Looking for opinions from actual fisherman, not store reviews.

[Josh721]

I was fishing with my son today at the Niagara Glen. I was helpless as I watched  my son slip on algae and fall towards the fast rushing water. Thankfully he was able to catch his fall. He lost his rod, but more importantly he did not fall in. I will never fish near the river again until I find the best life vest I can for both of us. That moment was life changing. We both love fishing, and have never thought about life vests while fishing from shore. After playing the what if out in my mind, I realized I almost lost my son. I’m reaching out to anyone and everyone to give their opinions and recommendations. 
 

Id like to add. I’ve notice that several people have read this post without commenting. I’m just wondering if I’ve posted this question in the right place. I understand I can easily go and get advice from a store who will promote their products for the sale. I figured I would ask here and hopefully get responses from people who actually use the product I need. 

Edited October 25, 2020 by Josh721

[LeXXington]

Unfortunately a life vest with the water temps is not going to help.  Any life vest approved in Canada will do it more about comfort and personal choice.

I personally away use a floater suite for cold and mustang Deluxe Sportsman in the warmth.  I add lights and whistle to both.

Just always make sure to put it on.

 
 

Model: MV5901 SKU: 062533782228

Deluxe Sportsman's Vest

[irishfield]

Tie a rope to the kid... dismiss the na sayers. My Son at Kelso in Milton, late 1984. Wife pregnant with Jen at the time.

 

[Yellow Fever]

First thing we have to do is get over the stigma of looking different, not sure if you are a boater but why not get some of the Mustang HIT inflatable PFD? They are so comfortable you wont know you are wearing one. They are all i have in my boat and one day my buddy had to leave early so i dropped him off at the dock and went back out, he calls me that night to make arrangements to return the inflatable to me . Seems it was so comfortable he didn't realize it was still on till he was in the line of the grocery store. 

[singingdog]

IMHO, an inflatable is not a great choice for a kid: will they be calm enough to inflate the vest after falling into cold, fast moving water? Maybe Autoinflate works better than I think it does. A good lifefacket - not PFD - seems to be what you are looking for. Just make sure it fits and is rated for his weight. 

[mitch seguin]

I would recommend an auto hydrostatic inflatable pfd (of which the mustang hit fits into this group). 

[AKRISONER]

I’d personally recommend and auto inflatable. They are so comfortable you will forget that you are wearing it. 
 

I personally use a cabellas guide wear and love it. I made the switch from only wearing a vest while under power to basically always wearing the inflatable. There’s stories about them not inflating, but I think a significant component of that is people not storing and maintaining them correctly.

[Josh721]

I appreciate the comments. I like the thought of the auto inflate. The way they turn you over in case your unconscious. My son is in his early teens and a good swimmer but with that current and temperature of the water it was definitely an eye opener. 
We use a vest style when boating, but after all the videos I’ve watch, I will be switching them out as well. 
 

[LostAnotherOne]

10 hours ago, irishfield said:

Tie a rope to the kid... dismiss the na sayers. My Son at Kelso in Milton, late 1984. Wife pregnant with Jen at the time.

 

LMAO.  Whatever works

[Dutch01]

I would personally agree with @singingdog and not recommend an inflatable.  Partly my personal bias - I don't use one myself when on my kayak, I need 0% chance of failure.  And partly because as a parent I want max safety for my child, meaning a lifejacket (not a pfd).   That's just me, every parent has to decide for themselves.

[glen]

When it’s hot a vest like Lexington shows.   When it’s cool flotation jacket.  When it’s cold flotation suit.  
 

[chris.brock]

I think guys aren't familiar with the Niagara, it's crazy fast, heavy water, for those who don't know

I'd use a lifejacket and have it tethered to a tree like Wayne suggested, a short leash too

 

[fish4me]

Biggest fear fishing the lower is falling in during the cold weather.  I bought a fishing pfd from FishUSA, it was practical, economical and doubles as a fishing vest.  I have a float suit for severe cold weather.  You also need to make sure you have excellent condition foot wear, just bought some winter boots from north face and you can add screw studs for ice.  Safety is so important, no fish is worth dying for and being prepared and safe is paramount.  I would recommend a straight pfd and you could probably wear it under a jacket if you are that concerned about how it looks, but really who cares, just wear it as is.

[BillM]

That's a life lesson he'll never forget, probably scare the crap out of him (which isn't a bad thing).  There are some rivers I fish you've gotta watch every single step you take or else you're going for a dip.   I'd probably look at what were on his feet when he slipped.  Running shoes?  Hiking boots?   A cheap pair of hiking boots with a few sheet metal screws in the bottom will make a world of difference on slippery algae.   I think the key here is prevention, a life jacket or PFD is great, but let's not even get to that point next time.   Perhaps even a old ski pole to use as a wading staff until he gets more comfortable around that type of water.    

[grimsbylander]

I have two sons and if I tried tying either one to a tree when they were teenagers, I’d be the one tied to the damn tree. 
OP, regardless of the jacket you pick, make sure you set the example and wear the same one. 
As far as the auto-inflates go, yes there is a small failure rate. However the rate is extremely small compared to the rate of people that won’t wear a regular pfd because they’re too hot, too bulky, too restrictive, etc.  
I wear an auto-inflate 100% of the time I’m fishing alone in my boat. I wore a regular pfd 0% of the time while fishing previously. 

[b_cdot]

Had a couple onyx auto/manuals and I believe they self deployed on me 4 times... got pretty expensive. Finally just changed them to manuals. The bobbins disintegrate. Others I have talked to havent had them self deploy. Maybe I just have some terrible luck

[DanD]

That river scares the hell out of me. I walked down to Devils' Hole a number of years ago. Oh man the people fishing there are "Dare Devils" themselves. The water is so fast and churning like a boiling pot of water. Watched one guy jump from shore onto a rock, then he did it again and was standing on a rock no more then 3 feet around; he was surrounded by the churning water; one misstep he'd be a goner. So yeah any type of floatation device is a good idea; along with full football gear; it may help you when bouncing off rocks; as you're going down river? I like my fishing; but that is to extreme for me; regardless of good the fishing may be. Please don't let adventures get in the way of safety. If I were tethered to a sky-crane I might think of fishing that river. LOL  

Dan.

[Josh721]

Thanks again for all your comments. We went with these. I got them off amazon and I’m really happy with the fit and feel. Even though we wear them faithfully, I’m still not too keen on going down to the devils hole after that. We’ve tried fishing further down stream but it’s the same risk. I’m blown away at the rapid change in water level as well. We’ve kinda stayed away lately especially with the water getting much colder. 

[Rustic-Fisher]

No matter the PFD you choose,  pair it with a Water rescue throw rope bag , light weight and will save a life down there . 

Though we never wore pfds at the whirlpool we always carried a throw bag . 

[Snidley]

Fall into the Niagara in the Glen with water levels and corresponding speed of flow  at this time and that PFD will save squat. A floater suit might save you but again I doubt it. The truth is don't take children to the Niagara Glen or even Whirlpool in the winter. And in warm months stay away form the waters edge and wear proper hiking shoes. I have seen people hiking around the Niagara with plastic thong shoes to whom I point out that if they break a leg the rescue mission, which will incorporate a helicopter, will be VERY pricey. I'm told it's about $5K. I even saw a bible group from the USA down in the Glen were there were20+ tweeners (12-14 yrs old) in a group where the young boys were showing off to the young girls by jumping from rock to rock passing over the fast flowing water. When I voiced my anguish to the supervising adults they told me if a kid fell in it would be God's will  Really it was scary the ignorance of adults tasked with supervising someone else's children on a field trip yet not recognizing that level of peril or abdicating their responsibility to "God's will"

Personally when I go down there I wear size 13 ice running shoes which have imbedded tungsten cleats The cleats give better grip on bare rock, ice and to a limited extent algae covered rock. You still have to be really careful though and like cleated wading boots for some reason the cleat aspect of the shoes tires me out faster than felt or rubber bottoms