All experienced team leaders or those among us who are skilled understand one principle: the simplest method is often the best. The best approach is using the most basic tools to accomplish the most complex tasks. Guided by this philosophy, after years of trial and refinement, many simple yet effective outdoor techniques have been developed. To date, there is almost no standard piece of gear that cannot be replaced by a simple method. For instance, in special circumstances, a prusik can substitute for an ascender, and an Italian hitch can replace a descender. The usage methods of rescue ropes and other auxiliary equipment discussed here also follow this principle.
Method One: Creating a Harness with a Single Knot
In earlier years, a popular way to create a makeshift harness using outdoor knots was to fashion one from two flat webbing straps. This method had a major drawback—once completed, it was almost useless without being connected to a main rope and carabiner. As a result, this approach had limited practicality and adoption. However, the method of creating a simple harness with a single knot introduced here holds significant practical value.
Here’s how it works: Take one end of a 15-meter rescue rope, fold it in half at 90% of the length of your outstretched arms to form five strands, then tie a single knot at the midpoint. Once completed, unfold the rope to reveal four rope loops. Insert both legs and both arms through these loops to create a full-body harness. If the rope isn’t long enough, you can fold it into four strands to make three loops, and wearing one loop over the shoulders can still function as a full-body harness.
Typical Case Operation:
Rock Climbing Knots
1. When crossing a river during a stream trekking activity. When the water flow is fast, the first explorer needs to cross under protection. In such cases, you can use a rescue rope to create a harness. The primary protector holds the long end of the rope upstream to provide protection, while the secondary protector, on the same level as the explorer, uses another rope for protection.
2. In extremely steep terrain, some less capable team members may be unable to climb or descend on their own. Using this method along with an Italian hitch (where a tree or other vertical object can act as a carabiner) allows for easy completion of the task.
3. Assisting in the transport of an injured person. In certain steep slope conditions where using a stretcher is impractical and carrying is necessary, whether ascending or descending, the carrier may struggle to navigate obstacles alone. Providing the carrier with a simple harness that offers control and assistance solves the problem.
Method Two: Making a Stretcher with a Bowline and Backpacks
1. Making a Stretcher with a Bowline and Hiking Poles (or Wooden Sticks)
Fully collapse four hiking poles (or two wooden sticks), arrange them in two columns with two poles per column to form the main frame of the stretcher. Adjust the width between the columns to approximately 0.7 to 1 meter based on the injured person’s body width. Use a rescue rope to weave back and forth between the poles in a ripple pattern, then secure the rope to the poles with several bowlines. The basic structure of the makeshift stretcher is now complete. Add a sleeping pad, backpack, or sleeping bag to create a fully functional rescue stretcher.
2. Making a Stretcher with Backpacks
Connect two backpacks end to end. Unfasten all the shoulder strap webbing from the buckles, then interlink the shoulder straps of the two backpacks to the buckles of the other backpack, joining them into a single unit. The waist belts and chest straps of the backpacks will securely hold the injured person in place, while the shoulder straps serve as excellent handles for the carriers.
When conditions allow, combining the stretchers made from both methods yields the best results. For long-distance or prolonged transport, to reduce the strain on the carriers’ hands, additional rescue ropes can be used to connect the stretcher to the carriers’ shoulders, shifting the load to the shoulders. This saves energy and ensures a smoother, safer transport.
Method Three: Carrying a Person with a Rope Loop
Not all situations allow for the use of stretchers to transport the injured. In certain special cases, the most primitive method—carrying by manpower—must be used, such as when rescue resources are limited or in particularly steep terrain.
How to Make a Rope Loop:
Coil the rescue rope into a neat loop that reaches halfway down your body, then secure the coil tightly with a rope-tying knot. Split the loop evenly into two strands to form a figure-eight shape, creating the shoulder straps. Place the straps over your shoulders, have the injured person insert each leg into one of the two rope loops, and then use another rope (or the tail end of the same rope) to securely cross-connect the injured person with the carrier. This enables safe and relatively effortless transport.
Method Four: Using a Simple Chest Harness with a Safety Rope
During most routine outdoor activities, we encounter hazardous terrain. The usual method is to use a safety rope to traverse in relay. While this approach mitigates risks to some extent and provides a way across obstacles, it remains unsafe under more extreme conditions because hand-relayed traversal doesn’t ensure the person is under full protection throughout. For example, when ascending, descending, or traversing slopes steeper than 60 degrees that are wet and slippery, using a simple harness connected to a safety rope is essential for safe passage. Assuming you only have a rescue rope and no standard harness or connectors, crafting a simple chest harness is an efficient and safe solution.
1. Traversing Uphill or Downhill Terrain
After securing the safety rope (or rescue rope), each person coils their rope into a full loop and leaves a suitable length of tail. Pass the loop over your head and wear it diagonally over one shoulder. Secure the rope tail with a single prusik knot to the safety rope, creating a bidirectional, self-locking connection between you and the rope. This setup ensures security during steep climbing or descending, keeping you protected at all times. Two key points for tying a prusik knot: first, when using ropes of the same diameter, usually more turns are needed, and their effectiveness must be tested; second, the finishing overhand knot (blake’s hitch or similar) must be secure.
2. Traversing Sideways Across Terrain
Use the same method to create a rope loop. Before securing the safety rope, thread the loop entirely onto it. During traversal, each person simply steps into a loop and begins moving sideways. Alternatively, the prusik knot method described above can also be applied for sideway traversal.
Fifth Tip: Other Common Uses of Rescue Rope
The uses of rescue rope mentioned above are just a few less commonly known methods and applications. In reality, a single rope can serve far more purposes during outdoor adventures. Whether in canyon sports, caving, canoeing, cycling, self-driving tours, or a range of other outdoor activities, rescue ropes can be utilized in many ways—important functions such as towing, pulling, hoisting at height, and bundling, as well as non-safety-related ones like serving as guylines for tents, clotheslines, rope knot practice, or measuring water depth.
Each method has been invented and refined through continuous practice. Just like the original Prusik knot, which was created by its inventor using shoelaces while stuck in an ice crevasse. Over the years, we have been learning techniques and methods from abroad, but I believe that if our vast community of outdoor enthusiasts pays more attention to safety and technical skills, many new technologies and methods will emerge in China in the near future. Of course, even more importantly, we need more people to treat basic safety knowledge and equipment as essential prerequisites for participating in outdoor activities. Only then can our outdoor experiences be filled with more joy and fewer tragedies.