Water Bowline

HOW TO TIE A WATER BOWLINE KNOT

#katknots. 🥨 If you want to give a bit of oomph to your Bowline, if you are tying off your tender for example, then try a Water Bowline.
(Also check out our page on how to tie an anchor hitch which is another option for tying off your tender).

We’ve featured this before, but this is a better and quicker way of tying it. It’s effectively 2 knots for the price of one.

Instead of a normal loop, make a Clove Hitch in the Bight on the standing end. Then pass the working end up through, round and back down as you normally would in a Bowline.

Tighten the Bowline part first, and then the hitch. Voilà! A really strong Bowline variation. Remember, it’s going to take you slightly longer to untie. As the name suggests, it’s good in water, that’s why it’s a good knot for your tender on windier days. Standard bowlines can work free if your tender is pulling and pushing on it, especially with wet synthetic rope.

Other variations of this famous know include the Bowline on a Bight and the Inuit Bowline.