North Country Black flies

During a hike yesterday up Airline on Adams, it was quite windy but down low in sheltered areas, the black flies were out. definitely not headnet weather, but they were far more noticable than last weekend.

I've been out three times since last Sunday hiking in Greenville and 100 mile Wilderness area of Maine. Last evening was the first time I saw the blackflies out in force. That was around my house 30 miles SE of Greenville.

Kind of a humid day up north today, and I was in Milan and left my vehicle door open for a few minutes while speaking with a person..alas, when I went back to the vehicle, it was occupied by many mosquitos!! I think they are coming out now....

We must have just missed the season last year and didn't experience anything around Bethlehem and Littleton this past weekend. Hopefully they're out this weekend and gone by Memorial Day. We didn't get any there last Memorial Day. Are certain areas/elevations better and worse ?

An update, 5/21. I spent two days (friday and Saturday)in the front yard in Gorham working on updating a solar array, the mosquitoes and black flies were out in the evening but the breeze kept them away. On Sunday I did the Moats with a group. While waiting for the group at the south trail, the black flies were annoying, I put on DEET, others went with natural remedies. Later on at the Attiash Trail junction, most folks pulled out the DEETas the natural stuff wasnt cutting it. The bugs were annoying up at the summit of South Moat.

At no point was it "head net" weather but I expect that black fly season is now taking hold in the whites.

5/27 Status for Isolation

Black flies were present in parking lot, but not too bad. We bug doped up, but they still found us whenever we stopped, keeping our breaks short. As long as we kept moving, they were easy to outhike. On Isolation summit, they were swarming pretty bad, unless the wind picked up to blow them away. It wasn't head net worthy, but still pretty annoying.

I didn't think they were biting too much, but when I got back to the parking lot and took off my socks, I found two rings of bright red bites in almost-perfect circles around both calves right where the tops of my socks were.

One mosquito bite all day.

In my experience 5/22-5/24 backpacking out in the Pemi, mosquitoes were far more of a nuisance than the black flies.

Not to say the black flies weren't a small pain themselves at times (Zeacliff,) but the skeeters were just horrible at times down in the valleys.

TDawg said:

In my experience 5/22-5/24 backpacking out in the Pemi, mosquitoes were far more of a nuisance than the black flies.

Not to say the black flies weren't a small pain themselves at times (Zeacliff,) but the skeeters were just horrible at times down in the valleys.

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Good to know. I have seen a number of blackflies, but I've yet to see a mosquito. That said, in the valleys I've kept moving or haven't been there in the evening hours so maybe that's why.

Most notably, I'd say the skeeters were worst in the lower section of Signal Ridge trail, Carrigain Brook Rd, Sawyer River Rd., and Sawyer River trail on my way out to the Kanc. Headnet bad.

Black flies were present this weekend in the northern Pressies. Saturday and Sunday, they weren't too bad but were rough at times around Adams yesterday late afternoon.

Saturday 5/26 the black flies on the Moats were beyond oppressive. At one point I had probably a dozen on each arm as well as on my ears, in my hair, etc… I ended up with the classic ring of bloody bites at the top of my gaiters, blood dripping from behind my ears, bites all over my forehead and arms.

It was too bad, the views from the summits and along Red Ridge on that clear, sunny day were beautiful, but it was death to stop for any amount of time.

Kanc

Last week, near the Kanc highway, the bf's were not really biting, but were pretty annoying.

Just One Mosquito

wardsgirl said:

Just One Mosquito

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He's one damn lucky man!