Mosquitoes at Night?

imported
#1

On a northbound AT hike, at what point in time do the mosquitoes become a nuisance during the night? Is bug netting recommended for use in shelters and under tarps?

My tentative departure date is April 16.

Chris Fitzgerald

#2

The only time I remembered being bothered by mosquitos was as soon as I set foot across the Massachussettes state line. They were absolutely horrible to deal with until ironically enough you once again stepped over the state line and left the state. Weird indeed. If you make it that far, worry about it then, otherwise don’t give it a thought.

Hopfrog

#3

There were some places where the Mosquitos were bad in
Virginia and Pennsylvania (June & July). There was one
night in a shelter where no one really slept. The
humming was very loud and I was getting bit through my
netting! As bad as the Mosquitos were, the no Seeums
were the worst! These tiny biting knats/flies will drive
you mad. At Punch Bowl shelter (VA) they were the worst.
I would recommend No Seeum bug netting strongly. I made my
own net from from 9 feet of No Seeum netting and nylon
webbing purchased from Outdoor Wilderness Fabric (OWF.com)
it weighed about 6 oz. You might be able to get by with
a head net/hat if your in your bag, but in really hot
weather a full body net or screening for your shelter is a
better option. Leave it in your bounce box until the first
sign of the dreaded pests to keep the weight down.
Best of luck to you - Rick (LoneWolf AT03)

RickTheLoneWolf

#4

I hit the skeeter wall in jersey. Spent about four nights with no sleep. Read about it here.

Tha Wookie

#5

NJ is horrible, but there were also some spots as early as VA that could be bad, as well. I also remember a spot or two in NC/TN that had insane gnats. Mosquito netting is highly recommended.

Just carry it with you through the whole trail (it’s not heavy), b/c each year is different, and it’s impossible to predict (with the exception of Jersey) when and where the bugs will hit bad each year.

bearbait

#6

On my northbound AT thru-hike in Year 2000 I left Springer on April 10th – the worst spots for mosquitos were New Jersey and Connecticut. Also, there were annoying face gnats in North Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia during the day where I had to wear a headnet to remain sane. A thru-hiker just ahead of me on the Trail one day in North Carolina went berzerk and swung himself silly going crazy with the face gnats. That was a scream to watch. Best to bring a no-see-um mesh headnet and Deet for the face gnats if you’re leaving April 19th. The headnet I wore is detailed in my Thru-hiking Tips at (link may wrap):

http://friends.backcountry.net/datto/dattotips/DattoTips.20031225.htm

In New Jersey and Connecticut I wore a bugshirt – note the bugshirt is no-see-um but the proboscis of the mosquitos can stick through the mesh. The bug shirt sill provided me some relief though compared to those who didn’t have a bug shirt to wear.

If the mosquitos were bad where I was hiking, I slept in my tent intead of in a shelter (I tented about 30% of the nights on my AT thru-hike but not solely due to bugs).

Datto

Datto

#7

My understanding from your replies is that until a hiker reaches Virginia, there is little need for bug protection during the night. After that, the netting can be beneficial.

This would suggest that during the first weeks on the trail, I can raise the bottom of my tarp tent above the ground for maximum ventilation without netting.

Chris Fitzgerald

#8

I would say that might be true at night – not much in the way of bugs at night until about Virginia – but mostly due to the temps being cold at night and the bugs not being out much when it’s cold.

For instance, it was about 20F at Thomas Knob Shelter the night of May 22, 2000 at milepoint 482. It was about 25F with 30 mph winds the night of May 14, 2000 at Stan Murray Shelter at milepoint 372.

With you leaving Springer later than I did, you might run into bugs earlier at night but not by much I’d imagine.

During the day it’s a different story with the bugs – the face gnats are out all over when it’s warm and you may encounter them right off the bat during the day since you’re leaving April 19th.

Datto

Datto