Alaska... Mosquito Repellent. Spray, Patch, home remedy what works best???
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Co-opski
Expedition Leader
I have not heard of cat nip but lemon balm, and garlic but that just will not cut it up here.
Bugs yah it is bad, I started seeing my first mosquitoes when there was still ice on the pond and a foot of snow in the driveway.
Here is my take from working in the bush.
Starting with the best.
1. The Original Bug Shirt with a permethrin treatment, you could take on a bee hive. (Cons) Visibility and not stylish. http://www.bugshirt.com/
2. Thick hooded shirt treated with deet or permethrin and long hair. (Cons) You will look like you came from Duck Dynasty and the bugs will go for your eyes, nose and ears.
3. ThermaCELL This thing works (Cons) I don't want to know what I'm breathing. Can't be worse than lower 48 air quality.
4. Deet spray (Cons) Have to re-apply often, health, not for use on technical clothing like goretech.
5. Buzz off clothing. (Cons) little to no noticeable effect
6. Natural bug sprays like lemon grass and citronella (Cons) no noticeable effect
7. Diet eating garlic and avoiding things like bananas and meat. (Cons) this never worked
http://www.epa.gov/oppsrrd1/REDs/factsheets/permethrin_fs.htm
http://www.epa.gov/pesticides/factsheets/chemicals/deet.htm
Bugs yah it is bad, I started seeing my first mosquitoes when there was still ice on the pond and a foot of snow in the driveway.
Here is my take from working in the bush.
Starting with the best.
1. The Original Bug Shirt with a permethrin treatment, you could take on a bee hive. (Cons) Visibility and not stylish. http://www.bugshirt.com/
2. Thick hooded shirt treated with deet or permethrin and long hair. (Cons) You will look like you came from Duck Dynasty and the bugs will go for your eyes, nose and ears.
3. ThermaCELL This thing works (Cons) I don't want to know what I'm breathing. Can't be worse than lower 48 air quality.
4. Deet spray (Cons) Have to re-apply often, health, not for use on technical clothing like goretech.
5. Buzz off clothing. (Cons) little to no noticeable effect
6. Natural bug sprays like lemon grass and citronella (Cons) no noticeable effect
7. Diet eating garlic and avoiding things like bananas and meat. (Cons) this never worked
http://www.epa.gov/oppsrrd1/REDs/factsheets/permethrin_fs.htm
http://www.epa.gov/pesticides/factsheets/chemicals/deet.htm
Last edited:
Honu
lost on the mainland
putting deet on your clothes is the ticket ! last LONG time that way
just dedicate a shirt and pants for it
and apply mostly on the entry points and places it touches your skin
in Honduras we used to make the joke about skin so soft is you put it on heavy enough and the bugs just land fall over get stuck and die thats how it works
I do wish I had pics of how heavy they would get in the jungles though ! was INSANE like your whole arm unprotected would be black ! like more mosquitoes than skin showing !
I spent many nights in the smoke of coils burning to try to keep the buggers at bay !
just dedicate a shirt and pants for it
and apply mostly on the entry points and places it touches your skin
in Honduras we used to make the joke about skin so soft is you put it on heavy enough and the bugs just land fall over get stuck and die
thats how it works I do wish I had pics of how heavy they would get in the jungles though ! was INSANE like your whole arm unprotected would be black ! like more mosquitoes than skin showing !
I spent many nights in the smoke of coils burning to try to keep the buggers at bay !
So spray permethrin on the bugshirt and I should be good to go...
DCH109
Adventurer
Living in tick infested Northern Virginia I hike with 100% Deet. Rei sells the stuff called jungle juice. Works great. And on a 7 hour hike in the heat I never reapplied.
A non scented baby wipe takes it right off.
For biting bugs in AK what 86tuning said. It does get cooler up there then down here. Think of high altitude Colorado at night.
In BC I use to used either muskoil or a Citronella based repellent.
A non scented baby wipe takes it right off.
For biting bugs in AK what 86tuning said. It does get cooler up there then down here. Think of high altitude Colorado at night.
In BC I use to used either muskoil or a Citronella based repellent.
Ala5ka
VX'er
DEET works the best but eating massive amounts of garlic over a long period of time will also work, when your sweat smells like garlic you're doing well. While working on my biology undergrad I proved that DEET can cause reverse point mutations in fruit flys, so potentially it also causes cancer in humans (contrary to industry claims) use DEET at your own risk; I still do
Stumpalump
Expedition Leader
Washing your feet and stinky socks will keep skeeters with malaria away.
http://www.foxnews.com/health/2013/...lead-to-better-malaria-traps/?test=latestnews
http://www.foxnews.com/health/2013/...lead-to-better-malaria-traps/?test=latestnews
kcernest
Observer
I grew up in the Fairbanks area, spent 25 years there, out in the woods.
Citronella and Skin so soft might be okay if your walking around town but that's as far as that will get you.
I spent several trips jumping out of the truck, spraying 'Off' all over myself then lighting about four or five "Pic" coils around where the tent would go. Then jump back in the truck until they got good and smokie, then rotate between 1 minute bursts of setting up camp and seeking refuge in the truck.
Skeets up there are ruthless and thick. I've stopped in places before that looked like good spots, gotten out and had to run back to the truck and go find a different place they were just too much to deal with.
Deet is it. It does suck that it eats stuff. I've lost more than a couple lures out fishing and getting it on my fishing line.
Citronella and Skin so soft might be okay if your walking around town but that's as far as that will get you.
I spent several trips jumping out of the truck, spraying 'Off' all over myself then lighting about four or five "Pic" coils around where the tent would go. Then jump back in the truck until they got good and smokie, then rotate between 1 minute bursts of setting up camp and seeking refuge in the truck.
Skeets up there are ruthless and thick. I've stopped in places before that looked like good spots, gotten out and had to run back to the truck and go find a different place they were just too much to deal with.
Deet is it. It does suck that it eats stuff. I've lost more than a couple lures out fishing and getting it on my fishing line.
Good reason not to go there in skeeter season for sure. Unless the fish are really biting, I'd rather stay home
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