My motto, "Keep Your Feet On The Bottom" is primarily designed to prevent the sting of a ray. Rays are harmless, even shy, creatures. But think how you feel when someone steps on your toes. The sting is a reflex action to protect, not attack.

Rays are masters of camouflage. For every ray you see swimming around, figure there are 5 more buried in the sand. I always think that wherever I am about to step there is a stingray. That pretty much makes me do that "stingray shuffle."

Don't think that wading boots will protect you against stingrays. The barb of ray will slice through the best of them. Many stings are not even on the foot. Rather, they are in the ankle or even the calf.

The next concern is sharks. Generally speaking, if you don't have a stringer full of fish sharks are not a problem. They are cruising the flats looking for a meal. A wader's leg does not look like food, so they generally leave you alone. If you are going to keep fish and wade, I recommend using a fish bag on a float. The bag will hide the fish and not give sharks a target.

For those of you that use a stringer, buy one of those fancy ones with the float and long line. This keeps the fish well away from your body. In addition, make sure that you attach the stringer to your wading belt (You do use a wading belt, don't you?) with a quick release knot. I have seen wade fishermen pulled down when a shark has grabbed a stringer full of fish and started swimming off.

While it doesn't seem as critical, cuts are another major concern. There are all sorts of little sharp things in water just waiting to slice your feet. I think I've seen more injuries of this sort than any other. The only bad injury I ever received while wading was from the sharp edges of an oyster. The list of things on the bottom, just lying there to cause an injury, is endless. Unfortunately, many of them are man-made.

Whatever their origin or nature, they can all give you a nasty slice. While a cut may not seem as threatening as sharks or rays, it can still ruin your fishing day. Always wear a good quality wading boot or dive booties. That, along with shuffling, should prevent any mishaps.

Another danger is mainly for those of who wade at night or before sunrise. There are a lot of crazy boaters out there who run their boats at high speed in the dark. While I don't know of anyone who has ever been run over by a boat, I have seen plenty of close calls. I always carry a flashlight with me just in case.

It's easy to forget these things when you're out on the water. You are trying to relax and enjoy yourself; or, if you're lucky, the fishing action is so hot and heavy you quit paying attention to what's going on around you. Try to be alert and use common sense. You should be able to prevent these injuries. And remember at all times:

KEEP YOUR FEET ON THE BOTTOM!