{"id":120,"date":"2026-06-16T14:26:55","date_gmt":"2026-06-16T14:26:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mylivingsacrifice.com\/devdemo\/JoeHumphreys\/safety\/"},"modified":"2026-06-24T15:01:32","modified_gmt":"2026-06-24T15:01:32","slug":"safety","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/mylivingsacrifice.com\/devdemo\/JoeHumphreys\/safety\/","title":{"rendered":"Safety, First Aid & the Journal"},"content":{"rendered":"

SAFETY FIRST  ·  HOOKS, WADING & THE JOURNAL<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>

Safety, First Aid & the Journal<\/h1>\n<\/div><\/div>

A barbed hook in a finger is the single most likely incident on the bank, so every Harvey Leader carries a calm, one-page response. This page gives you the go \/ no-go wading check, the hook-removal decision tree and first-aid checklist, the wading rules, and the journal method that starts every session: observation before action.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>

Print This Page<\/a><\/p>\n

Print it and the whole safety pack comes out, ready to laminate for the kit and the journal binder.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

CHECK 1  ·  BEFORE ANYONE STEPS IN<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>

Go \/ No-Go Wading Check<\/h2>\n<\/div><\/div>

Conservative wading is a hard rule, not a vibe. Read each condition left to right and take the worst column that applies. If any single row lands in NO-GO, nobody wades. Bank-only fishing is still a great day.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>

\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
CONDITION<\/th>\nGO<\/th>\nCAUTION<\/th>\nNO-GO<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
Water clarity<\/td>\nCan see your feet<\/td>\nKnee-deep visibility<\/td>\nCan\u2019t see your boots, bank only<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Water level \/ flow<\/td>\nNormal, clear<\/td>\nUp slightly, pushy<\/td>\nHigh \/ brown \/ rising, bank only<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Lightning \/ weather<\/td>\nNone, clear sky<\/td>\nDistant rumble<\/td>\nFlash-to-bang under 30s; off water 30 min (30\/30 rule)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Air \/ water temp<\/td>\nMild<\/td>\nCold water<\/td>\nHypothermia risk, bank, short sessions<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Bottom \/ current<\/td>\nFirm footing, gentle flow<\/td>\nLoose or slick, current you feel<\/td>\nCan\u2019t hold footing, water past the belt<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n
\n

The 30\/30 rule.<\/strong> If the time from a lightning flash to the thunder is under 30 seconds, get everyone off the water. Stay off for a full 30 minutes after the last clap of thunder. Also check the water temperature daily: if it is above 68\u00b0F, move to cooler or shaded water or stay off it, because trout are dangerously stressed in warm water.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

CHECK 2  ·  THE MOST LIKELY INCIDENT<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>

If a Hook Goes In<\/h2>\n<\/div><\/div>

A barbed hook in a finger is the single most likely injury at Stream School. Stay calm, work the decision tree, and never improvise a medical step. This is why the program uses barbless or de-barbed hooks: a barbless hook backs straight out.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>

HOOK-REMOVAL DECISION TREE - WORK IT IN ORDER<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Stop and stay calm.<\/strong> Cut the line from the hook so a hooked fish or a tangled rod can\u2019t pull on it. Sit the student down. Look at where the hook is and how deep it went.<\/li>\n
  2. Is the barb still outside the skin (or is it a barbless hook)?<\/strong> If yes, back it straight out the way it went in. Then clean and cover it (see the checklist). This is the simple, common case.<\/li>\n
  3. Is the barb embedded past the skin? STOP.<\/strong> Do not push it through. Do not dig for it. Cut the line, stabilize the hook so it can\u2019t move, and seek medical help. The string-yank method is for trained staff only, and only on a shallow hook.<\/li>\n
  4. Any deep, awkward, or sensitive location goes straight to a doctor.<\/strong> Face, eye, ear, near a joint, or any deep hook: tape it in place so it can\u2019t move and go to urgent care. Do not attempt removal in the field.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
    \n

    When in doubt, see a doctor.<\/strong> No hook is worth a worse injury. If you are unsure whether it is shallow, whether the barb is past the skin, or whether it is near anything delicate, tape it in place and go. The lead Harvey Leader should be CPR and wilderness-first-aid certified.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>

    AFTER A SHALLOW HOOK BACKS OUT - CLEAN & COVER<\/p>\n

    ☐  Wash your hands; put on gloves if you have them.<\/p>\n

    ☐  Back the hook straight out the way it entered (barb not past the skin only).<\/p>\n

    ☐  Clean the wound: rinse, then antiseptic wipe.<\/p>\n

    ☐  Cover it with a clean bandage.<\/p>\n

    ☐  Tell the student\u2019s parent or guardian what happened.<\/p>\n

    ☐  Advise a doctor and a tetanus check if the wound is dirty, deep, or the student is not up to date.<\/p>\n

    FIRST-AID KIT CHECKLIST - PACK BEFORE EVERY SESSION<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
    ITEM<\/th>\nWHY IT\u2019S IN THE KIT<\/th>\nPACKED?<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
    Forceps \/ pliers<\/td>\nQuick, clean removal of a barbless hook<\/td>\n <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    Wire cutters<\/td>\nCut the line; cut a hook if directed by medical help<\/td>\n <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    Antiseptic wipes<\/td>\nClean the wound before covering<\/td>\n <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    Bandages & gauze<\/td>\nCover and protect after removal<\/td>\n <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    Medical tape<\/td>\nTape a deep hook in place before going to a doctor<\/td>\n <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    Gloves<\/td>\nProtect both the student and the helper<\/td>\n <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    Emergency contacts<\/td>\nParent \/ guardian numbers and the nearest urgent care<\/td>\n <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

    CHECK 3  ·  ON THE WATER<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>

    Wading Safety Rules<\/h2>\n<\/div><\/div>

    Read these aloud every session. The one rule with no exceptions: eye protection on, always. No glasses, no rod in hand.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

    WADING RULES FOR KIDS<\/p>\n

    ✓  Wading belt always.<\/strong> Wear it snug; it traps air and slows the water if you go down.<\/p>\n

    ✓  Never past the belly button<\/strong> (well above the wading belt). Deeper than that, you stay on the bank.<\/p>\n

    ✓  Shuffle, don\u2019t step.<\/strong> One foot you can feel on the bottom before you move the other.<\/p>\n

    ✓  Face slightly upstream<\/strong> and angle across. Never turn your back to the current.<\/p>\n

    ✓  Unbuckle a backpack waist strap<\/strong> in moving water. A fixed pack can pin you.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>

    THE FIVE STREAM RULES & THE GROUP PLAN<\/p>\n

    ✓  Eyes open, look behind<\/strong> before every cast. A hook is a fishhook, not a toy.<\/p>\n

    ✓  Glasses on, always.<\/strong> No glasses, no casting. Zero exceptions.<\/p>\n

    ✓  Stay an arm-plus-rod length<\/strong> from your neighbor.<\/p>\n

    ✓  Buddy system.<\/strong> Pair every camper. Buddies check each other\u2019s glasses, count off at every move, and share one net. A missing buddy is reported instantly.<\/p>\n

    ✓  Attention signal.<\/strong> Harvey Leader raises the rod tip straight up = hooks down, eyes on me. Practice it as a game in the first five minutes.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

    If you fall in:<\/strong> feet downstream, on your back, nose and toes up, and backstroke to shore. Don\u2019t try to stand up in fast water. Get off the water at the first clap of thunder and stay off for 30 minutes after the last (the 30\/30 rule).<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

    THE JOURNAL  ·  A PRINTABLE HANDOUT<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>

    The Journal: Observation Before Action<\/h2>\n<\/div><\/div>

    Joe Humphreys learned the stream as a boy on his belly in the grass, watching one trout for days before he ever cast. We teach the same discipline, and the journal is where it lives.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>

    THE METHOD - SIT, WATCH, WRITE, THEN CAST<\/p>\n

    Before picking up the rod on any day of the program, students sit at the stream and watch for at least 15 minutes. They write in their journals. They identify insects, water features, and feeding fish. Only after they can articulate what the stream is telling them do they cast.<\/p>\n

    Once per session there is also a Look Up moment<\/strong>: everyone stops, looks up from the water, and names one thing they notice, a bird, the light, a rising fish. Thirty seconds. As Joe puts it, “Look up. You\u2019ve been staring at the water from the moment we made the first cast. I\u2019d like to stop and live the moment.”<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>

    JOURNAL PROMPTS - ONE AT THE END OF EACH SESSION<\/p>\n

    1.  What surprised you most about the stream today?<\/p>\n

    2.  What did you notice during your Look Up moment? One sound, one movement, the wind direction?<\/p>\n

    3.  Draw the fly you tied or fished today, and explain why a trout would eat it.<\/p>\n

    4.  Describe what the stream bottom looked like from the fly\u2019s point of view.<\/p>\n

    5.  Where was the seam, the line where fast water meets slow? Which side were the fish feeding on?<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>

    END-OF-WEEK REFLECTION - ANSWER THESE IN YOUR JOURNAL<\/p>\n

    Answer these at the end of each practice week. Leave room to sketch.<\/p>\n

    1.  What insect did you trap or observe this week? Sketch it in the box below.<\/p>\n

    <\/div>\n

    2.  What did you notice during your Look Up moment? One sound, one movement, the wind direction?<\/p>\n

    <\/div>\n
    <\/div>\n

    3.  How many seconds does it take you to tie the Davy knot without looking at your hands?<\/p>\n

    <\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

    TRY IT<\/p>\n

    Check Before You Wade<\/h2>\n<\/div><\/div>

    Before anyone steps in<\/p>

    Go \/ No-Go Wading Check<\/h3>

    Read each condition and pick what you see. Take the worst column that applies. If any single row lands in NO-GO, nobody wades.<\/p><\/div>

    <\/svg>Make your selections<\/span><\/div>

    Choose each condition above to get a Go \/ No-Go reading. When in doubt, stay on the bank - bank fishing is still a great day.<\/p><\/div>

    Water clarity<\/legend>

    Can you see the bottom where you would step?<\/p>