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Posts: 8719
| Time to bring out the friendly reminder as the water starts getting cold...
Embarassed to say I don't often wear one. I have a Stearns inflatable, but stopped wearing it due to it getting in the way and being cumbersome casting. Then a buddy of mine told me that his gang started wearing them under their parkas in the fall, and that you don't even know it's there.
I never thought of that. Doesn't seem like it would hinder the effectiveness at all being under your coat as opposed to over top. And if it gets me wearing it I guess I am better off.
Nobody likes them, but if you go over in your fall gear, you aren't going to float. And it's not likely you're going to be able to swim very far... |
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Posts: 1970
| +1 Ever try pulling yourself back into your boat with 3 layers of cold weather gear after you fall in? Extremely difficult!.... highly recommend Mustang Survival suits ! Be safe. |
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Location: Grand Rapids, MI | I would be very worried about getting getting choked out by the inflatable PFD if it was under a parka. Those need plenty of room to expand, I would try fire it off under a parka (with a spotter) before actually using it. |
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Posts: 688
Location: Already Gone | Will Schultz - 10/12/2015 2:03 PM
I would be very worried about getting getting choked out by the inflatable PFD if it was under a parka. Those need plenty of room to expand, I would try fire it off under a parka (with a spotter) before actually using it.
Yes.... They clearly state that the inflatables are not to be worn underneath anything. I wear mine over my Guidewear parka and I still don't know I have it on.
Edited by Mark Hoerich 10/12/2015 2:45 PM
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Posts: 49
| IAJustin - 10/12/2015 1:55 PM
+1 Ever try pulling yourself back into your boat with 3 layers of cold weather gear after you fall in? Extremely difficult!.... highly recommend Mustang Survival suits ! Be safe.
Just a reminder/tip : for those of us with a trim switch on our motors, get your feet on the cavitation fins and use the motor trim to lift yourself out of the water. You may not be able to get back into the boat by yourself with soaked clothes, but the trim hydrolics sure can. |
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Posts: 16632
Location: The desert | Coondog - 10/12/2015 6:46 PM
IAJustin - 10/12/2015 1:55 PM
+1 Ever try pulling yourself back into your boat with 3 layers of cold weather gear after you fall in? Extremely difficult!.... highly recommend Mustang Survival suits ! Be safe.
Just a reminder/tip : for those of us with a trim switch on our motors, get your feet on the cavitation fins and use the motor trim to lift yourself out of the water. You may not be able to get back into the boat by yourself with soaked clothes, but the trim hydrolics sure can.
A good tip, and I'd also suggest practicing this in the warm months. It's not as easy as one would think. We do this a lot for work diving/snorkeling. It's not the easiest thing in the world. I imagine in a panic it would be even more difficult. |
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Posts: 20179
Location: oswego, il | I.could not climb back in the boat with heavy clothes on, I tried. I was not far from shore and had my kids trolling motor to the bank then climbed in. A seat pedestal malfunctioned and in a split second I was in the water.
Edited by ToddM 10/12/2015 7:50 PM
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Posts: 337
Location: Watersmeet, Michigan | Because of health problems, I wear an inflatable vest at all times. They really aren't cumbersome once you get used to them, even in hot weather. For cold weather, Stearns, Mustang and others make flotation jackets which also work great for ice fishing.
Fr. K |
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| In addition to the PFD and using the trim switch to get back in if you go over the side, consider using a knotted rope tied to the back of the boat.
I am retired and fish by myself a lot. I am a strong swimmer, having swum at least three days a week for exercise for many years and continue to do so. However, no one swims well in cold water and with heavy clothes on. A few years ago someone on this board made the suggestion that you trail a heavy rope with knots every foot or so off the back of the boat in cold weather. The thought is that if you have the trolling motor going or just the wind pushing you, the boat may keep moving after you go in and you need to get back to it. A fifteen foot length of knotted rope gives you something to grab, and pull yourself back to the boat.
Cold water saps you energy in an incredibly short period of time. You need to get out of the water asap. |
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Posts: 1220
| Every year I add to the message having an anchor on the deck ready to deploy. The colder it gets, the easier for batteries to fail, cold winds to blow, and rocky points and shores to crash into. And, if you have a big glass boat, don't even think about a mushroom anchor--it won't help! |
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Location: Minneapolis, MN | This is sound advice, wear your PFD. A friend of mine fell in a few years ago solo when he misplaced is foot on the edge of his bass boat and had a hell of a time climbing back in. I fell in a couple years ago on walleye opener (long story). I am reasonably fit and so is the guy that had to hoist me in. Wearing boots, insulated gear and a layer of fleece you cannot imagine how much water weight you take on immediately after falling in. We watched what looked like 20 gallons of water drain off of me after I got back in the boat. I was cold, shocked and carrying a bunch of extra weight. I don't know if I could have made it up by myself. My friend commented afterward he was shocked at how much I weighted and thought if I was one of our bigger friends, he may not have been able to pull me in. For those that think you have plenty of time to deploy a ladder, think again. Its not that easy when you are cold, shocked and weighted down with wet winter clothes and boots. If you think you are going to just hop on the cavitation plate and push a button and magically elevate into the boat, also not as easy as it sounds. If your boat doesn't have a rear rail that is easy to reach from the water level, how are you going to hang on and manage to push that little trim button on side of the motor. Next season when you hop off the boat for cool down swim, take a moment before hopping back in the boat and think about your plan for how you would get back in your boat with less than half the dexterity and strength you have in warm water conditions. |
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Posts: 104
| Will you float wearing a pfd with all the extra cloths? I have heard both yes and no, but I think those were a guess. |
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Posts: 1828
| 39 degrees - 10/13/2015 12:30 PM
Will you float wearing a pfd with all the extra cloths? I have heard both yes and no, but I think those were a guess.
Yes, for sure, unless you take off all your wet clothes and stack them on your head. |
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Posts: 1247
Location: On the Niagara River in Buffalo, NY | Those of you that wear heavy clothing in late fall ,that is not a survival suit,you may find if you have an inflatable life jacket on and go over there may not be enough floatation to keep you afloat once everything gets water logged.We practice this in man overboard drills every year,if you weigh over 250 lbs,you will be over 300 lbs when soaked,you will go down! Buy a Mustang Survival Suit!
Edited by LarryJones 10/13/2015 7:19 PM
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Posts: 1638
Location: Minnesota | I know I should use one but I don't. I look at it like this I have never fell out of a boat. But if the Good Lord calls me home I'll die doing something I loved. |
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Posts: 300
| ^^^ Seems like something easily preventable though by wearing a life jacket. |
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| I have never fallen out of a boat either but I remember an old episode of Keys Outdoors where Steve Gensen, a full time guide, falls over board. He did not quite fall completely into the water but very close, catching the gunnel.
Things happen quickly and it does not take much to lose your balance, in particular in a boat with lots of stuff on the deck. Netting a fish a few years ago, I stepped on the round handle of a file I had used to touch up hooks. I had put it back where it belonged but it must have popped out and it was like stepping on a roller skate. I just lost my balance and didn't go in but could easily have done so. |
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Posts: 111
| muskyhunter47 - 10/13/2015 7:31 PM
I know I should use one but I don't. I look at it like this I have never fell out of a boat. But if the Good Lord calls me home I'll die doing something I loved.
some people value their life more than others i guess.
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Posts: 400
Location: Metro | Thank god skeeters have a ladder for this very reason.
Edited by Musky952 10/14/2015 9:51 AM
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