Attention all fishing enthusiasts! Are you excited to kick off the early season with a much-anticipated fishing trip? Before you pack your gear and hit the water, it’s essential to plan ahead. Poor planning and bad judgement can put your safety at risk as we learned this past week as four fishermen lost their lives. We will never really know what happened but let’s see if we can learn from this experience to reduce the chance of it happening to someone else.
Introduction to Early Season Fishing
Every year, anglers across in New England get excited for the start of the fishing season. However, many of them don’t realize the importance of proper planning when it comes to their early season fishing trips.
One of the biggest risks of poor planning is getting stuck in bad weather or underestimating the conditions at sea versus on land. Early season fishing can be unpredictable, and if you’re not prepared for it, you could find yourself in trouble very quickly. This can ruin your trip and put you at risk for serious injuries, including fatality.
All of these risks can be easily avoided with a little bit of planning and preparation. Make sure you check the weather forecast before heading out, pack appropriate clothing and supplies, and let someone know where you’re going and when you’ll be back. By taking these simple steps, you can ensure that your early season fishing trip is safe and enjoyable.
What You Need to Know Before Going Fishing
It is hard to know what happened to the four-fisherman last week but let’s try to learn what we can from the experience.
- Weather – the forecast the day they went out was not bad on land. Warm and sunny weather was in the forecast with some wind. The ocean waters are still below 50 degrees in the area, so on a boat will be considerable colder than on land.
- Boat choice – the fisherman was in a small 17-foot center console boat with 4 people. Depending on how much gear they had in the boat, they were probably pushing the weight limit for their boat which can make a boat handle differently.
- Gear – they found personal floatation devices from the boat, but none of the men were wearing them. If the conditions had worsened, it would have been best to put them on to be safe. In the heat of the moment, they may not have been able to get to them.
- Cold water survival suits – boats that are out during cold water will normally have a cold-water survival suit on board. One for each passenger. They take practice putting them on and they take time. If everything happened very quickly, then they may not have been able to put them on.
- Fishing destination – they had chosen to fish a spot approx. 35 miles from shore in their small boat. Probably another bad decision bad on weather and time of year.
- If in doubt, don’t go out! Especially at the beginning or end of a season when the water temperatures can be deadly.
Conclusion
Our hearts and prayers go out to the families of the four lost fishermen. It’s a tragic story. I wrote this blog to try to help us all learn from the tragedy in hopes that it won’t happen to anyone else. Poor planning can cause a lot of headaches when it comes to early season fishing trips. It’s important to be prepared and make sure that you are equipped with the necessary gear, supplies, and information before embarking on your next fishing adventure.
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Hey,
Great tips on how to plan ahead for fishing trips and prioritize safety. Let’s all be mindful to avoid dangerous situations while fishing.
Thanks
Michelle
survivalsaviors.com