Some of the braver, or in some cases foolhardy, winter sport fishermen have been testing the ice already, even in southern parts of the country. The ice cover is still thin and can easily give way.
An instinctive response to getting drenched in freezing waters may be to remove some of the wet garments. That is an unwise move.
Stripping off in the cold can quickly lead to hypothermia, points out Dr Harri Lindholm, a specialist at the Finnish Institute of Occupational Health and an expert on the subject.
He says that the most important thing to do is to keep moving.
"Motion produces heat and keeps the body warm. If you remove your clothes and wring them out, scrape off the ice, this uses up and deprives the body of heat so much that the risk of freezing increases."
Wet is warm
In very low temperatures, even wet clothes can function as a form of thermal insulation. This is especially true if the clothes are not soaked through and through.
"If the outer layer freezes and there are drier layers underneath, it can keep some of the heat in. Then, you should quickly get moving and into somewhere warm," Lindholm advises.
Dr Lindholm also says that if you are headed out somewhere where there is a chance of getting wet in any way, it is wise to carry some extra dry clothing, just in case.