Mosquitoes, Ticks and the Twenty Minutes at Dusk

Bugs are the most reliable trip-ruiner there is, and the most solvable. A person who is being bitten is not enjoying the fire, the view, the food or your company — and children reach that point much faster than adults do.

The twenty minutes you can plan around

Mosquito activity is not constant. It spikes hard around dusk and dawn, and in many places the worst of it is a fairly narrow window — roughly the twenty minutes either side of sunset.

That predictability is useful. Plan to be covered, inside, or under a screen exactly then. Have dinner earlier or later. It is a far better strategy than fighting them all evening.

What actually works

Cover up

The most effective and least discussed measure. Long sleeves and trousers in the evening, tucked socks in tick country. Loose weave beats tight — mosquitoes bite straight through leggings.

Repellent on skin

Follow the label, particularly for children, and reapply as directed. Repellents differ in duration and in what age they are approved for, so read the packaging rather than a blog. Apply sunscreen first, repellent second, and never use a combined product — the reapplication schedules are completely different.

Treat the clothing, not just the skin

Permethrin-treated clothing is applied to fabric rather than skin, survives several washes, and is the single most effective measure against ticks. Treat it at home, let it dry fully, and never apply it to skin. It is also toxic to cats while wet — keep them away until it has dried.

A physical barrier

Nothing beats mesh. A head net is a ridiculous-looking, extremely effective, almost weightless answer to a bad twenty minutes — and children love wearing them for exactly the reason adults resent it. A screened shelter over the table does the same job for the whole group.

For the worst twenty minutes ClarionShade Pop-Up Screen Shelter — 10x10ft

Mesh on all four sides over the camp table. It overrules dusk entirely, and doubles as shade at midday. Pairs with a tent rather than replacing one.

See the screen shelter →

What mostly does not work

• Citronella candles — some effect, but only in still air and only very close to the candle. Not a strategy.
• Ultrasonic repellers — repeatedly tested, repeatedly found ineffective.
• Repellent wristbands — protect approximately the wrist.
• Eating garlic or taking vitamin B — no reliable evidence.
• Bug zappers — kill enormous numbers of harmless insects and very few mosquitoes.

Choosing your pitch with bugs in mind

Mosquitoes breed in standing water and dislike moving air. So: pitch away from stagnant ponds, marshy ground and dense undergrowth; slightly exposed and breezy beats sheltered and still; and avoid the low, damp corner of the campground even though it is usually the flattest and greenest.

Ticks — the one worth being systematic about

Ticks matter more than mosquitoes in most of North America and Europe because of what they can transmit. The good news is that transmission generally requires the tick to be attached for many hours, so a nightly check is genuinely effective prevention.

Reduce exposure

• Walk in the middle of the trail; ticks wait on vegetation at the edges.
• Trousers tucked into socks. It looks silly and it works.
• Permethrin-treated trousers, socks and boots.
• Light-coloured clothing so you can see them.

Check every evening, properly

Ticks are small and they head for warm, hidden places. Check: behind the ears and in the hairline, the back of the neck, armpits, the waistband, the backs of the knees, between the toes, and the groin. Check children thoroughly — they are lower to the ground and shorter than the vegetation.

Removing one

1. Fine-tipped tweezers or a tick tool. Grasp as close to the skin as possible.
2. Pull straight up, steadily. No twisting, no jerking.
3. Clean the bite and your hands.
4. Note the date. If a rash or flu-like symptoms appear in the following weeks, tell a doctor about the bite.

Do not use petroleum jelly, a lit match, or nail varnish. Those are folk methods, they make the tick more likely to regurgitate into the wound, and they are worse than doing nothing.

Treating bites

Cool water, an antihistamine or hydrocortisone cream, and — the hard part with children — not scratching, since broken skin is what turns a bite into an infection. Keep short nails and cover a bad bite if it is being scratched raw.

Anything that spreads dramatically, causes difficulty breathing or swelling of the face and throat is an emergency, not a camping problem. If anyone in your group carries an adrenaline auto-injector, make sure everybody knows where it is on the first evening.

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Bug protection sits in Safety & Survival, and the free Camp Checklist has a season-appropriate list.