope (for best
results use 7mm) and hold it behind the rope that you need to ascend.
Figure 2: Fold the loop over the rope.
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Figure 1 |
Figure 2 |
Step Two:
Figure 3: Pull the tails of the 7mm rope through the loop.
Figure 4: Go around the rope and thread through the loop
again.
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Figure 3 |
Figure 4 |
Step Three:
Figure 5: Thread the tails through the loop a final time
(3 in total should be sufficient).
Figure 6: Slide the loops together on the main rope and
pull the tails to tighten the Prusik Knot.
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Figure 5 |
Figure 6 |
Step Four:
Figure 7: Secure the two loose tails of the Prusik Knot with a choice of knot. As pictured in Figure 7. A Double Fisherman’s Knot creates a loop which would take the weight of a body standing in it. Some people would prefer, if there is enough rope, to tie a Figure of Eight on the Bight, which then makes a strong loop to stand in or clip into your harness.
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Figure 7 |
