2010 Skeeter Updates

[KC4847]

Pohono Trail in Yosemite two weeks ago. I'd give the Mosquitoes a 1 even in the forested areas. We camped along the valley rim both nights so I didn't expect many anyway. That said, for the amount of water runoff there were surprisingly few around. Things may be different now though.

[jessegooddog]

Little Lakes Valley to Long Lake Saturday June 26th - no swarms that I saw, rate it 2 - 3, used a combo of herbal repellents and skin so soft and never had one land, was not there at dawn or dusk.

[calipidder]

Yosemite 120 to north rim - nothin'. Definitely a 1. Spent the weekend up there including some random wandering through marshy bear-infested meadows and fishing along creeks that I expected to be infested, but nothing to speak of. I saw one spinning around my tent before bed, but put him out of his miserable existence. I'm sure that will put a dent in their population.

[SSSdave]

copeg wrote:
Sounds like a great idea. A more permanent solution might be to add an article into the header page links

Here's a couple of posts below I recently made on another board that only address a couple of elements of mosquito avoidance. That thread didn't turn out to be very useful as members really didn't have much to say so I let it go without further input. If one searches on the web, one will find there is only rather simple information as no one has really publicly brained stormed as web input these matters while every summer there are a great many complaining about how miserably mosquitoes bother them. Although I have alot to say, much more than the below, I won't add more unless others also have more to say than a few one liners.

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Tom, you bring up one of the main issues of mosquito avoidance, headgear, and one many have still not come to understand the usefulness of. The head is the main target of mosquitoes and the one body area most exposed.

There are two basic headgear needs. One is the classic military issue type mosquito head net. For years backpackers bought them from surplus stores then gear suppliers eventually began supplying products. Unfortunately there were many non military head net products designed by morons. The military "GI" version is made to be worn over a smaller hat or cap. Most importantly it has a round plastic band at mouth height around the face and neck to keep the netting away from the body. The netting should reach down to shoulders where there is an elastic band that helps keep the bottom closed against the body. It is available at surplus stores including those online for less than $5 so is always a bargain. It is also very light and durable. Hiking while wearing a head net is very annoying especially if sunny as sunlight makes seeing through the netting difficult and if warm out it creates a hot house. So the main purpose of this headgear is for use in camp especially when lounging around outside of one's tent. Or after say washing one's face where one does not want to apply DEET but needs to go out of the tent to say deal with cooking or to take a...

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The second piece of headgear is for hiking about and is usually also adequate for most activity around camp. But it ought to be used with repellent on one's face. Many of these are call "sun caps" and have a neck shade aka neck flap aka neck drape. The better ones allow one to remove the neck drape via velcro. Some of these products with a neck drape are really only useful for sun protection because the drape is too small. A key target of mosquitoes is the back of an animals head and ears. Squeeters look for eyes and ears and is a reason they often fly about whining keeping to the back of one's head. This is the main reason these caps are so useful is it takes away their main target areas and forces them to attack the face or hands that ought to be the only other exposed body areas if one is properly dressed. The best caps have the drape extend out to the front where a velcro closure allows the front of the neck to be closed if desired. For more than a decade I've worn a cap models made by Dorfmann Pacific bought at Big 5 Sporting Goods for about $15.

http://www.amazon.com/Extreme....sbs_a_3" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

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Indeed one of the key strategies for coping during mosquito season is to cover up as much of one's body as is reasonably possible. However it takes more than just a long sleeve shirt and long pants to be successful at keeping the skin beneath protected. Cotton t-shirts are notoriously ineffective yet in the worst mosquito conditions that is what the majority of hikers are still wearing. The probosi of mosquitoes will readily poke through thin fabric and reach skin underneath. Especially if one is lounging back against a tree trunk in camp and several dozen have arrived to hunt on your pant legs. Watch as they attempt to drill down into the pants material and if unsuccessful move a bit to some other spot and repeat and repeat and repeat. So if one has even one worn spot like say on the knee or seat of one's pants, sooner or later one of those blood suckers will find that spot and drill down. Thus no worn jeans. So is thicker material better? Might inhibit mosquitoes but may also be too warm and extra weight to carry. The better strategy is to wear lightweight fabric with tight weaves and the best is often nylon. That is why I often wear a lightweight nylon shell with zip front. Very light, quick drying, airy thus cool, yet mosquitoes cannot drill through its tight weave. And if one is moving forward hiking, mosquitoes are not likely to land there because they prefer flying then landing in behind. Another thing about nylon versus some other synthetic fabrics is DEET has no effect on it while DEET on some other synthetics causes deterioration.

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This weekend I was at the below location during the afternoon. A glaciated granite bedrock canyon of a large creek in an area below 7.5k. This is actually a remote offtrail area we will hike into on one of the days during the coming holiday weekend to enjoy water fun since the water temperature was amazingly high in the mid 60's F degree range. Not far away were swamps, seeps, deep tall fir forests, with lots of mosquitoes. However during the afternoon I walked and layed about over an hour just wearing swim trunks and not a single squeeter visited. An example of how strongly they avoid such areas. But when late afternoon shadows crept down into the canyon, yes they increasingly came out. I had to hike several hundred feet to climb out of the canyon. As soon as I reached the trees and vegetation, I put on battle gear and repellant, sweated like a pig going up the hill, yet didn't receive a single bite the whole trip.

[ChinMusic]

I don't think it has been mentioned but a solid strategy is to treat your hiking clothing with permethrin prior to your trip. I find mosquitoes standing on my shoulder dead, not even being able to fly away. I have not had mosquitoes drill down through my clothing if it had been treated.

http://www.austinkayak.com/products/186 ... tment.html

[Wandering Daisy]

Just got home from 3-day trip up Rush Creek to Lost Lakes and Alger Lakes. Trail adjacent to Silver Lake is bad in early AM - swarmed while going up trail. No mosqitoes at Gem Lake or above(Sat). Coming out today, moderate mosquitoes at Gem Lake but wind kept them down. None at Alger Lakes (total snow). One lone skiter on my tent screen this morning at Lost Lakes (again, total snow except for a few dry spots on rocky ledges). Lots of standing water between Waugh Lake and Gem Lake -hard to tell if buggy because wind was really blowing today. A few mosquitoes at Rush Creek trail juction to Alger Lakes today - none on Sat. I think they are just about ready to be a real swarm!

[kevcon123]

Hi,

Just got back from 3 day trip in the Carson Iceberg Wilderness. Went up Arnot Creek Trail to PCT (almost) back down to Half Moon Lake and out the Disaster Creek trail.

Skeeters = 1

The water and stream crossing are absolutely bananas

[maverick]

Tuolumne Meadows at Soda Springs 1
Western end at the Sunrise Trailhead 3-4
Glen Aulin-Waterwheel Falls 0

[diesel]

Hiked the grand canyon of the tuolumne river (White Wolf to tuolumne meadows): mosquito rating is a 2-3, probably closer to 2.

[maverick]

Hi Diesel

What areas were you encountering 2-3's on the trip?
I was at Wildcat Point on night one, above Waterwheel night 2-3, and Glen Aulin on
night 4, and only saw a handful of skeetrz at dusk on the entire trip.