Arts, Music, and Recreation Hobbies & Activities How to Tie a Clove Hitch Share Flipboard Email Print Hobbies & Activities Sailing & Boating Basics Navigation & Seamanship Equipment & Gear Types of Sailboats Boat Maintenance & Repair Hiking Paddling Fishing Scuba Diving Playing Guitar Painting Playing Piano Drawing & Sketching Collecting Gambling Card Games Other Hobbies View More by Tom Lochhaas Tom Lochhaas is an experienced sailor who has developed several boating safety books with the American Red Cross and the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary. Updated March 06, 2017 01 of 06 Bring the Line Over the Rail Photo © Tom Lochhaas. A clove hitch is frequently used on boats for securing a line around a rail, post, or other cylindrical structure. It is a secure temporary knot used, for example, to hang fenders to the boat’s rails or lifelines, as shown in this series of photos. Advantages of the clove hitch include that it can easily be adjusted or undone. Begin tying the clove hitch by bringing the line over the rail as shown here, or around a vertical post. Maintaining some tension in the line helps while you make the knot. 02 of 06 Loop the Line a Second Turn Photo © Tom Lochhaas. Make a second wrap of the line around the rail (continuing under and then back over). 03 of 06 Bring the Line Across Itself Photo © Tom Lochhaas. Bring the line back over the first loop as shown here. 04 of 06 Continue Back Under the Rail Photo © Tom Lochhaas. Continue looping the line back under the rail and up, as shown here. 05 of 06 Complete the Clove Hitch Photo © Tom Lochhaas. Finally, tuck the free end of the line back under the cross-over loop and pull it taut. 06 of 06 Clove Hitch Used to Hang Fender Photo © Tom Lochhaas. Here’s an example of how the clove hitch is used to tie a fender to a boat’s rail. A clove hitch can also be used to tie a dock line around a post. Remember that this is a temporary knot. For a secure knot that will hold in all circumstances, make a loop instead with a bowline. Check out other basic sailing knots. Continue Reading