The Misery of the Midges

[Toddy]

I'm going to bed early so that I'm up early and enjoying being able to get stuff done in the cool before the Sun blazes through.
So, out in the garden by five, and it's lovely It's cool, it's light, it's calm, the birds are chirping, the garden is full of wildlife, and then the midges descend.
Not a happy egg, most definitely not comfortable, peaceful morning totally de-railed.

I don't hate many things, but clegs and midges come close

 

[nigelp]

They are probably the most annoying of outdoor annoyances.

 

[The Frightful]

I'm going to bed early so that I'm up early and enjoying being able to get stuff done in the cool before the Sun blazes through.
So, out in the garden by five, and it's lovely It's cool, it's light, it's calm, the birds are chirping, the garden is full of wildlife, and then the midges descend.
Not a happy egg, most definitely not comfortable, peaceful morning totally de-railed.

I don't hate many things, but clegs and midges come close

I am completely ignorant about midges, would a boony with mossy net not work ?

 

[stonepark]

Thermacell!

Or the equivalent battery powered units from Aliexpress

 

[Toddy]

I am completely ignorant about midges, would a boony with mossy net not work ?

No, mossy nets do not work. It needs Noseeum net. Midges are miniscule little blighters, they fly right through mossy nets, and they leave misery in their wake.

I was out in my own garden, it's very private, it's surrounded by greenery covered fences and trees, and I was wearing just a frock. Normally that's fine, it's comfortable, etc., until the midges appeared.

If going out deliberately and I know the biting blighters are around I have a Beaton's Midge Jacket, which is absolutely brilliant

 

[Toddy]

Thermacell!

Or the equivalent battery powered units from Aliexpress

At that time of the morning, when I was enjoying the scent of the honeysuckle and the lady's mantle, I didn't even want to find the jungle formula.
I just came in and felt rather hard done to as I itched and found the anti-histamines

 

[Tony]

So far, I've managed to avoid them, but I'll be stocking up on deterrent before the BushMoot.

 

[Philster]

I've found the midges ignore the Thermacell, which is a pity as it works great on most other bugs A Smudgepot is the only thing that's keeps them off you, even Smidge doesn't do much for me.

 

[bearbait]

I had one of these (https://bugshirt.com/en-gb/collections/frontpage/products/original?variant=39441406558393) way up north in Canada camping in the Yukon Territory midsummer. The bugs were so bad that even having my supper in the evening I had the face mesh fixed but with a small gap left so I could pass my mouth some food and "hydration" occasionally. Plus nuclear-grade insect repellent on my hands.

 

[Tengu]

Midges work hard to keep sassernachs out of Scotland.

(Dont bother me...Horseflies, now...)

 

[Mesquite]

So far, I've managed to avoid them, but I'll be stocking up on deterrent before the BushMoot.

I've never had much trouble with mossies or clegs at RC and con't remember others having issues with them so you ought to be ok there on that front.

Chiggers are the biggest nuisance there

 

[Toddy]

If you're near water, and can get offshore, then 30' is enough to give you peace from them.....usually.

My Dad lived wild on Rannoch moor for a few years, he said the only ease from the midges was smoking a pipe.

Other than that, supposedly covering yourself in oil or grease stops them.

I don't live near open water, I don't smoke, and I really don't fancy dripping oil, especially in this heat; I think anti histamines and the Beaton's jacket are my only recourses.

Midges work hard to keep sassernachs out of Scotland.

(Dont bother me...Horseflies, now...)

I'm most definitely a Scot, with as long a provenance as we can trace here, and the midges love me.
My eldest son though, has never ever had a problem with them. His brother however gets eaten every bit as badly as I do.

We reckon we need to clone Jamie somehow, or his blood anyway because it's pure gold in a climate like ours.

As an aside, we seem to have lost the getting eaten by clouds of insects smilie

 

[Tonyuk]

Nothing seems to work for me other than smoke, a breeze or netting.

That and lots of antihistamines to prevent the bites itching.

 

[Pattree]

Midges work hard to keep sassernachs out of Scotland.

(Dont bother me...Horseflies, now...)

Way back in 68-69 I worked the wind-blown timber in Inverenan Forest on the banks of Loch Awe. We’d never met midges like them. We were working without shirts a lot.
The “advice” from the Forester - get a good sweat on and drown the bathtubs! They kept biting but the bites stopped swelling and itching eventually.

 

[Paul_B]

As a kid I noticed that clouds of midges separate to let my dad through then closed up on me.

I also noticed that the one time I remember seeing him bitten the midge didn't fly away but died. I think his blood was pure poison for them, they knew it and only the most stupid or desperate midge bit him.

A couple of years ago I had two glorious years of midges not actually bothering me. I started to think my blood had changed to the same kind of poison my dad had in his veins. This holiday around Scotland I found out I was so wrong. Not many around where we were but they all bothered me greatly. At least I had those two glorious midge seasons! I dream I'll get that back.

Scotland is historically bad for midge but my worst attack was in the lakes. One night on between the rain I got out of my tent to cook dinner. Those 10 minutes left me with 42 bites on one of my legs. From ankle to knee. I stopped counting after that!

The next evening u sheltered behind the midge netting of my single skin tent. The netting was black with a layer of midges trying to reach me. I got a container of autan repellent out and wrote my name one letter at a time in the midges.

It was worse than the time I camped by the river down a road from the bridge of Orchy. Clear in the evening but the morning was a cloud of them. We packed everything up by stuffing it all in the boot unpacked and drove as fast as we could away with the windows open to shed as many as possible. Then up the hill in a layby with a good breeze we took everything out and shook all the midges out then got straight in the clear of the midges due to the breeze being too strong for them.

I think when you see a dark cloud over your tent and your mates are sitting out without a care. You know that the midges are out to get you. The have this vendetta against me. One day they will invent something that works and I'll have my revenge!

Lol!

 

[Toddy]

We need to figure out what your Dad and my eldest son have in common; we'd make a fortune

 

[Broch]

I think when you see a dark cloud over your tent and your mates are sitting out without a care. You know that the midges are out to get you. The have this vendetta against me. One day they will invent something that works and I'll have my revenge!

Have you tried Smidge? I find it very effective. I used to use the the natural myrtle based one made by Lifesystems but they don't make that exact one now and that worked fine too. I not only attract them but come out in very itchy large welts.

Smidge - The UK’s No.1 Midge Repellent

Developed in Scotland, Smidge is scientifically proven to provide instant, sweat-proof protection from all biting insects for up to 8 hours.

www.smidgeup.com

 

[TLM]

I think anti histamines

By the way vitamin C lowers histamine levels albeit a bit slower than the med that acts on histamine receptors. For me it takes about 15 min to start acting, anyway it does not have any adverse effects for me though some people have stomach upsets.

I have to eat it before meals so I carry it with me all the time.

 

[Broch]

If you're near water, and can get offshore, then 30' is enough to give you peace from them.....usually.

I don't think I can hold my breath long enough to stay down to 30'

 

[Crac]

The secret is to ensure your bate, erm "mate" has a few sweeteners: A wee Gaelic coffee and a little chocolate while you do without. Then the hard part; trying to keep a straight face.

Midge nets can work.
Avon's "Skin so soft" can work: Cover every last square mm, the midge will land but won't bite. Slime up like it's sunscreen.
DEET (I want mine) without the nano-particles... I think the EU has A LOT of answer for here.