Sturgeon Contest Tip: Wear a PFD on Saturday

I was just checking the weather report for Friday night and Saturday. Friday night the low is forecasted for 27 degrees and Saturday the forecast is for a high of 47 degrees with a Northwest wind of 11 to 15 mph. There will be a pretty stiff wind chill happening over that cold St Croix water. I expect the water temperature will probably be in the middle 40 degree range.

It is going to be cold over that St Croix water so I expect everyone will be layered up with a lot of clothes and warm boots. Just a word of caution, you fall in that cold water with a lot of clothes on and heavy boots on, you can get in trouble in a matter of a few minutes. I guarantee you will have trouble getting back into the boat and the longer you struggle in the cold water the chances of serious injury or drowning go up quickly.

This time of year, I would recommend everyone wear a PFD all of the time when they are on the water. Definitely if you are fishing alone. I have several types of PFDs, one is a great fall and winter PFD because I wear it as vest making it another warm layer of clothes. As everyone gets ready for the sturgeon contest on Saturday put a little thought into wearing a PFD. Include it in your list of things you need in the boat and plan it into the clothes that you plan on wearing.

I am a trained Safety Officer so I always have these things on my mind. If I didn’t take this opportunity to bring this up I would have wasted all my valuable training and it might save somebody’s life.

Excellent advice C15… this time of year, I make sure everyone in the boat has a PFD on. I personally put on my PFD vest over the ‘first layer’ (like a fleece jacket) and then pull my outer layer (gore-tex jacket) over the PFD. As you said, it adds another layer of warmth!

Great post as always C15!

Everone that has see me in a boat knows I prefer to wear mine almost all the time (once this summer it got wet and I was drying it out)…it sure does add a layer of warmth this time of year…Once a person gets into the habit of wearing them, it’s just like a seat belt…it goes on before the motor is started and it’s forgotten about.

Who knows the life you save…could be your own…but it could also be your best freinds or family!

Good luck everyone! (I should of called in sick)

One thing to add to Steve’s post…Keep an eye on the big cruisers out there. This time of year most of them have all their tops and covers on, so their visibility could be limited. Kind of hard to see out of plastic windows.