During our annual walleye fishing weekend with the guys, we were all reminded how quickly a fun weekend can turn tragic. On our first day of fishing, we passed a gentleman in a flat back canoe with an electric trolling motor on the back. He was happy, waved to us and contently fishing away. We had seen him three or more times throughout the morning, but sadly, the last time we saw him was lying on the dock with EMT's trying to revive him... with no luck. He passed away there on our dock.

Although the cause is still unclear, he was found capsized, and tangled up in his anchor rope, and possible the battery wires also. He wasn't wearing a lifejacket.

Please wear your life jackets everyone. Having it tucked under the seat of your boat will not help.

Safe fishing,
Mark

Mark Janeck
Custom Rods, Campbellville, Ontario

Very sorry to hear about that Mark but thank you for the reminder about basic boating safety. One thing to keep in mind too is that while many of us love to fish alone, fishing within sight of other people could save your life too. If you're wading and fall and hit your head, no life jacket is going to save you but if your buddy sees you fall, he might be able to save you. I did not use to think about this stuff very much but now that I have kids I do. I shudder to think about some of the close calls and stupid things I've done while fishing.

As tragic as this story is, at least the man died fishing instead of in highway traffic.

While fishing a dam area highly popular with the locals, I watched in horror as a man fell from a 12' (at least) side structure while landing a fish. He lost his rod, his fish, and nearly his life. It was Mid January, 34 degrees, with ice and snow everywhere. If he had not fallen where he had, there is no doubt that the head first plunge would have easily broken his neck on the rock fill nearby. Instead the guy took an impromptu polar swim at about the only location that was free from the reverse eddy current of the falls and at about 14' deep. Lucky for him! At this same location, watched a night fisherman (with a friend, lucky him!) take a face first plunge into a rutt behind a large boulder. Because of water filling his waders, he was unable to pull himself out of the current and the less than neutral bouyancy his slip had caused. His buddy yanked him free of the stronghold the water had on him, but I can only imagine what would have happened if he were fishing alone at that time. I had fished that exact spot, by myself, at least a couple hundred times. I knew the hole was there, but must confess, I had misjudged its location on more than one occassion. It is amazing to me that chances that we sometimes take, not thinking thoroughly of the consequences of our choices.

I might suggest that all of us add a good whistle to our lanyards. The chances of a fall breaking a leg is much too great, and we do tend to fish alone. I also put my cell phone into a ziploc bag and keep it in my pocket. You never know. I also bought some waist high waders to deter deep wading. If the water is over my waist, I probably shouldn't be there in the first place.

Here in my backyard, the Chesapeake Bay, people people die often out on the water. Near 100% of the time they are not wearing a lifejacket.

Sad Sad indeed.,

Lou

If feel that there is ANY danger while wading, I wear either a vest with an inflatable (CO2) bladder or a belt with the same feature. I'm a good swimmer, but water is powerful stuff -- more powerful than me. Life-saving items are really inconspicuous, and worth their weight in gold when a situation arises.

Jim

For those who want the very best PFD, automatic SOSpenders. I had a sailboat for a number of years and these were the highest rated and regarded PFD available. They have tremendous floatation capabilities and will inflate in less than 2 seconds. They will keep you floating face up even if you're unconscious. And they take up almost no space when not inflated.

I just ordered a Mustang inflatable suspender, that inflates automatically when immersed. I didn't see the SOSpenders in Canada. I never used to wear a life jacket while fishing or canoeing due to the bulkiness. Now with the inflatable suspenders and belts available, there is no excuse not to be safe.

Mark Janeck
Custom Rods, Campbellville, Ontario

I just lost a friend/customer 2 weeks ago to an 'over-the-side' drowning without a life jacket. A tragic loss of someone who's missed in this community...

Putter
Williston, ND

Sorry to hear of this tragedy and my thoughts go uot to this mans family and friends.
As head of a water rescue, I can't stress enough the need for a PFD when on the water.
Coast guard personnel won't even go out on the dock without a vest.
It might seem an inconvenience, but it can save your life.
I wish all of you a safe, healthy fish filled season.
Be well!

Those SOSpenders truely are a great piece of safety gear. One thing to mention however, if you fish from a boat and intend to use the SOSpenders as your only PFD you have to get the manual inflate version. For some reason the manual inflate is a type III and the auto inflate is a Type II with type III performance. I have no idea why, but just to stay within the rules you should be aware of that. The other thing you can do is carry a standard type III in the boat somewhere for the reg's and where your auto inflate, that seems to be the best bet for safety.

The sailing community has been fighting the Coast Guard over the issue of the auto-inflate being listed as Type II for many years. The auto-inflate will save your life, the manual will only if you're conscious and if you get hit in the head by the boom, you probably won't be. The Coast Guard continues to remain in the stone age.

The next best life preserver is not fishing alone. A few years back, I took a head first fall on the McCloud river, landed face fist on lava outcrop. Ended up with a broken wrist, concussion, skull fracture and a nasty forehead scar. Had I not been with 2 friends (the first time I'd ever shown anybody this "secret spot"), my body would probably still be there. Two kids and a good life later, I rarely fish alone.

The SOSpenders I always wear is a dual type: automatic, but if for any reason that fails there's a manual pull cord as a backup. Not sure how it is rated.

I am now 73 years old and although in good shape, I never go out in a boat alone anymore. Even when I was young, I should not have done it. I think that is a good policy for everyone. John Butterfield

An adder to John's good point... Always let someone know your planned location and estimated time of return for any outing.

Regards......Doug@
TCRds