Skip to main content

The must-know queen of knots: How to tie an alpine butterfly knot

This knot is a multidirectional, all-purpose choice for around camp

Every good outdoorsman knows to take a length of rope or paracord with them in their pack when they hit the trail because there's almost no end to what you can achieve with an arsenal of knots and some imagination.

Whether you're looking for innovative ways to set up your tarp, want to create hanging points for lanterns around your camp, or need to create an anchor point in your rope, the alpine butterfly knot is a must-know for an outdoorsman.

Difficulty

Easy

Duration

5 minutes

What You Need

  • A piece of rope

  • Patience

This queen of knots — the king role being taken up by the bowline knot — creates a stand-alone loop in the middle of a rope. Sure, you could potentially achieve the same with a figure 8 knot, but the alpine butterfly knot has two key advantages over any other mid-rope loop knot.

Firstly, you can three-way load the alpine butterfly safely. This means you can haul on the loop, as well as both ends of the rope, without the rope being significantly weakened. Secondly, the alpine butterfly knot can always be untied once you're finished with it. So how do you tie this queen of knots?

This Knot is a GAMECHANGER! - The Alpine Butterfly Knot.

Alpine butterfly knot

How to tie a knot: The alpine butterfly knot

Step 1: With one end of the rope toward you and the other going away, wrap the rope around your hand three times. Starting from your wrist, number these loops 1, 2, and 3.

Step 1 tying an alpine butterfly knot

Step 2: Loop 2 — the middle loop — will be your working loop and is the only loop you should need to move. The alpine butterfly knot can also be remembered as the under, over, under knot. Begin by tucking loop 2 underneath loop 3.

Step 2 tying an alpine butterfly knot

Step 3: From here, take that loop back over the top of the other loops for the over section of the knot.

Step 3 tying an alpine butterfly knot

Step 4: Now take loop 2 back underneath loops 1 and 3 for the final under section.

Step 4 tying an alpine butterfly knot

Step 5: Hold the end of loop 2 and slide the knot from your hand. Pull on both ends and on the loop to dress your knot.

Step 5 tying an alpine butterfly knot

Step 6: You can adjust the size of your loop by feeding the rope through the knot in either direction.

Step 6 tying an alpine butterfly knot

Once you've mastered the alpine butterfly knot, you'll suddenly find a whole load of uses for it that you never thought of. As with all outdoor knots, it might not be used too regularly, but when it's the right knot for a task, no other will suffice.

Editors' Recommendations

Tom Kilpatrick
A London-born outdoor enthusiast, Tom took the first ticket out of suburban life. What followed was a twelve-year career as…
6 essential knots for every outdoorsman to learn
A well-versed arsenal of knots of a must-have for any outdoorsman
A reef knot is tied against a tree

There are 101 things to tie up in the backcountry. Perhaps you're setting up a ridgeline for a camping tarp, or you need to hang a bear bag to avoid your favorite snacks being snaffled overnight. Whatever it is, we know that the rope you keep in your bag is a lifeline and an essential part of being an outdoorsman. But there's more to tying things up than just learning a simple knot and relying on it for every situation. There are thousands of knots to choose from, and given a little time, you can always improvise one of your own.

Each knot has its own uses and will come with a raft of benefits and drawbacks and should be favored in certain situations. This means that to be a successful outdoorsman, you need to have at least a small arsenal of knots up your sleeve to pull out in the right situation.

Read more
How to safely remove a leech (or avoid them altogether)
Avoid becoming a host for a hungry leech
leeches

I remember the first — and so far only, fingers crossed — leech I had to remove from myself. I had been walking on a wet and overgrown trail in a pair of sandals, and the little sucker latched onto my big toe. With nothing on hand to do the job properly and with no real knowledge of what I was doing, I just pulled the leech off and threw it back into the bushes. Big mistake. This was my first experience with a leech, and if I'd known then what I know now, it would have gone down very differently.

Read more
Learn to tie the bowline: the king of knots
The complete guide to tying a bowline knot
Dress the knot and pull it tight.

Rightfully known throughout the outdoor world as the king of knots, the bowline knot is a must-know knot for every outdoorsman. If like me, you were in the boy scouts when you were younger, the word bowline might have just sparked a whole load of memories. Probably something to do with a rabbit, a tree, a hole, and a whole load of confusion as to what this had to do with attaching your compass to your hiking backpack.

Read more