SFR DEET

Sorta fishing-related
I lost a couple of Fly Lines to DEET n the 80's. Quit using it as a result. May have to rethink that.

Last 10 plus years, been using Permethrin. Knock on wood...havent had a tick embed into me, since using Permethrin. I like how on clothing or camp gear fabric, ( hammock, tarp, sleeping bag) it stays on for about 10 washings.

Thanks for the post.

Happy 4th.
 
Draketake said:
I lost a couple of Fly Lines to DEET n the 80's. Quit using it as a result. May have to rethink that.

Last 10 plus years, been using Permethrin. Knock on wood...havent had a tick embed into me, since using Permethrin. I like how on clothing or camp gear fabric, ( hammock, tarp, sleeping bag) it stays on for about 10 washings.

Thanks for the post.

Happy 4th.
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I should have added that I use spray with 20% Picardan (many brands have this). It seems to work as well as DEET, but does not last nearly as long. My experience is that you need to reapply about every 30-60 min. That being said, if black flies are a problem, the best stuff I have found is White Mountain Insect Repellant. It is also DEET free, but very goopy and has a strong odor of citronella
 
On a drop off AK trip years ago before cell phones, I unknowingly spilled some Ben's 100 on my plastic camera case and it melted it. Citronella candles were always buring around the cabin door entrance. Seem to help.
 
Jungle juice to max strength Off!, I've used 'em all. I never understood low concentration products. Mostly, since working up north, bugs simply don't bother me much down around these parts....
 
My experience with mosquitos ....100% DEET! Toxic as hell, but mosquitos are hell too. Rubbed it on my face, squirted it on my hat and shirt. After a good lather of sunscreen I'd slap on a good layer of 100% DEET on any exposed skin. In the Sierras, nothing less would do, and even then, at times, the Mosquitoes would force me to leave the area.
 
It was like putting on body armor. Heavy duty sunscreen, then lots of 100% DEET completely saturating my hat, hair, clothes and skin. I knew how toxic DEET was but the fishing was worth the risk. But I was always aware that the DEET was poisoning me.
 
Skeeter Syndrome is a real thing. Its can be quite serious. Especially when confronting mosquitos from a different geological area where you have no immunity to the venom. It is not uncommon for a bite to result in a large welt the size of a golfball. And the general well-being of a patient with "Skeeter Syndrome" is often inflicted with other ailments.
 
Thanks for the post. Mosquitos love me. At any outdoor event...if there are mosquitos present, I'll be the first to know. I'm like a friggin mosquito indicator. I've always been that way. Even as a farm kid, spending more time outside than anyone I knew.
So in the 80s and 90s I had the 100% DEET from REI in the bottle. Oily nasty stuff.
The operation usually went like this-
- Get geared up and hope no bugs.
- Ok, there's bugs.
- Open the DEET and apply to the back of my hands and then rub all over body...with the back of my hands
- Re-applying on the back of my hands as needed to cover the rest of my body.
- If I poured it onto my bare arms, legs, neck, etc I would still use the back of my hands to apply so then I wouldn't get that stuff on my leader or in my mouth or eyes.
As a result, the back of my hands have had a LOT of DEET on them. Between the DEET and the sun I'm assuming I'll eventually have some sort of skin cancer issue on my hands. This article gives me some relief. I also have been better about sun block the last 20 years and for the last few years use SPF50 gloves for any fishing when I know my hands will be out in the sun. Which is almost all fishing during the summer and then also swinging in the fall and winter. Stripping flies on a SW facing Puget Sound beach too!

I'm due for a new pair. Maybe after my next carp outing. They are 2 seasons old and getting pretty nasty. Most brands only last 2 seasons, which also includes 5 or 6 trips through the washing machine. The DEET probably doesn't help.

Since the 2000s, I usually try to use a 25 or 40% spray, but if I know I'm headed to the mountains or irrigated areas I'll make sure to have some of the 75 or 100 with me. I'm glad it works!
 
I always take DEET, usually 20-40% spray when I will be in the woods. On a recent trip to the Columbia River I tried Zevo on-body spray that claims to be nontoxic with an active ingredient labeled IR3535 and is an amino acid derivative. I camped with friends in a very buggy spot and came out with zero bites. I plan to take some to the BC interior in August (and DEET).
 
I always hated DEET and still do. I was reluctant to use it. But I realized I hate, hate, hate skeeters even more! And black flies too! So I resigned myself to bathing in DEET as needed and soaking my clothes in it to repel pesky damn skeeters. It was after my trip to Kamchatka that I learned about permithrin. Since then I soak my hiking and or fishing trip clothing in permithrin and only have to apply DEET to my face, neck, and hands. Then 3 years ago on the Dean, a fishing partner persuaded me to try picaradin. I'd heard of it, but knew better than to trust any of those bullsh!t alternatives like "Skin so Soft." But my friend was right; picaradin does seem to work, although I have yet to use it extensively. So for now, I have an additional tool in the arsenal to battle those damn pesky biting bastards.
 
Salmo_g said:
I always hated DEET and still do. I was reluctant to use it. But I realized I hate, hate, hate skeeters even more! And black flies too! So I resigned myself to bathing in DEET as needed and soaking my clothes in it to repel pesky damn skeeters. It was after my trip to Kamchatka that I learned about permithrin. Since then I soak my hiking and or fishing trip clothing in permithrin and only have to apply DEET to my face, neck, and hands. Then 3 years ago on the Dean, a fishing partner persuaded me to try picaradin. I'd heard of it, but knew better than to trust any of those bullsh!t alternatives like "Skin so Soft." But my friend was right; picaradin does seem to work, although I have yet to use it extensively. So for now, I have an additional tool in the arsenal to battle those damn pesky biting bastards.
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I don't carry DEET any more and use picardin lotion now. It works well enough for me. My lucky hat probably still excudes DEET from years of soaking it!
 
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