Serious anlgers spend more time on the water than most. Because of this fact we are more prone to on the water accidents that involve sharp objects! The most common accident for fisherman is getting a sharp hook in the hand. Knowing what to do in a situation like this is important, not only for your health, but also not to cut your day on the water short by having to rush to a hospital or seek medical attention. To be prepared for accidents some good items to keep in your boat are: pliers, sharp wire cutters, clean sharp knife, gause, bandages, and cleaning alcohol. The best way to remove a hook that is stuck in places where it shouldn’t be is to bring it back the way it came in. The problem with this is that most of our hooks have barbs on them. Once the barb has penetrated the skin, it is not coming back out very easily! If your lucky, the hook will have gone clean through the skin… if not, you must push the point and barb all the way through until the barb is exposed (that’s the tough part). Once the barb is exposed, you are now able to use your wire cutters and snip off the hook point and barb. Slide the hook back out the way it came in and allow yourself to bleed out the wound a bit. Your not home free yet though! … Hooks can be rusty and a wound like this can get infected very easily. Flush out and soak both ends of the wound in alcohol and cover it up so it says clean. If you fish allot, you “must” be current with your tetnis shots as well! Use this tip when you are on the water. I put at least one hook through my hand every year so the best thing to do is not panic! Just cut it out, clean it off, and you should live to fish another day. www.skinard.com