Anchor Hitch
Also known as: Fisherman's Bend
hitch knot
An anchor rode takes a genuinely punishing load - not a steady pull, but a repeated surge and slacken as the boat rides waves and swings on its chain, exactly the kind of cyclic loading that can walk a simpler hitch loose over hours at anchor. The anchor hitch (also widely called the fisherman's bend, despite technically being a hitch rather than a bend) takes the familiar round turn and two half hitches pattern and adds one extra tuck through the round turn itself, jamming under load in a way that resists the rotation and loosening a plain round turn can suffer under that surging strain.
The extra tuck is a small addition mechanically but a meaningful one in practice: rather than the round turn sitting loose against the ring with the half hitches doing all the holding, the tucked turn traps itself against the ring and takes some of the strain directly, sharing the load rather than relying entirely on the finishing hitches.
That's exactly the reliability boaters need for ground tackle they won't be watching constantly - an anchor set overnight, or a mooring left unattended, needs a hitch that won't slowly work itself loose over the many small surges a boat makes at anchor. The extra effort of the tuck is a small price for that added security.
For genuinely long-term or unattended moorings, many boaters go a step further and seize the tail to the standing part with tape or light line, purely as an extra margin - not because the hitch itself is unreliable when tied correctly, but because a dragged anchor costs far more than the two minutes the extra hitch takes.
The "fisherman's bend" name, despite being technically inaccurate (a bend joins two ropes, while this hitch attaches a rope to a ring or shackle), has stuck through generations of maritime usage precisely because commercial fishing crews relied on it constantly for anchoring and mooring gear that had to hold reliably through repeated, unsupervised use at sea - a working pedigree that outlasted the naming technicality.
On chain-and-rope combination rodes, where a length of chain runs from the anchor to a rope section, the anchor hitch is also the standard way to attach the rope to the chain's end link, since the ring-and-tuck mechanism works just as securely against a chain link as it does against a dedicated anchor ring.
How to tie the Anchor Hitch
- 1Pass the rope through the anchor ring or shackle twice, forming a round turn.
- 2Bring the working end up and tuck it under both turns of the round turn, inside the loop against the ring.
- 3Pull that tuck snug so it sits trapped between the round turn and the ring.
- 4Tie a half hitch with the working end around the standing part just beyond the round turn.
- 5Tie a second half hitch below the first for a secure finish.
- 6Seize or tape the tail to the standing part for extra security on a permanent anchor rode.
Strength & security
Approx. strength retained: roughly 55-90%, depending heavily on ring diameter
Published strength figures for this hitch vary widely and depend mostly on what it is tied around: measurements around a small 5/8-inch ring come out near 55-65% of the rope's rated strength, while the same hitch around a 4-inch post measures 80-90%. A tight bend radius costs strength, so a larger ring or shackle is meaningfully kinder to the rope. Mechanically, the extra tuck through the round turn, ahead of the two finishing half hitches, jams under load and keeps the whole hitch from working loose or rotating around the ring the way a simple round turn and two half hitches alone sometimes can under a surging anchor rode.
Cautions: Dress the initial tuck carefully - it needs to sit trapped between the round turn and the ring to do its job; a rushed or loose tuck there gives up the hitch's main advantage over a simpler round-turn hitch.
Alternatives
- Round Turn and Two Half Hitches
Simpler to tie and adequate for lighter, steadier loads; the anchor hitch's extra tuck earns its place specifically on a boat's anchor rode, where the load surges and shifts repeatedly rather than pulling steadily.
FAQ
Is the anchor hitch the same as the fisherman's bend?
Yes - it's the same knot known by two common names, despite technically being a hitch (tied to a ring or object) rather than a bend (joining two ropes).
Why not just use round turn and two half hitches for an anchor rode?
That simpler hitch works for steadier loads, but the anchor hitch's extra tuck resists the loosening and rotation a surging, repeatedly slackening anchor rode can cause over time.
Should I add anything extra for a long-term mooring?
Many boaters seize or tape the tail to the standing part on an unattended mooring as an added margin, even though the hitch itself is reliable when tied and dressed correctly.
Can the anchor hitch attach a rope directly to chain?
Yes - it's the standard method for joining a rope rode to the end link of a chain-and-rope combination anchor rode, since the same ring-and-tuck mechanism grips a chain link just as securely as a dedicated anchor ring.
Gear that pairs with this knot
- 3-strand nylon anchor rode
The rode this hitch bends to the anchor ring — 3-strand nylon stretches to absorb a boat surging at anchor and resists chafe better than braid on the roller.
- Galvanised anchor shackle
The ring or shackle the anchor hitch is tied through; a corroded shackle undoes a perfectly tied hitch, which is the weak-link point this page makes.
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