I’m sure I am not the only one making the adventure onto the ice this weekend. With the bitter cold I just thought I would share a past experience.
It was a day that started off 7 below zero without the 20mph wind chill. I was fishing an area all by myself and having a tough time finding a good bite. I had the one man with me but I was moving often trying different areas, it was the fifth move I realized I was getting chilled to the bone. Ignoring the cold feeling I set up and started to fish, after a few minutes my mind kicked in and let me know I was not warming up at all. Time to get back to the truck, it was only 100 yards away but it felt like a 2 mile walk. When I arrived at the truck and reach for the keys my hands would not cooperate. The keys fell from my pocket and into the snow. I tried desperately to pick them up with no luck. Shivering uncontrollably at this point and not thinking straight I started laughing out loud. It was just like having an out of body experience. Something inside of my head finally kicked in and made me realize that this was not a good situation. Long story short, it took everything I had to focus hard enough to get the keys out of the snow and get into my truck. I sat there for a good half hour with the heat running full blast before I even thought of getting out and loading up my stuff. All that time there was still no one around, things could have been real bad if I hadn’t made it in the truck.
With that said, don’t ignore the first signs of hypothermia. I now also carry a couple hand warmers just in case my fingers decide not to work again. I also like fishing with a buddy when I can find one to venture out in the cold. Once you notice you are not warming up in front of your heater get your butt off the ice. From that point it did not take long for me to loose my marbles. Just glad the brain kicked in when it did.
Good luck on the ice this weekend and be safe!!!!!!
Bret