Net Weaving: Making Fishing Nets from Natural Cordage

Net Types

Gill net: A wall of netting set perpendicular to fish travel. Fish swim through the mesh opening until their gill covers catch and they cannot back out. Set vertically in a stream or lake margin. Passive — check every 2-4 hours.

Seine net: A length of netting dragged through the water by two people, each holding an end and walking along opposite banks. Catches everything in its path in shallow water. Requires two people or modification.

Landing net/scoop net: A bag on a hoop, used to scoop fish from the water. Requires already having fish in a concentrated position.

For survival purposes, the gill net is the priority — it requires only one person to deploy and works passively.

Making Cordage for Nets

Net cordage must be strong when wet. Test your cordage by soaking for 10 minutes, then pulling to breaking. The cordage should hold at least 5-10 lbs tension.

Dogbane (Apocynum cannabinum)

Found in open areas, roadsides, old fields throughout North America. Distinctive pairs of pods (like slender green beans) and milky sap.

Processing:

1. Collect dry stalks (late summer through fall).
2. Crush between hands or flat stones to break the outer fiber bundle free.
3. Strip the long fibers from the stalk.
4. Wet-spin by rolling the fibers between your palm and thigh, twisting one group clockwise while twisting two groups together counterclockwise.

Stinging Nettle (Urtica dioica)

Processing:

1. Collect dry stalks in fall.
2. Crush the stalk. The outer fiber peels away from the inner woody core.
3. Ret (soak in water for several days) to soften the binding between fibers.
4. Spin as with dogbane.

Inner Bark (Basswood, Cedar, Willow)

Peel inner bark in long strips. Twist while wet. Excellent net cordage when properly prepared.

Net Weaving Technique

The Sheet Bend (Net Knot)

The standard knot for netting. Also called the weaver's knot.

Tying the sheet bend:

1. Form a bight (loop) in the mesh cord of the previous row.
2. Pass the new cord up through the bight from behind.
3. Wrap the new cord around behind both legs of the bight.
4. Pass the new cord back under itself.
5. Pull tight.

This creates the square mesh characteristic of fishing nets. Every mesh square is formed by four of these knots.

Building the Net

Step 1: Make a header line. A heavy horizontal cord that will be the top of the net. Tie small loops at regular intervals equal to your desired mesh size. For 1.5 inch mesh: loops every 1.5 inches.

Step 2: Cut mesh cords. Each strand will make one mesh column and extend the full length of the net. Cut each strand 3x the desired net length (the knots consume cordage).

Step 3: Attach mesh cords to header with a lark's head knot. Fold a mesh cord in half, loop through a header loop, pull ends through the loop. This attaches two hanging strands per header loop.

Step 4: Weave the first row. Working across the net, take one strand from the left of one pair and one strand from the right of the adjacent pair. Tie them together with a sheet bend at the desired mesh depth below the header.

Step 5: Continue rows. Each row ties adjacent strands from neighboring pairs. The result is a diamond mesh pattern.

Step 6: Add a bottom line. Tie a heavy cord along the bottom edge.

Floats and Sinkers

A gill net set vertically in water needs floats at the top and weights at the bottom.

Floats: Any buoyant material — bark (especially birch bark), corks from any source, tied-off air-filled containers, sealed hollow wood sections.

Sinkers: Stones, wrapped in net and tied along the bottom edge. Even clay balls sun-dried to hardness work.

Space floats every 12-18 inches and sinkers the same — this keeps the net standing vertically in the water.

Setting and Checking

In a stream: Stretch the net across the stream perpendicular to current. Anchor both ends with stakes driven into the bank. The current keeps the net stretched.

In a pond: Stake one end, stretch the net out, anchor the other end. Set at dusk — fish are active at dusk and dawn.

Check every 2-4 hours. A fish trapped in a gill net will die within hours. A dead fish degrades quickly in warm water. Leaving a set net overnight without checking is not good practice — you may recover rotted fish.

Reset: After removing fish and re-baiting any trap sections, reset the net immediately.

Net Maintenance

Natural fiber nets are susceptible to rot when repeatedly wet and dry. To extend life:

• Dry the net completely between uses when possible
• Rub with rendered fat or pine pitch periodically to reduce water absorption
• Inspect for broken cordage and re-tie immediately — a broken mesh becomes a hole fish escape through

A well-maintained natural fiber net lasts a season to a year of regular use.