Black Fly Season?

[gbrown@gdbrown.net]

Hello,

I was wondering if anyone can fill me in on when black fly season begins and normally ends? A friend and myself would like to get at least one hike in before the black fly season gets underway...

Having never had the experience of black fly season, a few people have told me it is pretty bad..


Thanks


Jerry

[Rik]

Shouldn't this go in the hunting and fishing section?
Are we talking about the high peaks? That's northern tier right? Once you obtain a permit I think you can hunt for them wherever you can find them. Best hunting tends to be from Memorial Day to July 4 but this varies from year to year and also by location.

[Kevin]

Shouldn't this go in the hunting and fishing section?
Are we talking about the high peaks? That's northern tier right? Once you obtain a permit I think you can hunt for them wherever you can find them. Best hunting tends to be from Memorial Day to July 4 but this varies from year to year and also by location.

lol

Carlin joke time:

"Why do they call it tourist season if we can't shoot them?"

Anyway, black flies will hatch sometime after the spring thaw. That changes based on when the thaw occurs and at what elevation. We had black flies plenty in early-mid July on the summits last year, much further into the summer than usual. It was an odd season due to early hot days then a cool and even COLD summer. It kinda killed them except for the alpha-flies, then the alpha's had babies. This year they may be immune to deet and have the ability to forge tools to drill through head nets.

Roughly May through June.

[Rik]

At their worst you won't even need a weapon they will just crawl/fly right into your mouth! MMMMMmmm protein!

[soco7tyx7]

i did a trip the first weekend in may last year and had not a single problem with any bugs at all. i was in the siamese wilderness, so i couldnt help you out with the high peaks if thats where you're intersted in. in contrast to this, i took a trip to the st. regis canoe area around may 19-20 a couple years back and ended up wearing a head net every second that i was there and ended up eating through it on a couple of occasions by accident. i have heard that the skin-so-soft product is pretty effective against black flies but have never really tried it out. i'm planning a trip over memorial day weekend which is probably a mistake, but i'm gonna make the best of it anyhow.

[Kevin]

i'm planning a trip over memorial day weekend which is probably a mistake, but i'm gonna make the best of it anyhow.

Oh, thanks for bringing up/reminding me of a good point.

During black fly season, if you're sure it's going to be cool (below 50F) or windy there won't be many (if any) black flies. They're not strong flyers and don't come out during the cold. They also can't outrun you, so if you're hiking all the time (say dayhike) you'll only notice them when you slow or stop. Our 2mph pace is faster than their 1/2mph fly speed. I got away with no deet or headnet on a few hikes last year because I knew I was going to be on the go the entire time. Bring the deet/headnet anyway just in case you get injured - nothing would suck more than hobbling out hurting and being eaten by black flies.

[redhawk]

I'd be more concerned with the "Predatory Carnivorous Delta Winged Piranahs" or as they are called by the uninformed and unaware, "The Deer Fly".

Those baby's seek and destroy and can fly about a zillion miles an hour.

[Backpacker]

I have to agree with Red Hawk on the deer flies.

As for repellent I found that "Lemon Eucalyptus" works the best if you can get past the lemon smell.

[soco7tyx7]

does that stuff work for deer flys too? if not is there another repellent/product that works for them?

[Nessmuk]

Bugs

Those deer flies bother me more than the black flies...never found any bug repellant that works on them...and they last all summer! Sometimes I use those sticky patches you put on the back of your hat (just don't get your hair in the patch...ouch!). Deer flies tend to draft you as you hike and like to bite the back of your neck. They will get stuck in the sticky patch while swarming you...once I had 7 or 8 of them stuck on the patch in just an hour in the woods.

As for black flies....they tend to like the color blue, so avoid wearing blue AND don't wear anything sweet smelling. I got a friend that comes up to visit all the time who puts styling gel in her hair. She has learned to leave that home, it has no purpose up here in the woods!

Here in the SW Adirondacks I always say the heart of black fly season is from May 15th to June 15th....they will still be around before and after those dates but they don't seem as hungry or swarming. That can all change with the moisture level of course! The BEST thing about black fly season is it typically is a great time to fish! In my humble opinion the only good bug is a caddis, mayfly or stone fly....I guess you could say I rather have a fish bite the fly instead of the fly biting me!

[Backpacker]

The Lemon Eucalyptus will work on the deer flies but only for about the first hour, problem is your only supppose to apply it every 6 hours.

[redhawk]

DEET, DEET, DEET, DEET, DEET.

I once had someone who had gotten unmercilessly bitten by insects while wearing a non deet insect repellent, explain to me the health hazards of deet as they finished inhaling their third Big mac and fries!

I use 100% Deet. The Deep Woods Sportsman OFF is the best product I have found and it works for several hours.

No-see-um head net, long sleeves, trousers with legs and Gaiters are also an immense help.

If you want to hike in shorts and short sleeves during the bug season, then expect to get bit. In fact, come hike with me, nothing like bait to keep em away from me!

[protocoldroid]

I use 100% Deet. The Deep Woods Sportsman OFF is the best product I have found and it works for several hours.

I use the same religiously.... although I've heard the urban legends that Deet will eat through wood, and other stuff like that, but.... It works!!

To get the real skinny about Deet, try

http://www.epa.gov/pesticides/factsheets/chemicals/deet.htm

(not that the EPA is the end-all of trustable information, but.... probably better than your typical urban legend format story)

[lumberzac]

I've been a little leery of DEET after a trip a few years ago, when I had some on my hands. When I picked up my coffee cup and then set it back down, I noticed that the paint on the side of the cup was coming off in the shape of my hand. I've had fairly good results (not as good as DEET) with the Lemon Eucalyptus on black flies and mosquitoes.

[Tom McG]

Avoiding the Bugs

I’m sold on DEET, the 100% variety; nothing works better or lasts longer. Usually I wait until I get away from the parking lot before I decide if I need it or not. Then I try to wait till I’m near water to apply it, that way I can wash my hands. This avoids the problem Zac was mentioning and also avoids my accidentally getting it into my eyes or mouth. Luckily for me the Black Flies don’t seem to like me too much.
I have found a way to deal with the Dear Flies. I ware a head net, not over my whole head by just draped over the brim of my cap and down over the back of my neck. They never seem to bother with biting my face.

Now for the real secret in avoiding black flies… pick hiking partner that they really, really like. Went the bugs get bad, quietly stroll over to your hiking partner… chat for a minute and quickly move away. I took almost 10-years before my last partner figured out what I was doing.
Tom