South from Maine in late June?

imported
#1

Is late June or early July a good time to head south from Maine? Are black flies, snow, or mud a problem at that time of year?
Thanks.

Fred G

#2

We have black flies until there’s a frost, it just depends on the spring and where you’re hanging out. Yes, they’re ‘typically’ worse in May and June, but in the northern woods you can deal with them through Sept. That is the usual SOBO start. Low(er) snow year, that won’t be an issue this spring, unless April packs a punch. Mud=anytime. Again, it depends on how our spring shapes up. Could be all over the board, no way to predict.

Bluebearee

#3

I tried to warn the SB German Tourist in '09, but she loves to suffer as she almost froze this winter on the Florida Trail & canoe routes. make sure you have several headnets to keep you from going completely bonkers from the BF’s trying to enter your headholes. They even make a whole netbodysuit, although a windbreaker /windpants or rainsuit do the same & dual duty when you stop for the evening or lunch. For this reason, you will need a tent or tarptent with a bugnet for sanity. Aimlessly in '89 had a swelled up face for weeks & had to get off trail due to the fliebites. NB, we had no flies in early-late Sept '89 & perfect weather to boot!

gingerbreadman

#4

I’ve left Katahdin walking south a couple times in early July. The mosquitos were waiting on me. :slight_smile:

BB is right about the blackflies though. I climbed Katahdin one year recently and was attacked above tree line. I think that was either late August or early September.

As for the mud…again like BB said. My favorite mud story was in 2006 when one of Mrs Gorp’s shoes got sucked off her foot in some mud. I remember her reaching into that mud and her elbow disappeared because it was so deep. Sometimes mud can be fun. :smiley:

Stumpknocker

#5

I left SOBO one year on May 31st and I thought the black flys and mosquitoes were not that big of a deal. Like a lot of things in trail life they get exagerated because there’s not much else going on.

bamboo bob

#6

I hiked South from Katahdin in 2007 and 2008 (Hey Gingerbreadman, I even camped with German Tourist at Katahdin Stream).

In 2007 I left June 1st and blackflies were annoying, but I thought the hype was a bit overblown. In 2008, I think I headed South around June 16th and blackflies were a non-factor. The mosquitoes however, were out in numbers and well organized. Applying the near 98.9% Deet every two to three hours kept them at bay. A head net helps, unless you don’t mind slathering your face with deet.

The mud is everywhere, you just have to accept it and be one with the mud. Have a great hike!

Naturejunkie

#7

HeyNJ: GT will have left Florida this weekend & headed for Arizona Trail or something. At least in the States & Europe you don’t have to worry about thousands of leeches up your legs & having a gathering on your tent fly as in Australia (camped near Katoomba tourist town out of Sydney)
but the ticks of So Cal on the PCT may be the worst of all, as I counted 100 crawling up my legs in 1 day… AT flies & skeets don’t sound so bad now, do they?

gingerbreadman

#8

My NOBO AT hike arrived in Maine in early July and the mud and bugs were just getting tolerable then, in '08, a fairly wet year. The mud was real bad in VT and NH, but ME was just starting to dry to a clay consistency. A few flies were left and mossies were just coming out, neither was unbearable.

German Tourist will be at my house in a few days for some recovery time after the FT before heading down to the Mexican border to start the AZT. I’ll make sure she reads this thread. I also met her in Andover, ME in '08 when she was SOBO and she needed a little encouragement then.

Garlic

#9

Bamboo Bob hit in on the head, it’s the only play in town so you feel you have to review it…bugs arn’t that bad. I once ran down trail to escape them, around a corner, and a bear is sitting twenty feet up on trail…forgot all about those bugs.

fishngame