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when the temps dip its hard to keep my hands warm while catching fish, i have tried alot of different things but im not happy with the results and after a tourney this past weekend my hands, specifically my finger tips hurt for some time after, so what do yall do to keep your hands warm and in working order?
I have heard ragg wool gloves, but have yet to try them. I often use those “surgical” gloves, based on how my hands sweat when wearing them in warm weather. They don’t keep me toasty, but help with the cold, and I can still put a minner on a hook!
I called them mittens but don't know if they are or not. Anyway keep end over your fingers than just fold them back if needed. They work real good.
LittleJohn
I use the fanny pack hand warmer that goes around your waist.
Keep a battery operated warmer inside it, easy in and out with hands.
Hands stay warm and can feel the bite also since your hands are bare. This is my setup for spider rigging.
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Ummmmm..... No real good answer for this. All these will work to an extent. Hand warmers work also or a propane heater even. But when it's cold it's cold.
Being a NewEnglander, I've spent a lot of time fishing in the cold. The best solution I've found is to wear the fingerless, rag wool gloves. Mind you, you MUST get a size that fits snugly on your hands. Add to that a chemical "Hand Warmer" in each side pocket and you're good to go. Has worked for me for many years. The wool, even when wet, retains the heat, which is why this material has been so successful.
Move to Florida is my advice! lol That's what I did. lol
Anyway, the chemical hand warmers are prolly the easiest and best. You can slip them in your pockets and warm your hands in them when they get cold, or you can even slip them into your gloves. Used to use them ice fishing, hunting, and skiing. They work great. FYI though, they need air to work. So if you stick them in deep into your boots there may not be enough oxygen for them to work, especially over time. Learned this the hard way.
Fingerless glove mittens is what I use ice fishing,if it's really cold I'll slip a pair of jersey gloves on first,and I bring several pairs with so I have extra dry ones.
One day my fingers will freeze and fall off into the river. When you get old, you just can't can't get warm enough.
Ronnie Capps suggested bringing a small cooler with warm water. Guess if it’s good enough for him it just might work. I’d bring some towels too though.
Blessed to be in Texas. Only issue I have is running up the lake holding the cold metal steering wheel. Light pair of hunting gloves helps in this scenario. Gloves come off while fishing. Good luck.
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Hopefully I can provide some good information for you. I've lived my entire life in Michigan (aside from my time in the Marine Corps). I grew up steelhead fishing in the dead of winter, ice fishing, and all sorts of spring trips. I am a tournament walleye fisherman and many of our first tournaments of the season are just after ice out. The temps can be in the low 30's, wind, snow, and rain.
Over the years we have found a few things that really help us. One is to have a good set of gloves. Gloves that provide feel while still protecting your hands from the elements. For me, I do not like bulky gloves. I do use them when we are moving from spot to spot. Traveling at 50mph in a tournament when the ice is hitting you in the face makes you do that. For that, we use insulated leather gloves (deer skin to be exact). The question however was fishing...
I prefer to wear thin gloves. Glove liners fit the bill for a number of reasons. They are thin, light weight, provide feel, and protect you from the wind. I carry two pairs. For years, I've used Manzella glove liners and have had great results... that is until this last spring. I switched to GILL glove liners. They wick moisture, are warm, lightweight, and keep your hands away from the wind. They are also black so they will absorb sunlight.
Coupled with the liners I used two different style of heaters. I keep one in each pocket. It allows me to jig with one hand while the other stays warm. I can switch hands. When trolling, I can put both hands in the pocket. We use Zippo hand warmers that you fill with lighter fuel. Light the wick, put the lid on, and slide in the bag. They will last 10 hours when full and provide all the warmth you need. The thinner glove liners allow the warmth to go right to your hands without the need to take off bulky gloves. You can find them at most walmart stores for less than 20 bucks each.
The newer style we have been testing is the battery operated hand warmers. They sell for around 20 bucks. You charge them with a USB style charger, hit the button, and in 5 minutes, they are nice and warm. We are getting about 6 hours on a full charge when running all the time.
These allow you to put your hands in with damp gloves and still provide heat. The simple hand warmer packs get wet and stop working... Even with damp gloves, these warmers work magic. I've worn damp gloves for 12 straight hours and never really known it because they were constantly warmed in my pockets.
One other "trick" we use. Usually, the loss of dextarity is the result of the back of your hand getting cold. To combat this, we utilize the very thin stick on toe warmers. Open the package, remove the stick on backer, slide it in to your glove, and stick it to the backside of your glove (not the palm side). This will keep the back of your hands nice and warm and allow for dextarity. I've been doing this trick when ice fishing for more than 25 years.
I hope this gives you a few tricks to use
I know this wont really help but some of you may get some humor out of it. My grandfather has been commercial fishing for as long as I can remember running trot lines and such. Well when I was younger and went with him all the time he would keep a small metal folgers can in his boat (aluminum boat) and keep a small fire going and between trot lines he would sit there with his hands over the coals and fire to warm them. Helped keep me warmed up as well!
Brings back memories. My grandfather used to have something very similar in the boat. Used it on many perch trips in the spring and steelhead and sucker fishing trips too.Quote:
Originally Posted by Erin Brewer
I keep towels up front and at the livewell to dry my hands after handling fish and minners. Also, I buy the big packs of 18 hour hand warmers from Walmart. These things last, are bigger than normal and work like a charm.
I have a windproof hoodie that I put at least one warmer in the hoodie pocket, and I'm good to go. Fished in 20 degree weather like this all day with no problems.
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Lots of heated clothing is available that the Motorcyclists wear during winter available and here is a few websites that offer 12 volt plug in types, recharge battery types also. Just a FYI, but some of this could be used for fishing in cold situations. It can be priced alittle high, but anymore, the technology built into the product is very good.
Heated Clothing | California Heat
www.ventureheat.com
Heated 4 U, LLC - Heated Clothing Dealer - Maryland
Bikers swear by some of this gear as windproof and some is also water proof, but may be alittle bulky as for fishing.
I find holding my hands close to the fireplace works for me :Rofl
I have used the old metal coffee can with a roll of toilet paper soaked in rubbing alcohol back in the day when setting in tree stands to keep my hands warm.:twocentsQuote:
Originally Posted by Erin Brewer
I'm all for keeping the hands wrapped around a cup of hot coffee. Mostly while wrapped in a blanky in my recliner.
All kidding aside, fingertip fleece gloves with ultra thin palms, now deceased cuz nuthin lasts forever, were the best i ever found. I also have to say that I never lasted over 4 hours and my core was cold and I headed for the house, but the gloves worked very well.
http://www.cabelas.com/product/fishi...1.uts?slotId=2
This is what I use to keep my hands warm. Uses a one pound propane cylinder that costs about two bucks from Walmart.
Zippo hand warmers, one in each pocket of your jacket.
I like that Chaunc
i have tried the zippos, had one succesful time getting it lit and staying lit, every other time it has failed me, what am i doing wrong with it?
i have tried a mr buddy heater but a good breeze will blow out the flame.
glove liners i wear, i been using the under armour ones, but there durability is not as good as there clothes
im leaning towards getting a good electric handwarmer and keeping it in one of those fanny pack handwarmers and maintaining the use of good glove liners
i appreciate all the replies and hope others have benefitted as well, and keep the ideas coming
The Zippo's are finicky until you figure it out. Once you do, you get the AH HA moment.
First, the new ones come with a handy, dandy measuring cup. Take that measuring cup out, look carefully at the side of it. After looking, throw it in the trash can!
Slowly fill the hand warmer. Slowly. do this until the unit is almost holding liquid. If it is, dump it out and shake it a minute. You just want the material soaked. Next, take a paperclip, tooth pick... you get the idea, and pull at the fibers where you filled it. Put lighting wick on and shake her up some more. Light wick and keep unit verticle. I use a grill lighter and keep the flame on the wick for 20 or 30 seconds. If it is dark out, you will see it glow. For tournaments, I usually fill them and light them in my Hotel at around 4am. I leave them standing on the table with the cap on but out of the bag while I am readying my lunch, the boat, and getting dressed.
Not sure which buddy heater you have but I assume it is a "Sunflower" type design. The newer units that have the bottle that fits on the side and is "radiant" with one or two plates is much better than the old screw on ones. They run from 75 bucks to around 130. We carry one with us all the time. We fire it up between jigging runs and also when we are retying rigs.
Understand that in a tournament setting, my partner and I might have three rods tied with jigs. When we break off in the drift, the rod goes on the floor and we grab another. We might run through 4 rods before we retie them all. Last guy to break off gets the task of retieing! We don't waste time trying to get one unstuck. Time equals lost fish which equals lost weight, which equals money!
I am not sure what type of jacket you have but, many of them do not have good liners in the pockets. I've recommended to several guys to line their pockets with fleece. It is cheap at the store and can be put in by a good seemstress in a couple minutes. We deal with these elements all the time and we carry tons of stuff to be as comfortable as possible. Good gear is not cheap but it is good for a reason.
For winter and spring fishing, Ice Armour is what we utilize. Bibs and jacket. Our under layer is Under Armour extreme cold weather and a sweatshirt. I've tested this to 25 below without issues. The ice Armour suit we use is the extreme cold weather suit no longer sold. We will also wear the same under layer and Bass Pro Qualifier Gore Tex suits. All four of us (two teams) wear this gear. We use it and trust it.
Over the years, we go with what works. Combined we have over 150 years of experience dealing with cold weather fishing conditions in Michigan. If we have not tested it and trusted it, it doesn't go on board our boat.
Two other things. When fishing cold weather when decks can get slippery with fish slime, minnow bucket water, snow, rain, and ice, we ALWAYS wear an inflatable life jacket. Tournaments require it when the big motor is running and when jigging, we are moving so much it is a hassle to take off and put on. Plus, you get used to wearing it. I had a buddy go in the water last December when his boat was hit in the rear end by an idiot that bought a new boat just weeks before (because ALL new boats come with a captains license "sarcasm". He was fully loaded with winter clothing and was NOT wearing a vest. He hit the 38 degree water and it was like getting hit by a train. He was three feet from the boat, 40 years old, healthy, and in great shape. He could NOT get out of the water by himself. Hearing this first hand was all I needed to ensure we wear them in these conditions. Trolling, jigging, or other.
I walleye fished last weekend along with our sister boat (story is on the main page). Our vests came off once and that was to use the jon!
Second: Both of us carry one thing that no other tournament angler carries. For the life of us, we cannot figure out what on earth they do. We both purchased a toilet seat that snaps on to a five gallon bucket. We built special brakets that secure the bucket with a bungee cord to the front side of the passenger console on the walk through wind shield. You can fish all day in bad conditions if you are comfortable!
I've eaten warm soup, tea, and other while tournament fishing (not a coffee drinker). I've warmed up sandwiches on the heater, thawed jerkey, and drinks too. If you are comfortable and hydrated, you can fish all day!
I have a pair of these I have had for years, now I need them since I have got older, but think I lost the mittens that can go inside these. However the best part is you can take the thumb and first finger and they have a slit your thumb or finger can go through and the tip of the finger/thumb with fold back and stick to some velcro to hold your finger and thumb free.
Skip
http://www.basspro.com/shop/en/bass-...ductextensions
Skip, I have tried on every pair of neoprene gloves I have ever found and they are all too tight on my hands. When I drove over the road I would stop at outdoor shops in the very cold states and never found a pair that fit right. I think the concept is great and badly wanted a pair, but finally gave up. I like the muff idea but not sure if it would get in the way for the way I usually fish in cold conditions. I'm hearing a lot of ideas to try though. I also agree that most jackets have lame pocket liners.
Worked. Outside for 40 years hands wet,cold.have tried about every kind of glove old new.Unloading coal railcars.When coal gets wet and frozen.your hands freeze,hurt ect.The only glove for me was,is the old brown Jersey gloves.When your gloves,hands are wet.Jersey gloves even wet will keep your hands warm.BROWN JERSEY GLOVES.WHEN fishing hands wet the Jersey gloves will keep your hands warm
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I like to avoid temps that make my hands cold ...but when I do have to do it cold or not ...I use a leather palm cloth back fingerless pair and try not to get them wet ....I don’t fish well without my touchy feeling fingers in direct contact with my equipment cold or not ....if it’s below freezing I try to just wait till it warms up some to go ketch em ....:highfive
The best method, spend time outdoors prior to your trip. Acclimate to the temps.
Couple of tips when you do get on the water.
-Metal objects will suck the heat out of you faster than anything else. Avoid holding/touching metal objects with bare hands.
-Most of the time, in the winter, liquid water is warmer than air temps. Getting your hand wet may warm them up, however once you remove them from the water, they tend to freeze quick. You need to dry them fast. I keep a towel nearby to dry my hands/fingers after handling fish/minnows. Then my hands go into a coat pocket and then back into my fold-over glove/mittens. Seems like a lot of extra steps, however my gloves/mittens don't get wet and thus keep my hands warm.
-If the action picks up, one bare hand goes in the coat pocket, the other holds the rod, rotate as needed to stave off the freeze. Once the bite dies down, back to the mittens.
-Hot food- eat a warm lunch, drink hot coffee/cocoa.
-Layers- Layer your clothing, you can always take a layer off. Adding one isn't as easy. I find when my feet get cold, the rest of me soon follow suit. So I make sure to wear knee high wool socks and thinsulate winter hunting boots. Carhartt bibs, and Carhartt jacket as my outer layer. I also wear a thick stocking hat over my ball cap to keep my bald head, ears warm. If you don't have a beard, wear a scarf. Laugh if you want, however you lose the most body heat through your head and face.
- Why am I talking about everything but fingers, if the rest of you is warm, it's easier to keep the fingers warm. The digits (fingers and toes) are the first to get cold. The body pulls the blood back to keep the critical organs warm. As the critical organs reach optimum temps, the blood is pumped back to the extremities, thus warming the fingers. Keep your core, head/face covered and warm and you will have better blood flow to the digits.
I spend a lot of time outdoors, including winter camping.
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I wear thin wool gloves and keep hot hands in my pockets.
had a friend that alternates from j'boro to Costa Rica. Seems warm there but you have to put up with catching sailfish, Tarpon, Dorado and snapper.
I put hand warmers in the side pockets of my coveralls.I wear gloves only when running the gas motor.I keep a few rags up front with me and when I catch a fish I grab the fish with the rag in hand.My hands rarely get cold because I keep them dry and back in the pockets with the hand warmers.I fish jigs only so I don’t have to deal with minnows.Don’t see why you would need to do anything else here in NC.