mosseys and midges

[roger de dodger]

during a recent fishing trip i was eaten alive by midges little light brown ones , i dont normally get bitten but man did they bleed me dry!!!! i want a repellant to keep in my tackle box ,anyone recommend one ?

[paul skelly]

I hear Lemmon juice works but don't know if I wound try it and was thinking it might irritate your skin, look forward to more sugesstions

[nicefish]

Autan,I use it all the time when I'm away for Mosquitoes who love my blood Ive never been bitten when i have used Autan spray

[gerty86]

In most insect repellents the active ingredient is DEET. So if you are going to buy some choose the repellent that has the highest DEET concentration. From what I understand the higher the concentration the more effective it is against insects..

[gordyh]

roger. what will do the trick is a lime rub all over the bites,job done

[roger de dodger]

autan spray sounds good ,i,ll keep the lemons and lime for my bacardi and coke

[Hooker]

Used this in Oz. The name might give a childish laugh to some.

[originalsin]

Im relibly informed that Avons 'Skin so soft' works very well as a repellent..... Ive never tried using it myself(Im too manly to be using moisturisers etc) but i do know ppl who swear by its effectivness.....

[fenris]

That's just an excuse to try some Avon girlie stuff

Jungle Formula is the business, just be carefull of Deet on plastics, glasses etc.

[originalsin]

That's just an excuse to try some Avon girlie stuff

I think that was my second reason for not wanting to 'test' its effectivness, theres just something wrong about smelling like a girl when your out trying to prove your abilities as a hunter-gatherer.....

[fenris]

The "Skin so Soft" midge repellant thing is a combination of an urban myth and a bit of a wind up pulled by mountain bikers and hikers on new and gullible folks, who then swear blind that it works.

Thre is some research on the topic and it looks like the only effect is if you lash is on so thick that the feckers can't get through it.

Deet is the most effective proven repellant, the studies on most other preparations are usually marketing testimonials rather than tests carried out on a scientific basis.

A hat is a good start because midges initially home in on heat before getting close enough for a sniff and a nibble. I normally lash a load of deet on my hat and on my legs and that seems to do the job fairly well.

If all else fails or you happen to be in the Glen of Imaal (hope of Midgicus Evilbastardicus) then the best option is a mossie net or standing next to someone that they like better!

[originalsin]

The "Skin so Soft" midge repellant thing is a combination of an urban myth and a bit of a wind up pulled by mountain bikers and hikers on new and gullible folks, who then swear blind that it works.

Well having lived in Scotland with their legendary midges for most of my life i can assure you i have seen the proof that this stuff works..... I used to fish with guys who used it and those who didnt, i can say for sure those who did use it didnt get bothered by midges but those who didnt use it, myself included, would get eaten alive.......

'Skin so Soft' contains citronella oil so given some of the earlier suggestions in this thread to use the likes of lemon or lime juice as a repellent i would guess the citronella oil is what keeps the midges at bay.... I may be wrong tho... Im only going by experience

[blowin]

I have never tried the Avon stuff but it is said to be very similar to Nivea Soft ( intensive moisturising cream ) and I can tell you that I'd swear by that . Sure they still crawl on you but very few manage to bite . A real advantage over the repellants is that you can wipe this stuff onto your eyelids , shove it up your nose and into your ears or anywhere else that the little feckers get to . Put it on quite generously -- it rubs in well , doesn't smell but does prove effective for several hours .
Get 2 "Buff"s ( stretchy tube of fabric ) , one for your neck , the other to wear on your head . They aren't hot like a hat and you can pull them over your eyebrows and ears as necessary . I haven't quite figured out the best method to project the wrists ( where coat sleeve rubs off the cream ) . Socks with the toe cut off and a hole cut in the side to put your thumb through ( to hold the tube in place ) are one option .
Remember that this is for midge . Mosquitoes can still bite thru stuff that midge can't .
I am certainly not an expert on fishing but reckon that I am on midge . I ran a midge catching machine outside our front door for less than a week and caught , dried and compressed enough of them to fill a 4 1/2 LITRE ( 1 gallon ) container ! That would be literally millions !
So , how do I go about catching fish then ??

[andy k 85]

I used to do a lot of river fishing and the midgets would eat you alive. Got some of the skin so soft spray, couple of sprays around the head and face and it worked a treat. Still keep a bottle of it in the van for when i go bunny bashing.Don't worry rodger it won't turn you into a woman

[fenris]

It is not a repellant and works by making an oily barrier that the buggers cannot get through and drowns the ones that try to hard. That means that it only works on the bits that are covered while they are covered - a bit like olive oil, mud or a light coating of porridge. (but not cow poo)

However the nice people at Avon have made the hopefully less smelly:

"Skin So Soft Bug Guard PLUS line of products which include the insect repellent IR 3535. Products in this line include Expedition, Picaridin and SPF15 Sunscreen"

So now when someone asks "where the old lady bingo hall smell" is coming from you can answer that it is your insect repellant - provided you are using the insect repellant stuff, otherwise you will have to own up to it being your moisturiser!

[baitdigger]

Jungle formula insect repellent works well for me. You can get it from boots or tescos for around €10.

[penfold]

[quote="andy k 85"]I used to do a lot of river fishing and the midgets would eat you alive. Got some of the skin so soft spray, couple of sprays around the head and face and it worked a treat.

i see you got there b4 me bro haha. ye skin so soft does work and our dad nicks our mothers when he cannt find his when he going river fishing..
did you have it on your legs that time when you went in after that brown trout that was wrapped around the rock in the rathdrum river andy, i cannt remember i was 2 busy laughing n takeing pictures