Your Mosquito's From Hell Trip

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Herm
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Re: Your Mosquito's From Hell Trip

Post by Herm »

Two equally bad experiences for me. First was a trip to May Lake and Glen Aulin the last week of July 1998, where the buggers were bad at May Lake, then terrible on the hike through to Glen Aulin. At May Lake, there was open ground on which to camp, but snow in some piles was still 4 feet deep.
Second was a trip to the Middle Fork Bishop Creek drainage in mid-July 2005. There were no real problems until we got above Emerald Lakes, but the real problems started just as we crossed above the inlet to Dingleberry Lake. At that point, it became an unending invasion of the eyes, nose and mouth, and hustling up the trail just hurried us into worse conditions. When we arrived at Midnight Lake, it was all we could do to get the tent set up and we hunkered down for the evening. The next morning, we awoke before sunrise, packed in a hurry, then descended to Blue Lake, where we enjoyed a couple more nights with hardly a bother.

I know that is part of the reason why I find September a nice month to backpack.

Herm
I am not in a hurry, so don't be hasty.
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rlown
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Re: Your Mosquito's From Hell Trip

Post by rlown »

Herm wrote: know that is part of the reason why I find September a nice month to backpack.

Herm
EXACTLY!!! That's been the best advice ever. But then, some of us know this.


Russ
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Re: Your Mosquito's From Hell Trip

Post by Mradford »

Last year i did a trip to the upper owens in June or july, cant remember exactly. After the 6 hour drive from orange county i got out of the truck to throw on my waders and realized i had left them at home!! :( Needless to say i was filled with terror as i walked through the most ridiculous swarms of mosquitos for the next 4 hours. at one point i was squatting down to release a fish and felt multiple stings on my leg and looked down to see 9 mosquitoes destroying my leg. This was while wearing Ultrathon bug repellent. Needless to say it was the worst night ever trying to sleep without itching. The trip ended a few days later and the tally was 19 bites on my right leg, 15 on my left, a lot on my arms and one amazing bite on my father in-laws head. there were seriously swarms of them. Crazy!!
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Kris
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Re: Your Mosquito's From Hell Trip

Post by Kris »

Hiking out of Phipps Lake. As we're trudging up the hill x-cntry to get back to the trail you'd wipe one arm down with perhaps ten or more skeeters, and by the time you finished doing that (a few seconds maybe?) you were wiping down the other arm. Over and over. Drove us nuts for about 15 minutes or so til we got out of that area. We had run out of deet that evening before.
~We shall not cease from exploration and the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we started... and know the place for the first time.

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rlown
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Re: Your Mosquito's From Hell Trip

Post by rlown »

there is a cure for not having a bad skeeter experience.. It's called September.
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Herm
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Re: Your Mosquito's From Hell Trip

Post by Herm »

And the band plays on ...........................
I am not in a hurry, so don't be hasty.
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cahiker
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Re: Your Mosquito's From Hell Trip

Post by cahiker »

rlown wrote:there is a cure for not having a bad skeeter experience.. It's called September.
I have two memorable 4th of July trips. The first was in the Tablelands area of SEKI in the early 90s. We didn't bring a tent so the day would begin with being woken up by the whine of mosquitoes buzzing around our heads. That was followed by breakfast where we never stopped moving so they couldn't land. It was very hot so there was a bit of relief around mid day, but they were back in full force by mid-afternoon. Most of our group hiked out a day early, but my boyfriend somehow convinced me to stay. I ended up with about 100 bites and a healthy fear of July 4th in the mountains.

In 2009 I had the week of July 4th off from work (forced vacation) so we ended up heading to the 1000 Island/Waugh/Clark/Shadow Lakes area. Wisdom comes with age (sometimes) so we had a tent with lots of netting, baggy long sleeve shirts, headnets, deet and benadryl. There weren't any mosquitoes as we climbed up from the Rush Creek trailhead, but they appeared just past Agnew Lake and aggressively pursued us the rest of the week. Our clothing, headnets and deet provided protection while hiking, and we only stopped to rest in areas with a strong breeze. As soon as we got into camp I dove into the tent, and spent the afternoons trying to photograph the clouds of mosquitoes hovering around the tent and enjoying the scenery, emerging only after dark. I got some bites, but was able to go right to sleep and forget about the itching since I took a benadryl before bedtime. We had a great time despite all the bloodsuckers and managed to escape relatively unscathed.

I still think July 4th is better spent skiing, saving backpacking for August and September.
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walkdawg
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Re: Your Mosquito's From Hell Trip

Post by walkdawg »

Just below the Treasure Lakes out of South Lake there is a shady meadow where Bishop Creek meanders back and forth. It's a super fun place to fish but it is far and away the buggiest place I have ever encountered in the Sierra. I had trouble seeing my fly floating down the stream because of the cloud of mosquitos and flies buzzing around my head. The flies were unbelievable, even worse than the mosquitos. My buddy and I could endure it only long enough to wash the skunk off and then we ran for our lives. I've been there several times but only one time was it that bad. And Yeah, I can confirm that the Tablelands in early July is torture.
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Re: Your Mosquito's From Hell Trip

Post by Wandering Daisy »

Not sure this was the worst mosquitoes, but it was the "straw" that broke the camel's back. I had been hiking higher and higher after getting into bad mosquitoes around Mineral King and then in Deadman Canyon. So my third trip I aimed higher yet - hoped to go into Marion Lake via High Route. First night I camped at Grouse Lake and all was OK. Second day I went over Goat Crest and hit mosquitoes in Glacier Lakes. By the time I got to States Lake, they were SO bad that I set up the tent, went inside and spent the next half hour killing skeets that got inside. The netting was so thick with skeets on the outside, that I actually peed into my cooking pot inside the tent because I was not going to go outside! I ate trail food for dinner. I had 8 days food, but I bailed. I left next morning before dawn and hiked continously to the ridge above Volcanic Lakes to get into the wind, where there was a bit of relief. Next day I walked out, never stopping for a rest. I went home and stayed out of the mountains for the next three weeks!
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Mike M.
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Re: Your Mosquito's From Hell Trip

Post by Mike M. »

WD, what year was that? What month?

Mike
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