Winter Accessoires for Cold-weather Fishing
As an avid shoreline angler, even in winter time, standing along the shoreline welcomes in the deep cold. There are many winter accessories that are designed to be light, warm and quick drying and being prepared will result in a fun fishing day out in the winter cold.
Cutthroat trout at Strawberry Reservoir, Utah
It is important to be prepared for the winder conditions and planning appropriately is the key to having a safe, fun cold weather fishing vacation. To do so, plan the type of fishing you are going to participate in. If your goal is to hike to a distant mountain lake, dressing in layers while having heavier gear accessible is important. It’s all about the amount of movement and physical activity you are embarking on when being outdoors and the amount of and type of cold weather accessoires to have. Many a nights, while standing along a lake shoreline, the heaviest winter gear that I have will still allow the cold to penetrate through. Movement creates more body heat which aids in the insulation of the accessory working properly and keeping you warm. Standing by a lake with minimal movement of casting out and reeling in or letting the line float will test any gear you got on. Focusing on the extremities are critical as most heavy cold weather jackets trap enough body heat to keep a cold-weather angler comfortable. Your feet and hands are more likely to feel the cold first and make any fishing winter trip miserable as time goes on and coldness sets in. The picture of me at the top left was taken in late fall at Stawberry Reservoir, Utah. I was wearing a heavy cold weather jacket made by Eddie Bauer and it was goose feathered lined or something. That jacket is possibly the warmest extreme-cold weather jacket that I have ever owned and is my go to jacket when heading out at night to stand by a lake and fish. Consider ebay when researching different winter jackets and accessories.
The following winter accessoires are key to staying outdoors safely and enjoyable. Wearing the right type of boot or having the right type of glove for a specific conditions, terrain and environments is crucial. The following are some recommendations on winter accessories but your judgement on what type or style to use should be based on length of time in the cold, degree of cold, environment that you are going to be in referring to wet or dry, rocky or snow packed and finally what you will be doing.