Six knots that do most of the work

Most of camp comes down to six knots. A bowline for a loop that will not slip. A taut-line hitch when a guy line needs tightening in the night. A clove hitch on a post. A trucker's hitch when the ridge line has to be drum tight. A sheet bend for two ropes that are not the same thickness. A highwayman's hitch when the tie should come free with one pull.

Learn them once before you come. On the trail the guide puts the rope in your hands again, in the wind, before dark.