Ozark Mountain Ticks

[+chaoscrdntrs13]

I remember seeing a little plaque at a craft show years ago that was a fuzzy brown, golfball sized pompom glued to a piece of wood. It was labeled Ozark Mountain Tick. Supposed to be funny because the ticks are often awfully big in this area. My problem isn't the ticks that are golf ball sized, but the ones the are so tiny you can barely see them.

 

The last several caches we have attempted to locate have been on trails, but definitely in the woods. We have been using a bug repellant intended for ticks. We are careful to stay on the trails and not to disturb trees or brush as we walk. But for some reason we are ending up covered in ticks. I don't mean 5 or 6 more like 50 or 60 each. Obviously with this many we can feel them before they attach. So it is just a matter of scraping them off quickly. We noticed them in the middle of a trail today and had to hike back to the car with dozens in tow. There were so many in our shoes we had to put them in a bag in the trunk and drive home barefoot.

 

After a mad dash home for showers we washed clothes in hot water and put our shoes into the dryer on high heat for about 20 minutes. Afterwards there didn't seem to be any left alive, but this really spoiled our caching day. We had several other caches we had hoped to do for the day, but the ticks cut time short.

We have done several in-town caches, but so far our favorites have been the nature trail types. I am going to quickly loose all of the cachers in my family if I can't come up with a prevention for this. My daughter just told me, "no more with trees Mom. Lets find a nice parking lot."

 

Does anyone have any ideas how to avoid the ticks all together? Or maybe of a way to get them off of our shoes and socks more quickly while ON the trail? Or is it just a bad year for ticks in this area and we are going to have to live with it? Thanks for any help you can provide!

[+BulldogBlitz]

cutter is the brand that i had the most success with in the ozarks.

 

growing up in the region, we did a LOT of camping there. no real avoidance of the ticks unless you just don't go outside.

[+bobandrobin]

I just ordered this last week. I've read a lot of good reviews about it. Found a 24 oz. spray bottle for under $20 inc. shipping at Amazon. I think REI carries it too.

[MikeB3542]

Permethrin is the stuff. It goes on your clothes -- socks, shoes, pants, hats. Usually, you need to do the treatment a day or so in advance. You definitely don't spray this stuff on your skin. Ticks that climb on treated clothing die and drop off. Read the directions and heed the warnings -- it is nasty but effective stuff.

 

Did some hiking around the Hot Springs, AK area a few summers ago, and amazed at how aggressive the Lone Star ticks were -- very fast crawlers, and they went to work right away (the deer and wood ticks up here in Wisconsin seem to take their sweet time.)

[+Team Dromomania]

I thought all the ticks in the state hitched hiked out with me on my last trip there.

I did an island cache with my niece in tow. She had HUNDREDS of tiny ticks on her when we got back on the boat. The ticks are bad but I really hate the chiggers.

There are no chiggers out here in California but I do usually end up with a tick or two whenever I do one of my frequent caching hikes. This summer I got one tick in the belly hole and couldn't get it out. A doctor, knife and 2 stiches later we showed that tick who was boss!

[+buttaskotch]

Plenty of deer ticks and chiggers out on Long Island. Permthrin is what I use though it doesn't always repel all of those nasties. Once some friends and I walked through a nest and had hundreds on each of us.

I have seriously curtailed my caching on Long Island through the warm months and only attack the area in the dead of winter.

Good luck to you, let us know if anything remedied the situation.

[+DonB]

I just ordered this last week. I've read a lot of good reviews about it. Found a 24 oz. spray bottle for under $20 inc. shipping at Amazon. I think REI carries it too.

I agree with bobandrobin, I've used this product for about three years now and haven't had any tick problems. I have two outfits I use just for geocaching that I keep sprayed.

[+ohtoseethesunset]

I prefer to avoid the chemical repellents (which never seem to work for ticks anyway). But the best thing for REMOVING seed ticks is duct tape. B sure to keep duct tape with you when you're out in the woods (we have it wrapped around one of our waer bottles for easy access), then when you walk through that nest of tiny seed tick, you can quickly and easily get them off (water does't usually wash them off and hands are pretty inadequate for teh job as well)

I am going to the Ozarks camping over Labor Day Weekend, I expect a fair amount of ticks as well as loud human pests!

[+BajaBekka]

What about gnats? We went up to the mountains today and used bug spray but the gnats will went in my eyes, ears, I think I inadvertently ate about 100 of them.....

 

The gnats don't bite but they are ANNOYING as hell and it's quite disgusting to have them flying up her nose constantly.... help please? We tried Deet and this other stuff that smelled and acted just like Deet......

 

 

Bekka

[+cycler48]

What about gnats? We went up to the mountains today and used bug spray but the gnats will went in my eyes, ears, I think I inadvertently ate about 100 of them.....

 

The gnats don't bite but they are ANNOYING as hell and it's quite disgusting to have them flying up her nose constantly.... help please? We tried Deet and this other stuff that smelled and acted just like Deet......

 

 

Bekka

 

For gnats, you could try something like this ..

 

http://www.rei.com/product/751955