Ensuring Child Safety During Alaskan Fishing Adventures

Recently in this space, we discussed how to make an Alaskan fishing vacation as enjoyable as possible for not only yourself, but also any children you bring along. Alaska offers enough beauty and fun for the entire family to have a blast, and one of the most important single concepts to be considering for your children here is ensuring their safety at all times.

At Pybus Point Lodge, all our all inclusive Alaska vacations are run by expert staff with extensive experience, including with every relevant safety area present for our clients and their families. We've taken numerous families out on our quality fishing trips, ensuring safety first and foremost while bringing you the experience of a lifetime. If you're bringing your kids along for the trip, and especially if this is their first time fishing, here's some more detail on the specific safety measures you should be considering for them.

Protective Eyewear

Our first area is one some parents don't think of, but that's important for both visual and physical protection of your child's eyes, is protective eyewear. Many parents will purchase polarized sunglasses for their own use during the trip, but to ensure your children are protected regardless of what direction they're looking in or what action is happening all around them, you should be checking out some kids' polarized sunglasses.

Alaska provides enough opportunity for reflection and other issues that this sort of protection is important at all times. You can find a variety of these at many stores, including Walmart and your local Cabela's location. In addition, look for eyewear options that are strong enough to protect your child from lures, branches or any other physical risks that may be present during their fishing trip. If you're night fishing, you should consider clear glasses.

Sun Protection for Kids

One of the most important safety areas is sun protection, and during an Alaskan fishing trip you might be taking your child out on waters that either are or seem to be very deep. This means they'll be in the sun more than ever, as UV rays reflect in great quantities off of deep water, so make sure you pick up good sunscreen for them before the trip.

You should also make sure they wear a wide-brimmed hat at all times as well as sunglasses, and even consider sunscreen clothing or other items that will keep them cool and prevent themselves from getting burned. Remember to reapply frequently during the day, especially if your child is swimming in the ocean or other body of water.

Barbless Hooks

Especially for children who are new to fishing, using barbless hooks is a great idea. Barbless hooks are extremely important for two reasons: First, they're much less intimidating to both new and small children who often have a hard time working the hook out of their mouth or trying to minimize damage if they're accidentally hooked. Second, barbless hooks come out much more easily, thus reducing overall pain and injury if they do happen to get hooked in an area of the body which can be seriously impacted when working a hook out.

Floatation and General Boat Safety

Many of our Alaskan fishing trips involve spending time on watercraft, and it's essential that you make sure your child has plenty of floatation to keep them safe. Many children's life jackets out there are inflatable, and these are great for kids who might be swimming or playing near the boat without their parents' direct supervision.

You should make sure you're able to provide general supervision for your children at all times, whether they're directly in front of you or not. When working around deep waters like lakes and oceans, it's best to keep them seated, even if that means they don't have a pole in their hands. Even on the boat, look for opportunities to keep your children from being out of arms' reach at all times.

If you're going to be spending significant time on the water, there's no reason why children shouldn't be able to enjoy every aspect of it as well. Just make sure they don't overextend themselves, and they'll still be able to have a blast.

Define and Promote the Rules

From the moment they step onto any boat or begin any part of the fishing experience, your children should know the basic rules and etiquette in place. It's important that you define and promote these rules to your child, and never take for granted the fact that they'll be able to remember them when in the heat of excitement or other distractions.

This is particularly important if you're fishing in a public location such as a national forest or any sort of local spot where lots of people are present. Not only will your children be expected to follow in line with these rules, but so will everyone else.

First Aid Kit

A First Aid kit should always be present on any Alaskan fishing trip, and this is especially important for children. They're very active, and the last thing you want is for them to get hurt or fall ill while hundreds of miles from medical attention.

Make sure that your child understands what every item in the First Aid kit does, even if it's just a small bandage or basic pain reliever. If they have to use any items during the course of your trip, make sure to discuss thoroughly what they can expect from each one before you apply it.

For more on keeping your children safe at all times during an Alaskan fishing adventure, or to learn about any of our fishing or wildlife packages, speak to the staff at Pybus Point Lodge today.