NOTES ON SAFETY & WINTER FISHING - Eye of the guide - November 29, 2010

[rtidd]

NOTES ON SAFETY & WINTER FISHING

Many of the rivers in Montana and many other places are open to year-round fishing. The angler who passes up the winter fishing opportunities is indeed missing out on what can be some of the finest fishing of the year.

[Steven McGarthwaite]

Cold Weather Injury - Hypothermia, can happen at any time of the year, it is the same as Warm Weather Injury, only the reverse!

I agree with your dressing in layers of clothing, when you are outdoors and on the move remember to ventilate so the moisture of your perspiration does not build up and cling to skin under all the layered clothing once you stop to rest. So when you are active, open up and ventilate to help remove the moisture that is building up under all your clothing. You can also remove clothing if you are doing very physical work, but redress when you are done with the physical work, before your body start chilling down.

When in the field or stream, i carry a bag filled with Birch Bark, it oils are very volatile, and will light a fire with just one match! I also carry a towel and a spare set of gloves and mittens, as well as a extra set of stockings and I also carry a scarf. The chocolate candy bars are a good idea, but they only work for a short period, I also carry some granola bars, that is where the energy to warm your body back up really comes from. Towel is to dry your feet and the inside of your boots before inserting your feet with the new socks back into the boots. The scarf is to protect your face and neck from the cold (back of the neck at the bottom of your skull is where your body's temperature gauge is located. I also have two large safety pins for hanging the damp glove inserts to dry inside my layered clothing, and I always carry my water container inside my clothing, cold water will not enter the bodies blood system until it reaches the bodies internal body temperature.

When in the U.S. Army as a Training Range Safety Officer, there where time that even in June, we had solders that suffered from Cold Weather Injuries, when the temperatures dropped into the low 60's during the night, after they had been involved in heavy work all day when the temperatures where twenty degrees higher. Most of those who came down with Warm or Cold Weather Injuries, where not aware of the danger, and if they did become aware, it was too late for them to help themselves.

As for the BIC Lighters (butane), they should be kept in a inside pocket, they refuse to light if they are stored in a outside pocket where the outdoor temperature is near/or below freezing.

Never go into the field alone, better to travel in pairs. In the field, you can warm your hands by placing them inside your layered clothing in your arm pits. But it take two members, to warm the others feet in the other person's arm pits or crotch!

Always leave your itinerary with someone, who knows where you went when you do not report in!

~Parnelli

[kglissmeyer]

Tom, most excellent info. Parnelli, spot on! Thanks guys. We spent Saturday on the South Fork of the Snake River in southeast Idaho and the years have taught us to prepare well for extreme conditions from November thru March and this day was no exception. It was good to feel warm and safe along with having a good time. Now, it they'd only come up with a glove that completely covers your fingers as well as giving you the sense of feel that only bare fingers are able to accomplish...

Kelly.

[flyfishfairwx]

This is an article I wrote on the subject of Survival kits, with the start of winter on us here in SWAB, and the ferocity of that, this is great timing for the Thread..

http://www.flyanglersonline.com/articles/readerscast/2010/readerscast20100913_RaymondFairweather.php

[hallrl96218]

Very good advice, I am in the US Army and am returning from Afghanistan to Fort Drum, NY soon where I will be taking my Soldiers out for some ice fishing as well as a trip up the legendary Salmon river where I already fish quite a bit. I bought a couple of hand held, water proof radios which are compatible with some personal radios we already have, and was able to find some rugged plastic whistles (metal sticks to skin when it's cold) for emergencies, if you break your leg it will be a lot easier to whistle for help than to yell. I also keep a spare change of clothes and shoes, gloves, etc. in the trunk of my car in case I wade deep. A extreme cold weather sleeping bag, pup tent and a portable hiking heater as well as a better first aid kit than the one I carry in my fishing gear. It might seem excessive but it's like owning a gun- It's better to have one and not need one than to need one and not have one.
I also had been debating on a PFD fly vest for quite some time and finally decided to order one for when I return, I am not the worlds greatest swimmer and really when the water is 32 degrees and the air is below zero, it really doesn't matter how well you can swim. This year I have been asked by two Soldiers to teach them and thier kids how to fish and I want to instill safety right from the beginning.
Can't wait to get home to try out all my new stuff.
SSG Robert L. Hall
Afghanistan