First, find a path or tracks on the ice. If there are none, mark your route from the shore.
Look in advance for any suspicious places:
- ice may be fragile near water runoff (e.g. from a farm or factory);
- thin or brittle ice near bushes, reeds, under snowdrifts, in places where algae are frozen into the ice;
- avoid areas covered with a thick layer of snow – ice is always thinner under snow;
- thin ice is also found where the keys are struck, where a fast current or stream flows into the river;
- be especially careful when descending from the shore: the ice may not be tightly connected to the land, there may be cracks, and there may be air under the ice.
Take a stick with you to test the strength of the ice. If water appears on the ice after the first strike with the stick, the ice is broken through, immediately return to the place where you came from. And the first steps should be taken without taking your soles off the ice.
Never test the strength of the ice by kicking it. Otherwise, you will have to find out how well you have memorized and internalized this advice.
If you're on skis, look for an already made track. If there is not and you need to lay it, unfasten the bindings of your skis (so that you can get rid of them quickly in a pinch), hold the poles in your hands, but do not put the loops of the ski poles around your hands. Hang your backpack on one shoulder only, or better yet, drag it on a rope 2-3 meters behind you. If you are walking in a group, do not reduce the distance between skiers (and pedestrians) by less than 5 meters.
Punch holes on opposite sides of the crossing to measure the thickness of the ice (five meters between them is recommended) and measure them. Keep in mind that the ice consists of two layers – the upper (muddy) and the lower (clear and strong). You can measure the exact thickness only by first removing the upper (muddy) layer from the snowy, very fragile ice.
Ice is considered safe:
- for one pedestrian – greenish ice, at least 7 centimeters thick;
- for skating rink equipment – at least 10-12 centimeters (mass skating – 25 centimeters);
- mass crossing on foot can be organized if the ice thickness is at least 15 centimeters.
Ice skate only in approved and equipped areas.
If the ice begins to crack and characteristic cracks appear, return immediately. Do not run, but walk away slowly, keeping your feet on the ice.
Firmly learn that winter ice fishing requires particularly strict adherence to the rules of conduct, as dictated by the many years of experience of not the most successful anglers:
- do not punch many holes nearby;
- do not gather in large groups in one place;
- do not punch holes on the crossings;
- do not fish near potholes and too far from the shore, no matter what the bite is;
- always have a strong rope of 12-15 meters at hand;
- keep a board or large branch near the hole.
