I so desperately want to be exited about ice fishing this year. Or any outdoor hobby in the winter. I go through my gear and get a little exited. I watch the videos and get a little excited. But then I realize my hands and fingers just ache and burn in the cold. I would love to be a mobile ice fisherman and run-and-gun but I just can’t deal with the cold on my hands (and feet).
The symptoms are almost as bad as mild Raynauds Disease. Any advice or input?
Wade sorry to hear this… A few things that might be able to help?
1. Maybe try a Jig-N-Mitt (only $10 on Amazon right now – http://www.amazon.com/Beam-Outdoors-BJNM-Jig-N-Mitt/dp/B00HWFNP5S). This might look stupid, but I used it all last year and it was amazing. My hands get very cold too (poor circulation), and my jigging hand always was the worst because I refused to wear a glove since I can’t feel light bites without my hand directly on the rod butt / blank. With this, the rod actually slides inside the mitt and your hand is on the blank. Like fishing with a glove but I honestly didn’t feel a bit of lost sensitivity.
2. I’ve seen guys wear latex gloves as a liner to their gloves. This way, your hands can’t ever get wet even if you have to take your glove off. Dry hands / feet make a world of difference.
3. Growing up, because my feet were always so cold, I had battery operated socks. They made it bearable for me to fish as a youngster and actually worked very well. Ever tries these for your feet? There are much better / more advanced versions out now that I’m sure would work great.
Hopefully these tips can help in the slightest of ways for you.
Is it easy to slip off if you want to put the rod down to handle a fish or whatever?
Wade,I have the same problem as you,but my problem stems from nerve damage from a chemical injury that has caused thickening of the sheath that surrounds the nerves themselves.
I have problems with circulation as well due to this and it isnt ever going to get better,but,when it gets bad enough,I go to my chiropractor for an adjustment and acupuncture therapy and this stimulates things enough I can actually enjoy being outdoors for a couple of days without being completely miserable.
you might want to give this a try,who knows,you may have a nerve pinched somewhere and are not aware of it.
I would think a 1 man flip over with a small heater would do the trick. Are you going to be ultra mobile? No. But you will be plenty mobile to get out and enjoy ice fishing. Also the 1 man is easy to pull and load your gear. Keep it simple and lightweight. Find a system and hone it as you fish through trial and error. Use big thick mittens and a good pair of ice kings for boots to keep warm when you move.
Genetically we all handle cold differently, temperatures one person can barely handle, another flourishes in. Me personally, I can’t stand 80 degrees, even 75 can be too warm for me at times. While -20 is much more comfortable for me it’s even more bearable with the right gear on. By no means do I believe I have the ultimate winter setup, I’m still changing it up, but last year I made some major changes and dropped well over 20lbs of clothing in the process. From top to bottom: a beanie or baseball cap depending on temp(I have to remove it while mobile to prevent sweating) thin neck/sun gator with a fleece gator in a pocket in case the wind starts to bite, IDO Hoodie (warmest I’ve ever worn) wool sweater underneath if colder than -20 otherwise a reg hoodie underneath unless above 20 degrees, and under armor 4.0 as the only base. Legs get UA 4.0 and usually fleece sweatpants or jeans under the Ice Force Bibs. Boots are Cabelas Predator Extreme pac boots and while they are bulky (but not heavy), they keep my feet incredibly warm and dry without sweating. I wear one pair of poly/wool socks. I picked up some Frabil FXE gloves that keep the digits warm and in between use I bury them between the base layer tops and inner hoody to keep them warm and dry. The rest comes down to acclimation to the elements. The more time you spend being cold, the less you become effected by it. There are other things one could add to the list like hand warmers, drinking “hot-wets” (cocoa, tea, coffee, or just hot water) a quick warmer upper/circulation booster is a drop or two from a cayenne pepper tincture under the tongue. Most importantly, you don’t want anything to feel tight and avoid over-layering. Circulation inhibitors will keep you cold. My whole body, especially my back and hands, feel colder when my feet are cold. First thing I would do is play around with some warm-comfortable boots. Unless someone here has any other recommendations skip the trial and error and look specifically for Baffin Apex or Cabelas Predator, there are likely other comprable boots out there but these two are sure bets.
We run an Argo with heated cab. So being mobile and comfortable is no issue. It’s when I am on the spot and want to hold hop and find the active fish.
I will try the fishrod glove. May be a great tool.
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There’s no ice fishing in Florida. What did I miss?
HRG
There’s no ice fishing in Florida. What did I miss?
HRG
We are stuck here for at least one more winter.
I came across a tip from Gord Pyzer IIRC that was to put heat packs on your wrists to aid with cold hands. Going to try it out this fall and winter. For the feet it is definitely good boots with an insulated insole.
Find a good Chiropractor. My brother in law has cured many issues with circulation and nerve issues by aligning the spine.
I too have poor circulation in my hands and feet, it’s annoying at times. There’s times it can be 50 degrees outside and I have no feeling in my fingers. I’m still searching for that perfect pair of boots and gloves, but I also don’t want to spend a lot of money on either. One minor thing I started doing last year that surprisingly made a big difference, always bringing a thermos of hot chocolate or coffee with me. Just the ability to have something warm enter your body every now and then did wonders!
I like hole hoping and being mobile while ice fishing. Generally, I find an area that looks okay for fish and set up my portable there as a shelter. Then I hole hop for awhile, and when I get cold I can come back in the portable to warm up and still fish. Then back out to hole hop. The problem becomes when your hole hopping and next thing you know you’re a half mile away from your shelter.
This was sent to me in another post. These gloves look promising.
icehole10 wrote:
I have been dealing with Reynauds for about 20 years now, and It seems to bother me a little more each year. The first couple of years my fingers would just lose feeling and turn white from the second knuckle to the tips, warm them up and you could watch the color come back in them. Now its become painful, burns like heck when the blood starts flowing again. I keep a good supply of the disposable hand warmers on hand, and have been suggested from another gentleman that deals with it, to try a pair of these gloves. Little spendy, but if they work, they would be worth it. Good luck!
One thing that helps my wife’s feet which always get cold while ice fishing is a piece of carpet or a mat of some type to keep her feet off that ice. She’s said it has kept her feet much warmer than anything else. I think have that barrier helps keep the cold from directly contacting her boots. I like to be mobile when I fish, so I’ll set up my shelter and use it as my warm house to go back to once I get to cold, I’ll just go into the tent and warm up then head back out.
I’ve had the Jig-N-Mit for about 5 minutes. I can tell you I am going to love this thing.
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Wade, I feel your pain. I’m in my early 50’s, my hands and feet get cold quickly and to top it off I now have early stages of psoriatic arthritis which makes it difficult to tie knots.
I purchased a pair of Icearmor mittens at the end of last season and will add the heat pads in hoping that will help my hands/fingers. There is a guy at the Ice Show every year that sells new Bunny Boots. I know there a bit heavy but nothing keeps your feet warmer, even if they get wet so I’m in with that.
It’s not fun getting old and don’t get me going on cheater glasses.
However, I’m Ice Fishing to the end, you know – what Charles Heston said.
I came across a tip from Gord Pyzer IIRC that was to put heat packs on your wrists to aid with cold hands. Going to try it out this fall and winter. For the feet it is definitely good boots with an insulated insole.
I did this last year…..it WORKS…
I used a pair of wrist sweat bands,put the hand-warmers in on the bottom of the wrist….
Only 1 word on boots…..Baffin……I use the Impacts….nuff said…
I’ve had the Jig-N-Mit for about 5 minutes. I can tell you I am going to love this thing.
Wade – Sorry I never got back to you! Great to see you picked one up. Yes, as you’ve probably already learned, VERY easy to switch rod to rod. I carry 3-4 rods around with me when I hole hope and carry the jig-n-mit as well. Very easy to switch between them. Hopefully this works for you, did wonders for me last winter!
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