Ready to add six more knots to your basic boating repertoire, greatly expand your capabilities and even impress your friends?

Let's start by reviewing some basic terms. With any knot, the part you manipulate is the working part or running part, the rest of the rope is the standing part. A bight is a bend in the rope that does not cross over the standing part–basically a U shape. If the rope makes a complete circle, crossing the standing part, it is a turn. If the line crosses over the standing part I call it an "overhand turn," if it crosses under it is an "underhand turn."

CLOVE HITCH

This knot that can be quickly and easily dropped onto a piling to hold a boat, though I wouldn't recommend leaving a boat secured with a clove hitch if you can't keep an eye on it without some sort of backup. A clove hitch can loosen up if there is no strain on the standing part (the part that leads to the boat). A few half-hitches on the standing part can serve as backup.

To tie a clove hitch around an object, take a turn around the object. Then cross over the turn and take another turn, this time slipping the running end under the last turn. Pull the running part and the standing part to tighten. You should see two turns around the object with both the running part and the standing part in between.

GENE BJERKE

A quick method if the end of the object is open (such as the top of a piling) is to make an underhand turn (with the running part under the standing part) and drop the loop onto the piling. Then make another underhand turn and drop that on the piling. Pull the ends to finish.

COIL HITCH

One of the best ways to keep a coiled rope secured is a coil hitch. To make it, take the last bit of rope and pass it around the top of the coil and under itself (similar to the beginning of a clove hitch). Pass it around again, this time passing over the first part and under the last turn. Pull up on the running end to tighten.

GENE BJERKE

This will hold the coil secure so you can hang it or carry it. If the running end is long enough, you can hang the coil from a lifeline or other such arrangement with a cow hitch.