jharte

Well, the weather finally broke in KC a little. Woohoo! The last tour I went on was June this year. Two weeks riding south from KCMO to Marietta, GA.

A great, challenging two weeks BUT there was one thing I just couldn't figure out or get past. Mosquitos!

The weater in KY, TN, MS, AL kept getting hotter and hotter (upper 90s to lower 100s) and the humidity was in the 80% range.

None of that bothered me as much as at the end of the day, I couln't even relax! No sitting outside watching the sun go down, chillin'.

I did have some Uncle Bens insect/mosquito repellant but it didn't really do much good.

Any ideas that worked for you this year? I'm getting ready to take off again and I'm looking forward to relaxing after a long day riding. Thanks for your input!

Jerry H

simplygib

I had good results with Sawyer's Jungle Juice on a tour through Central America. Squirt it on and rub it in (not a spray). It's a small bottle but it lasted a long time (still had some left after 9 weeks). It's over 98% deet, so keep it away from your clothes and gear.

chasm54

I went to the Hospital for Tropical Diseases in London recently to get some vaccinations for a forthcoming trip. For mosquitoes they recommended Ultrathon - the cream, not the spray. Apparently it was developed for the military and is used by the US Marines, it is splash and sweat-resistant. It's only about 34% DEET, but according to the doctors there, going above that concentration doesn't make much difference. 50% DEET repels insects as effectively as 100% DEET.

I haven't yet tried it in tropical conditions, but FWIW that was their advice.

gregw

One word:

Thermocell

Do a search of reviews

martianone

A cigar - puff on a cigar- Cohiba Pequenos is a short smoke that works well.

akohekohe

+1 used it last summer backpacking in Lappland in early July. Worked great. I combined it with a head net - even though the Ultrathon keeps the mosquitoes from biting it doesn't keep you from breathing them. I live in the tropics but I think mosquitoes are even worse in the arctic summer than they are in the tropics.

skilsaw

I use Muskol. I think it is 35% deet.
It doesn't destroy plastic, paint and synthetic clothing like the 95% deet repellents.

I am careful not to put any on my forehead because sweat sometimes runs down into my eyes when I'm working hard.

skijor

Did not work. I returned it. Had the thing on the ground between my feet operating fine and was still swatting the little bastards. That sucks because I sooooh wanted a non-DEET solution. They're supposed to repel them in a 15x15' area. I tried it in various locations all around me with no luck. And no, it was not windy. I was near a campfire but that shouldn't matter.

fietsbob

A headnet keeps them from flying in your ears, or sounding like they are.

Sixty Fiver

My friend is an entomologist who has studied mosquitos and the effectiveness of repellents and discovered that you only need 5% DEET but want a water / sweat proof base for the repellent.

I also find that the foods I eat have quite an effect... I don't eat many bananas during mosquito season as it just seems to make me tastier to them.

KD5NRH

Excellent product if there's not too much breeze.

I use one under my telescope on those dead calm nights when the mosquitoes are at their worst. No residues on the optics, no smell, and I've gone from packing up and leaving in 15-20 minutes because I couldn't concentrate to staying out until sunrise without a single bite or buzz.

KD5NRH

Are you sure the pad was fresh? If the wrapper has even a small tear, it can deplete itself in a car in warm weather.

skijor

^Nope, no tear in the packaging. Apparently I am the equivalent of bacon to mosquitoes.

staehpj1 

I too have found that high DEET percentages are not necessary. I like OFF! Skintastic Summer Splash at only 6.65% DEET. You have to splash it on liberally, but feels way better on the skin than most other products I have tried.

Booger1

After a grueling 40 year study,trudging though the jungles of So California and most points west of the Mississippi,the crack team(sorry,no entomologists) at my mobile research center has concluded,after many months of scratching,that Avon Skin-So-Soft wins the bug repellent contest,hands down.

I use Avon Skin-So-Soft for mosquitos and ticks.Works great,no DEET at all,smells good and leaves your skin, OH SO SOFT!

Try it,it really does work good.

benvrackie

Here in Scotland we do not have the mosquito problem but the dreaded midgies can make life out of
doors really miserable. I've tried lots of things but I can now wholeheartedly recommend Skin so Soft from Avon
certainly for midges and ticks. I heard lots of people that work out of doors in forests etc use it . Certainly
works for me.

jharte

Hahaha. That's what I felt like in Alabama this year. I felt like a mosquito commercial, minus the repellent!

I teach Hazcom and chemical safety. No offense to the Deet users but I will probably try the Skin So Soft first.

I did some research on Deet and looked at several MSDS for different mosquito repellents. I really didn't find any health hazards associated with it's use. Pretty interesting to read how Deet works on an insects olfactory.

One reason I was looking for something other than the typical spray on is the oily, non-skin breathing feeling you get.

Thanks for the ideas and input. I'll try a couple of these to see what works for me! A short 200 miler coming up this weekend.

By the way Sixty Fiver, I love bananas! But you are probably right, it may draw more mosquitoes by eating them!!

Jerry H

mthayer

avon skin so soft bug repelent. Works great smells great and has no deet.

skijor

Although I haven't given it a good test yet, the OFF Clean Feel (has picaridin) seems to be preferable over Deet products...no oily feel and the scent is subtle and acceptable.

chasm54

Yeah, but it's greasy as hell.

sknhgy 

Hmmm. Thermocell works great for me, and like someone said, I am the equivalent of bacon to a mosquito. I want to try some of that Avon skin-so-soft. Where do you buy it?

BigBlueToe

I use DEET. One caution: I had a small container of DEET - I don't remember the strength, but I'll bet it was high. It leaked a little. That stuff attacked plastic! Some of it got on my bike computer's display - don't ask me how. It ate a little imperfection into the plastic which made it hard to read - kind of like having a spot of Vaseline that wouldn't wipe off. I could still read it but it was a hassle. I moved it to my shopping bike and bought a new computer for my tourer. The repellant was discarded.

chasm54

Here.

robmcl

DEET works at lower concentrations but you will have to reapply often. It is actually the DEET vapor as the DEET evaporates off of your skin that does the repelling. At the higher concentrations, because there is more of it, it takes longer for it to evaporate away.

Iowegian

My current favorites are the Ultrathon up in post #3 and a Picaridin based product I bought at REI. I was suspicious of using a non-DEET formula as the stuff really does work, despite its many nasty side-effects but found the Picaridin formula to be very effective. The Ultrathon (34% DEET and creamy, not liquid) also worked and didn't feel nearly as bad as most DEET-based things I've used.

You can also treat you clothes with permethrin. I've found this to be very effective and it makes any plain old T-shirt, etc bug-proof.

Finally, a head net is cheap, packs to nothing and really helps you keep your sanity. Try one, you won't regret it.