Traditionally, people have worn big mittnes on a kind of harness; easy to slip gloved hands in and out of them, and the wont get lost.
You have the love interest put fur, probably beaver on the backs. good to press against a cold face and a lifesaver when you can throw them onto the ice and wait a minute till they freeze, and you can pullyourself out. My particular love interest saved herself that way as a teenager near Ft Yukon.. With thin ice a knife or pick will probably just preak it more. Mostly we dont carry a pick anyway..

Actually, now that I think about it, it's kind of moot. The ice doesn't stay thin very long at 20 below, so you're probably not going to be falling through in the first place, unless maybe you fall into someone's oversized ice fishing hole.

Well, no, iits not like that. it is not unusual to see open water on the yukon in january, air temp minus 40. Most of the ice will be four ft thick. but an upwelling current will keep another place open, or paper tthin. This aint moot at all.