8+2 tips on how to use your paracord

Paracord has been a versatile helper for long time now, not only in the field of military or outdoor. It will help you to handle wide range of survival skills, that will make life "in the wild" easier. It will also help you to do some provisional repairs, that may be neccessary in case of emergency. All we need is bit of skill and training. 

To carry at least one piece of paracord always comes in handy. There are countless ways of use - plus you can find many (more or less) practical ideas on the internet. But before you start and decide to unravel your paracord, it is always a good idea to practice the basic skills in advance.

The final result will always depend on you - your skills, creativity and abilities to improvise. That is why we are only offering limited number of possibilities how to use it. 8 of those are practical ideas, the other two are more or less for fun.

So who is up for some paracord challenge ?

How to carry/wear your paracord?

Definitinitely not as a tangled ball of threads :-) You always want to have your paracord ready for immediate use, and not unraveling it lengthy and/or in complicated way. You can wrap it over your hand or on a spool, which allow immediate use. There are many possibilies that will be described in one of our another articles. Here are some ideas: 

• Paracord bracelet – practical and stylish accessory. You can buy it or make your own one according to our instructions.

• Keychain.

• Knife handle wrap.

• Other wrap ideas, e.g. on your backpack or bottle.

• Stepper.

8 practical ideas how to use paracord

1) Building a shelter 

Well constructed shelter is a basis for successful and quiet overnight stay in the nature. There are many types of shelters where you can use your paracord, it depends on the actual situation, your skills and material that is available.

The simplest types of shelter include classic „A-frame“ or „L-frame“ with a tarp  (any suitable tarp is fine). We have few possibilities how to do it : 

• You can stretch a piece of paracord between two trees at a suitable distance apart. Fold the tarp over it and fasten to the ground using stakes (either tent stakes or provisionary stakes made out of some branches).

• If there are no trees, you can use trekking poles (or branches of a suitable length), that you use as a base for your tarp which you will then fasten and secure using paracord and stakes - as you would do with your tent. 

• For the very simple shelter you can use single trekking pole only (or branch). This will help you to support front (entrance), and once again, secure it using paracord where the back part is attached directly onto the ground. 

Paracord has many uses for building a shelter. 

You can of course try even some more sophisticated solutions. If you like to use what nature offers, you can make a construction from branches that are firmly attached using paracord, and the whole construction can be then covered by leaves or moss. 

You can create different construction with a paracord. 

TIP: Use a paracord to build a survival tripod, that you can use for outdoor cooking.

Try to make a survival tripod using your paracord. 

2) Gear repairs 

They say, that you can fix anything with a roll of duct tape. Something similar can be said about paracord. In 1997, US astronauts were able to fix part of the Hubble telescope in space using their paracord, wires and special fixing tapes.

Depending on your actual needs you can:

• tie up and bind, 

• wrap or string, 

• unravel inner cords and you them for example for stitching.

Another useful feature of the paracord is that when it is exposed to the heat it begins to behave like a piece of plastic. It is sticky when heated and after cooling down, it solidifies quickly. It is therefore good for improvised repairs of small holes for example on your inflatable sleeping mat in case you don´t carry any repair kit. All you need is a piece of paracord, knife and a little bit of fire. 

3) Keeping a group together

Paracord is an extremely strong and durable piece of gear. You can use it for example in case of bad weather (storm, blizzard) when it gets very difficult to see anything. Impaired visibility can radically disrupt orientation and communication within your group. In this case your paracord will be used as a rope to keep everybody together.

Staying in physical contact, it is much easier for you to inform group about any issues that may occur, for example injuries. You can use paracord in any terrain, such as when walking through swamp and other difficult kinds of terrain. However, paracord will not help you when you fall into a deep gorge for example - will need to use a proper rope. 

4) Broken shoelaces

Broken shoelaces are definitely not as dramatic as being stuck in a storm, but they can also cause some inconvenience during your hiking trip. So, if you carry some paracord in your pocket, feel free to use it now!

If you need to get some piece of cord by unraveling the paracord bracelet, you will need some fire to melt two pieces of paracord together. The result is worth it. You have just saved yourself from discomfort and pain, that you would likely experience sooner or later.

5) Paracord belt

It can happen to anyone. When you are in hurry, you can either forget your belt or it may get broken. Now how to save the day? Walking without a belt when your pants are loose will definitely make your trip somehow miserable. However, if you carry a paracord, you can make your temporary belt quite quickly. No more losing your pants, from now on you can only focus on your mission !

TIP: If you really want to be creative, try to make yourself a paracord suspenders...

6) Attaching objects

Thanks to the paracord you can not only make the belt, but also upgrade it. By different ways you can attach/fix your gear onto your belt, backpack or other parts of your tactical gear and therefore have it always at hand. This will make sure that all your things stay at place and you won´t lose anything.

With paracord, you can upgrade your backpack by:

• simple zipper pulls, 
• a handle for easy carry, 
• an improvised net to carry your items, 
• of course, you can also attach some equipment to your backpack's construction.

A piece of paracord will make carrying of your items easier and more comfortable. 

Paracord is also here to help when you need to hide your food or gear from unwanted encounters. By simple suspension you can protect food from ants, insect and other animals.

Use a paracord to hang your gear, food or wet clothes.

7) Temporary splint

Paracord can be also used in situations when some injury occurs and emergency medical assistance is not available. In case of fracture or other unstable injury we can fix the limb for example by using trekking poles or stronger tree branches. These are then wrapped around the limb and secured with paracord. More about "how to deal with injuries in the wild" can be found in one of our next articles. 

8) Self defense

Are you looking for something discreet to carry in your pocket that is not a boxer? You can try to make Monkey's Fist. It is a type of knot, that is tied to end of a rope to serve as a weight. Make your own according to our instructions.

2 extra tips (for fun)

Animals from luminous paracord

Not only you can find different variations of paracord, but there is also special luminous glow-in-the-dark type of paracord, that will be obviously mostly used at night or in dark conditions. What did we use it for? We made luminous animals from it, so that the kids are not afraid at night :-)

The luminous paracord is practical and can also entertain children in the evening. 

Prehistoric drill 

The caveman of course did not use paracord, however, the prehistoric principle is still the same. And therefore to make a prehistoric drill as a part of primitive skills practice – why not?! In the same way, you can also make a bow for starting a fire. 

Although caveman did not have paracord, principle is still the same. 

Don´t do this with your paracord!

Tourniquet 

On many websites you can found that paracord can be also used as a tourniquet in case of an emergency. Please do not try it. Paracord is too thin for this purpose, when used inaccurately, it can irreversibly damage nerves or muscles and thus make the overall condition worse. Use a proper solid tourniquet instead!

Traps and fishing

Catching your own food can even save a life in certain situations. But this skill takes some practice that you don't get just easily. In the Czech Republic and other countries, however, you will commit poaching that is illegal. Not mentioning the fact that if done poorly, you will cause unnecessary pain and suffering to the animal. So keep this use only as a backup in case of emergency.