How to Tie the Exploding High Point Hitch
Usage
The Exploding High Point Hitch fixes a rope to a post, pile, or high branch when you want to drop it later with one pull — without climbing back up. It is a High Point Hitch dressed with a slipped draw-loop, so a single tug on the tail lets the turns and the loop go at once and the knot falls apart in your hand. It is really a Slipped Buntline Hitch with one extra locking turn.
Its oldest job is tidal boat mooring: make fast to a tall piling and cast off at low water by hauling a long tail from the deck. The same trick works anywhere the anchor sits above easy reach.
Common Uses
A niche, single-trick knot for remote quick-release from a high anchor:
- Mooring a boat to a tall pile in a big tidal range, then casting off and recovering the line from the deck at low tide.
- Tying a line to a high branch, rafter, or beam and releasing it from the ground — no climbing back up to untie.
Other Names
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Notable Features
- Explosive release: one straight pull on the tail spills the turns and the draw-loop together, and the whole knot lets go at once.
- Tie high, release low: slide it up a pole or branch into place, then release and recover from below without reaching the anchor.
Similar Knots
Slipped Buntline Hitch vs. Exploding High Point Hitch
- The Slipped Buntline Hitch is quicker — one fewer turn — but gives less security on larger objects; that locking turn is what the High Point Hitch adds.
Mooring Hitch vs. Exploding High Point Hitch
- The Mooring Hitch is simpler for light-duty release but can jam and isn't built for the tall-anchor job.
Highwayman's Hitch vs. Exploding High Point Hitch
- The Highwayman's Hitch is the widely-taught rail-and-post release, but can capsize on large objects where the High Point Hitch holds load.
Security Level
Treat this as a utility quick-release hitch, not a life-safety knot. It is secure only when dressed correctly and kept under steady tension — it hugs harder the more you load it. Its two weak spots are a slack line, where it works loose, and small-diameter hardware, where it can jam instead of releasing. There is no published break-strength testing.
Downsides
- Loosens when slack: it works best under steady load and can shake loose if the line goes slack and taut repeatedly — not a set-and-forget knot.
- Jams on small hardware: under medium load on carabiners or small rings the turns pack together and it can jam rather than shed.
- Accidental release: a stray tug on the release tail can spill the hitch when you did not mean it to.
- Thinly documented: a niche knot absent from most major reference sites, so second opinions are scarce.
History
Ashley recorded this knot twice without noticing. In The Ashley Book of Knots (1944) he describes a Slipped Buntline Hitch with an extra half-turn that is "amply secure" and "spills smoothly," and pages later gives it a home — a boat cast off a tall tidal piling from the deck. The modern internet fused the two and added "exploding," a word that never appears in Ashley's book. The older formal names are the High Point Hitch and the High Post Hitch.
How to Tie the Exploding High Point Hitch
Practice this on a chair leg or fence post first — a length of 750 lb bushcraft paracord and a broomstick is all you need.
Step 1
Pass the working end — the end you are actually moving — a half turn around the pole.
Step 2
Pass a half turn around the standing part, the side of the rope that runs off to the load.
Step 3
Pass a half turn around both the working end and the standing part, closer to the pole than the first turn. This is the extra locking wrap that separates the High Point Hitch from a plain Slipped Buntline Hitch.
Step 4
Push a bight of the working end through the middle of the hitch — between the two half turns, and between the standing part and the working end. This bight is the draw-loop that gives the one-pull release.
Step 5
Pull the standing part to tighten, and slide the hitch snug against the pole if you need to. Dress the turns neatly so the draw-loop sits clean through the middle and will free with a single pull.
If the wraps are hard to follow, the Knot IQ app shows the hitch in 3D so you can see where that third locking turn sits.
Tying It in the Bight (No Free End)
When you can reach the post with a bight but not a rope end, tie it around the post with no end at all.
Step 1
Find the middle of the rope.
Step 2
Pass the bight around the post.
Step 3
Lay it around the two standing parts.
Step 4
Tuck a bight from the end part through to finish the hitch. It releases and recovers the same way as the standard form.
How to Release It
Step 1
Pull the working end — the release tail — in the direction of the load.
Step 2
That single pull pulls the locking turns apart and frees the draw-loop at the same moment, and the whole knot falls apart. Give it a decisive, straight pull; a tentative or off-axis tug is what leaves a mis-dressed knot half-jammed.
FAQ
What is the Exploding High Point Hitch used for?
Fixing a rope to a post, pile, or high branch above easy reach, then releasing it from below with one pull. Its classic job is tidal boat mooring — make fast to a tall piling and cast off from the deck at low water.
How do you release the Exploding High Point Hitch?
Pull the working end (the release tail) straight, in the direction of the load. The locking turns and draw-loop let go at once and the knot falls apart; then pull the standing part to haul the rope back.
What is the difference between this and a Slipped Buntline Hitch?
One extra half-turn. The High Point Hitch adds a locking turn wrapping both the working end and the standing part before the slipped draw-loop is formed, adding security on larger objects.
Why do people say it jams if it is meant to be non-jamming?
The clean release depends on how you tie it and what to. Well dressed on a fat post under steady load it spills clean; on a thin ring or carabiner, or finished sloppily, the turns pack together and it can jam.
Can you tie it without a free rope end?
Yes. Middle the rope, pass the bight around the post, lay it around the two standing parts, and tuck a bight from the end part through. It releases and recovers just like the standard form.
Is "Exploding" part of the knot's real name?
No. It is a modern internet-era nickname for the one-pull release. The word never appears in The Ashley Book of Knots; the older formal names are the High Point Hitch and the High Post Hitch.
Important Notes on Safety
This is a utility quick-release hitch, not a knot for any critical or life-safety load — for anything where failure would have real consequences, choose a hitch not designed to spill on a single pull. Keep the release tail routed where it cannot be snagged or tugged by accident, keep the line under steady tension, and use an adequate-diameter anchor so it releases cleanly instead of jamming. If you are tying to a piling in rocking tidal water, watch your fingers between the rope and the post.
