Northern Ireland Outdoors Forum - Hiking, camping and more
General => General Chat => Topic started by: RedLeader on July 25, 2011
-
We have discussed how best to deal with midges in the past but I'm wondering how to avoid them altogether. I always thought they disappeared at dusk but that definitely didn't happen at the weekend. Someone mentioned they only appear near water and below 600m. Is this true?
-
Dont know about 600m ??? I know sand flies cant fly above a certain high.
But I believe the water thing is true. I think they are at least near boggy land.
-
It was I that mentioned the 600m limit, I thought I read it on this forum but searched and found nothing, I've a funny feeling I read it in the book of the bivvy, I'll go and dig out my copy.
P.s. Saw a horse today with a midge head net on, I was going to take a pic but it was right beside a house and I looked suspicious enough as I was geocaching at the time.
-
Keep walking....
I've heard they can't fly faster than you can walk...
-
aha, book of the bivvy has a handy index at the back
page 53
All worthwhile tents are screened and netted against the evil insect. Some bivvybags are too. But if there are midges then it must be summer - so shouldn't you be further up the hill?
i told you to camp on Bearnagh ;D
Midges rarely annoy people above the 600m contour. In a zipless bag in a damp wood at the foot of Ben Nevis, I made a strange discovery. When i scrunched everything up to leave a very small breathing hole, the midges did not come in, Perhaps the air was moving in and out rapidly enough to scare them off.
So that's what Ron the legend says, so it must be true 8)
-
I'm assuming Ronald Turnbull would never be wrong!