The Girth Hitch

Knots can feel intimidating—like some secret club only climbers, sailors, or river guides get access to. But the girth hitch? Be at ease. Once you learn it, you’ll see that it’s basically the knot-equivalent of giving something a big hug.

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What’s a Girth Hitch, Anyway?

 A girth hitch is used to attach a loop of webbing, rope, or strap to an object—like anchoring gear to a tree, creating a fixed point for rigging your gear, or fastening your Bat Flip Line to the raft frame.

The best place to secure your flip lines is the front and back of your frame so that the bags hang over the long side of your boat. In the event of a flip and deployment of your flip lines, your boat's frame--being attached to multiple D-rings--distributes the force needed to right a fully-loaded gear boat. 

A common mistake is attaching the flip lines to a single D-Ring or the perimeter line. This can result in the D-Ring being ripped out or having too much stretch in the perimeter line to generate leverage needed to right your craft. 

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Why It’s Handy on the River

• Quick and easy: Tie it in seconds, even with cold, soggy fingers.

• Secure: Grips tighter under tension and releases under gentle coaxing.

• Versatile: Works with rope, straps, or webbing. Applies to all anchors you can get your loop around. 

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Step-By-Step: Girth Hitching Your Flip Lines to the Frame

1. Tuck end of your girth hitch loop under frame. 
   Start with the creature facing you at the front corner of your raft frame. Slip the loop under the frame (Note that the frame strap has been removed from the images for clarity of presentation).

2. Pull loop through
   Pull the loop through until the creature is snugged up against the frame. This should make a loop about the size of your flip line bag.

3. Thread bag through
   Pass the bag itself through the loop.

4. Cinch it tight
   Pull snug so the loop tightens down around the frame. Your flip line is now cozy and ready for action! 

5. Repeat for Second Flip Line
   Repeat steps 1-4 on the back corner of your raft frame (Same side of raft). That's it.  Seriously. You're done!

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Pro Tips for Rafting and Other Applications

• Attach before you load: Make it easy for yourself and attach your lines before the frame is weighted down by gear or the tubes are pumped to full inflation. Squeezing the girth hitch loop beneath a heavy frame is just harder than it needs to be.
  
  

• Check your cinch: Give it a tug to make sure it’s snugged up.
  

• For light boats:If you're in a paddle raft or non-gear boat, a D-Ring is an acceptable attachment point. These boats aren't heavy enough to put a dangerous amount of strain on isolated fixed points.
  
• For Webbing: If you’re using flat webbing, make sure it’s lying flat—not twisted—for max strength. This also reduces the wear and tear on the webbing.