The fastest fishing knots I tie are the clinch knot for joining a line to a hook or fly and the blood knot for joining two lines, which I tie in 9.31 and 19.64 seconds. They are not the strongest knots in my guide, but speed wins when you are out of time, like rowing a spinning drift boat toward whitewater. In this How 2 Tuesday I explain why two practiced, fast knots beat a big repertoire you cannot tie under pressure.
Listen now: press play in the player above and follow along.
For me the two fastest are the clinch knot to tie a line to a hook or fly, and the blood knot to tie two lines together. On the clock I tied the clinch knot in 9.31 seconds and the blood knot in 19.64 seconds. They are not the strongest knots in my knot guide, but they are the fastest I can tie, and speed is exactly what I need in situations where I do not have time to fuss with a stronger, slower connection.
Because sometimes you simply have to tie a knot really, really fast, and the strongest knot does you no good if you cannot tie it in the conditions you are in. When I guided in freshwater I would be rowing a boat down a river with two anglers, oars under my knees, the boat spinning, and whitewater or rocks coming up. I had to retie tippet and a fly in seconds. The clinch and blood knots were not the strongest, but they were the fastest I could tie, and fast won.
On the clock I tied the clinch knot in 9.31 seconds and the blood knot in 19.64 seconds. Those are not world record times by any stretch, and plenty of people tie faster than me. But both come in well under thirty seconds, and thirty seconds is the goal. If you can reliably tie your two go-to knots in under thirty seconds, you can handle almost any situation on the water where speed matters.
Every angler should master one line-to-line knot and one line-to-hook knot. My picks are the blood knot for joining two lines and the clinch knot for tying to the hook or fly. The point is not that these are the strongest, it is that you have practiced a couple of knots so well you can tie them in the dark, with frozen or wet hands, while everything around you is going wrong. Pick two, practice them, and make them automatic.
That is exactly the standard to practice to. You want to be able to tie your go-to knots literally in the dark, with your hands frozen or wet, because that is when you will actually need them. The way you get there is repetition on a couple of knots until the motion is automatic. I learned this guiding rivers where I had no time and no margin, and it is why I value a couple of fast, practiced knots over a big repertoire.
All three are in the free Tom Rowland Podcast knot guide, which goes over every knot we have tied on How 2 Tuesday and ranks them by percentage of breaking strength. You will notice the clinch knot is the one I reach for even though it is not the strongest, simply because it is the fastest I can tie. The link to learn the clinch, improved clinch, and blood knots is in the episode description.
Something you might not know about me is that I also guided in freshwater and competed in tournaments. Fly fishing a river, I would be rowing with two anglers aboard, oars under my knees, the boat spinning, rocks and whitewater coming up, and I had to retie tippet and a fly in seconds. The clinch and blood knots were not the strongest, but they were the fastest I could tie. I tell that story in the episode, so press play in the player above.
Here is how I think about picking and drilling fast knots. I cover the details in the episode.
I unpack each step in the episode. Press play in the player above.
I wanted to see how fast I really am, so I timed myself: the clinch knot in 9.31 seconds and the blood knot in 19.64 seconds. Not world records, and plenty of people are faster, but both are well under the thirty second goal. I walk through the timing in the episode, so press play in the player above.
The standard to practice to is being able to tie your go-to knots in the dark, with frozen or wet hands, while everything around you is going wrong. You get there with repetition on just a couple of knots until the motion is automatic. I explain how I drill them in the episode, so press play in the player above.
Pick one line-to-line knot and one line-to-hook knot, then practice them until they are automatic.
They do not have to be the strongest in the guide. They have to be the ones you can tie fast, every time, when it counts. Press play in the player above.
How 2 Tuesday is my weekly series where I break down one fishing skill at a time, from knots and casting to gear, tactics, and the habits that make you a better angler. Watch and listen to every How 2 Tuesday episode from Tom Rowland.
clinch knot · blood knot · improved clinch knot · freshwater guiding · drift boat · tippet · Tom Rowland Podcast knot guide · Danco pliers · Star brite · Nikon · How 2 Tuesday · Saltwater Experience
I'm Tom Rowland, a professional fishing guide based in the Florida Keys, host of the Tom Rowland Podcast, and the longtime host of the Saltwater Experience television show. On the podcast's How 2 Tuesday series I break down one practical skill or lesson at a time, from fishing technique and gear to the habits that make you a better angler, in short, focused episodes you can put to use right away.
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