Top 10 Fishing Safety Tips

March — Fishing

Cold water season with warm-weather clothing. The most underestimated month of the year.

1. Wear a life jacket in the boat. Most fishing fatalities are drownings, and most happen in small open boats.
2. Dress for the water temperature, not the air temperature. A 65°F day over 40°F water is a cold-water day.
3. Wear a snug wading belt. It's the difference between wet legs and waders full of water dragging you down.
4. Use a wading staff and move one foot at a time. Shuffle; never cross your feet in current.
5. Watch your backcast and wear eye protection. Hook-to-eye injuries are among the most common and most serious fishing injuries.
6. Carry pliers and wire cutters for hook removal, plus a basic first aid kit.
7. Look up before you raise a rod. Graphite rods and overhead power lines have killed anglers.
8. Check flows and water levels, especially during spring runoff. A river that was ankle-deep last week can be unwadeable today.
9. Don't wade alone in current — and if you do, tell someone exactly where and when.
10. Sun protection counts. Reflection off the water roughly doubles your exposure.

Fishing ice, a river, a lake or the ocean? Each has its own specific hazards — see Fishing by Environment.

Want this broken into weekly topics? See the March Weekly Content Calendar.

Not into fishing? Try geocaching instead — low-gear and GPS-based, it works even when early-spring weather (and fish) won't cooperate.

Part of the Rec+Safe Theme of the Month calendar.