Building Friendship: Reports by John Monaghan

October-November 2000: Rattling Down

Before climbing up into the shrouds, the ratlines are made up by measuring the length needed from ½" diameter line and then forming an eye splice in each end. Each ratline then gets secured to the outermost shrouds by a seizing and gets tied to the inner shrouds using a clove hitch. The ratline has to be of the right length to take the eye splices and clove hitches into account. The riggers also need to consider that the ratlines will get shorter as they get higher up on the shrouds because the shrouds become closer together.

Left: NPS volunteer Ted [_________] preparing to attach ratlines to the mizzen shrouds. Photo by John Monaghan.