The cold is here!  And with that comes many opportunities to spend time outdoors in the snow.  For many of us, that means heading out to the ice as often as possible to try our like ice fishing.  Whether it be first ice, last ice, or the middle of the season, safety should be your number one concern when Ice Fishing.

1.      A good floater suit is ideal, but not absolutely necessary.  If you have the option of purchasing one of these, you might as well look for the best suit you can afford.

2.      Ice Picks are a necessity when Ice Fishing.  If you end up going through the ice, these small tools that fit nicely in your jacket pocket could mean the difference between crawling out of the slippery, wet ice, or not getting out alive.

3.      Early ice, late ice or areas you are not familiar with…don’t go alone.  Always head out with a buddy in areas you are not familiar with.  Things such as currents can weaken ice in areas.

4.      Take a spud with you everywhere.  A spud is generally a steel pole or bar with a sharpened end like a chisel. You give the ice a real good whack with it every few steps. If you go through before 3 real good whacks…GET THE HECK OFF THE ICE.

5.      Always keep a  Flashlight or lantern with your ice fishing gear.  This is especially necessary if you are coming on or off in the dark.

6.      Dress to stay warm

7.      Take a compass/GPS. White outs and thick fog can be scary, but whats worse is they can be extremely disorienting.

8.      Bring sunglasses and sun screen. When the sun reflect off the ice and snow, its intensity is magnified immensely.

9.      Keep a 25 ft minimum length of rope handy incase you or one of your fishing buddies goes through

10.  Bring waterproof matches and a small ziploc with dryer lint/Vaseline or some other flamabel material for waterproof firestarting gear.  The ability to build a fire could mean the difference between life and death.