European Death Knot (EDK)

Also called:  “Flat Overhand Knot”, “Offset Overhand Bend”, “Thumb Knot”, “Thumb Bend”.  Please call it the E.D.K. as the other names are not known in the Canyoneering universe.

The E.D.K. is a very quick way of tying two ropes together.  This is listed here for only retrieving your rappel rope; NOT rappelling on. BIG difference!

It does not matter that the two ropes are not the same thickness.

The IMPORTANT thing is that you tie a minimum of two over-hand knots (also called “double EDK” or “double stacked”) with a maximum of three (also called “triple EDK” or “triple-stacked”).  That’s all it is…two or three overhand knots using the two ropes.

Pros:

• Easy to remember (just three overhand knots, next to each other)

• Quickly connects two ropes (of the same diameter or not) to retrieve your rappel rope.

Cons:

• Although simple, if tied incorrectly, it can lead to grave bodily harm and death.

• If rigged incorrectly to rappel on, the knot can “capsize” (or “roll”).

• NEVER USED for rappelling in canyoneering.

Caution:

• Leave 12 inches (extreme minimum) to 24 inches of tail.

• Do NOT tie the EDK on webbing! It will fail when loaded over 1100 lbf. (The Water Knot fails over 2000 lbf) Do NOT use the EDK on very stiff ropes (IE brand new).  

• On brand new ropes, use a more secure knot such as the Double-Fisherman Bend.

Canyoneering Usage Examples:

• Scenario: the tallest rappel in a canyon is 90 ft.  You bring a 100-foot 9 mm rope to rappel on and you also bring a 100-foot 6 mm pull-cord to retrieve your 9 mm.  When you are setting up your rigging, one way is to use an EDK knot on both ropes so that you would use the 6 mm rope as a pull-cord to retrieve the 9 mm rappel rope.

Additional Reading:

• Wikipedia.org: “Offset Overhand Bend”

• YouTube.com: “Canyons & Crags – “Flat Overhand Knot – the European Death Knot””

• Canyoneering.net: “EDK in Webbing?”

• CanyoneeringUSA.com: “How to Tie Two Ropes Together”