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Mooring lines, tow lines, and lanyards are all tethers used to attach your boat to another object, be it a paddle, another boat, an anchor, or yourself. Tethers can be a valuable piece of safety equipment, but what is life-sustaining in one circumstance can be life threatening in another, and it's important to know the difference.

Tethers can be very helpful for...

• Paddling on open water, particularly in rough or windy conditions.
• Mooring a boat, such as tying off to a tree on the river bank.
• Anchoring a boat in calm water.
• "Lining" or pulling a boat loaded with cargo via a rope.
• Hanging a boat where bears can't chew it. This is actually a handy trick, if you're caching your boat for a few days in the far north.

Tethers can be very dangerous when...

• Used in swift water or whitewater, especially creeks with rocks or logs.
• Used in a situation where the tether could entangle you, or tangle on an obstacle.

Both the help and hazard come from the "same property" : a tether, whether it's a lanyard from your boat to your paddle or a tow line from a cargo-filled raft to yourself on shore, prevents two things from being separated. That property can be a life-saver (such as if you fall overboard in high wind on in open, cold water), or life threatening (if you flip in a swift river full of rocks and logs and remain attached by a tether to your boat).

Basic Tips on Tethering

• Select a cord of adequate strength.
• Consider whether you can cut or release a hazardous line. Usually, having a knife on hand to cut an entangling tether is adequate - if that knife will cut the tether. The basic question is "if this snares on something, can I release myself and/or the boat from it?"
• Be exceedingly wary of having lanyards or loose line while running moving water. In swift water, a tether can entangle you. Although some experienced boaters utilize this for specific reasons, it is not generally recommended.
• Consider how to stow your tether. The idea is generally to get the line out of harm's way. Stowing it in a pouch or pocket, or stringing it tightly among your tie downs are good options. As always, the goal is to minimize entanglement hazard.

General Tether Types

• Marine Lanyards: In flat, open water, it may be helpful to run a lanyard between your paddle and pack. In the event that you bail overboard, the objective is to keep your raft connected to you via your paddle, which you can hold onto while swimming. In a high wind on open water, your packraft will otherwise immediately be swept away from you.
• Mooring Lines & Anchor Lines: A mooring line helps you secure your packraft to an object on-shore. As with the Marine Lanyard, this is particularly important in high wind. Unloaded packrafts, ashore or on the water, can tumble fast in strong winds.
• Boat-to-Boat Tow Lines are used to tow equipment or other boats, on the water. If another boater swims, you can fetch & tow their boat, paddle, or other items using a tow line. A short line with a clip on its end, stowed in a secure fashion but easily accessed, leaves your arms free to paddle when recovering equipment. Always have a way to release the tow-line, such as a knife, if it becomes a hazard to you.
• Boat-to-Shore Tow Lines are used to tow or hoist boats from shore. Aside from a rescue, the most common use for these is lining. "Lining" is the art of maneuvering boats, usually heavily loaded with cargo, from shore via ropes. For lining, one of the most important considerations is to select a rope that's light enough to be manageable but thick enough that you can handle it well under load.

Want to learn more about river rope-work or rescue? We suggest a Whitewater Rescue Technician course. Solgear puts on a good one.