2014 Bug Level Thread

General discussions on hiking in Oregon and the Pacific Northwest
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drm
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2014 Bug Level Thread

Post by drm » June 1st, 2014, 3:01 pm

Seems like we need this as much as a snow level thread. Admins can decide whether to make sticky.

I did the Herman Ck / PCT loop and some kind of biting bugs - not mosquitoes - are out in the Wahtum Lake area and around. They are small and black and apparently cannot bite through even the thinnest clothes. So not too bad, but it is starting.

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Crusak
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Re: 2014 Bug Level Thread

Post by Crusak » June 1st, 2014, 3:06 pm

Excellent thread to start. ;)

Those noseeums and their cousins are no fun if you're wearing shorts. Were they near water? I remember getting a bunch of bites from those on my first trip to Wahtum Lake. Lower legs had bites all over the place.
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retired jerry
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Re: 2014 Bug Level Thread

Post by retired jerry » June 1st, 2014, 3:11 pm

I think the worst bugs are these biting flies. Should be right about now. Maybe that's what you experienced.

DEET is not effective at repelling them. Long pants/long sleeved shirt/head net is about the only solution.

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drm
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Re: 2014 Bug Level Thread

Post by drm » June 1st, 2014, 3:12 pm

Crusak wrote:Were they near water?
Not necessarily. They were up on the ridge above Wahtum as well as at the lake I stayed at (which was not Wahtum). When I was camped and had put long pants on they started buzzing my head and flying in my ear, so I put the headnet on. But with sandals on, they never bit my feet or ankles, which seem to be a mosquito favorite. They left as soon as it dropped into the low 50s.

These were not what I normally think of as black fliles, though they were black and kind of like flies. Maybe they just need to mature a bit before they can make us suffer properly.

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rainrunner
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Re: 2014 Bug Level Thread

Post by rainrunner » June 1st, 2014, 5:17 pm

I was swarmed by mosquitoes in a forested section at the 2,000 ft elevation on Dog Mountain while I was trying to get flower pictures.
The mountains are calling and I must go.
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IslandCougGirl
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Re: 2014 Bug Level Thread

Post by IslandCougGirl » June 1st, 2014, 5:34 pm

I got attacked by biting flies (most likely deer flies) while paddling on the lower Palouse. They bit through the mesh on my Vibrams and hurt every time they bit. Would rather deal with squitos than those wee beasties.

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Re: 2014 Bug Level Thread

Post by mcds » June 2nd, 2014, 7:34 am

They were out on Latourelle Prairie last week, roughly 3000', somewhat short of menacing.

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Re: 2014 Bug Level Thread

Post by Lumpy » June 2nd, 2014, 10:45 am

I live right by Steigerwald NWR. There were a few small mozzies out last night right around dusk, but they disappeared after it got dark and cooled off. Not really a good test of my permethrin treated clothing yet, but I don't think I was bit either. The mozzies can get pretty bad here with so much water nearby.
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drm
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Re: 2014 Bug Level Thread

Post by drm » June 8th, 2014, 11:41 am

Did a trip to Indian Heaven today out of Thomas Lake trailhead. Some mosquitoes at the trialhead and Thomas Lake, but not a lot. If you want to get there early season, go now.

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goingrouge
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Re: 2014 Bug Level Thread

Post by goingrouge » June 8th, 2014, 8:35 pm

We were setting up in Veneta at Oregon Country Fair all weekend and the mosquitoes in the trees and at dusk were as huge and as bad as mosquitoes get, quelling any and all hopes of evening outdoor activities. Long pants and shirts helped, but you still have a face. Typed words cannot describe.

Speaking of irritants, the grass pollen counts were well above 750. To put that in perspective, the top of the typical range for grass pollen scales is 200 and called "Very High." This was 3-4 times above the top of the scale and the highest daily counts since 2010. Needless to say, there were some serious effects on folks. It looked like when the Ponderosas send up clouds of (not-so-irritating) pollen this time of year. A quick search turned up reports of Eugene being the worst grass allergy zone in the US. I saw forests filled with 4'+ grass in full seed.

Still, laughs and smiles the whole time. Evidence of 1000+ downed trees, especially the maples, oaks, and cottonwoods, barely remains after 3 months and literally thousands of man hours of clearing 80' widowmakers and any 25' straight line. Volunteer labor is a beautiful thing. They (well, maybe not easily) have performed what would have been a dozens of thousands of dollars of professional work for yes, "nothing." Reminds me of some the many inspirational volunteers on this site.

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