I thought of this while standing in front of literally three walls of rope at my local outfitters...

I just want to toss it out there - what type(s) of rope do people use for general camping/backpacking use? Guylines, bear bag lines, general utility rope, it doesn't matter, tell us newbies what you're using.

I use nylon blind cord; the sort that is used for raising and lowering blinds in houses. You can get it fairly inexpensively at Hancock Fabric or at Joanne's Fabric. It is white, hard surfaced, about 1/8" in diameter and well over 100 lb test. Or, I will occasionally use braided mason's line. This is thinner and comes in many colors including white. It may be purchased at Home Depot or Lowe's building supply. The mason's cord I have used tends to attract weed seeds and other bits of crud though. Some people use parachute cord but I find this to be unnecessarily strong and heavy for my purposes although you can pull heavy thread out of the inner core for sewing if you need it.

None of the above are suitable for any use where your life may depend on strong cordage; look at climbing rope for that purpose.

I use 1.8mm spyderline, available from sailing shops like: http://www.apsltd.com/p-19455-spyderline-spoolet-18mm-116.aspx

3.2 oz for 100' of it. It has a 350lb tensile strength so it is strong enough for almost any application (sans climbing). Plus, since it is designed for sailing, it ties/unties easily even when wet.