Mice???

[David@whiteblaze]

Okay, I don't know exactly where to post this, so mods... if you see somewhere better... be my guest to move it. Alright, I am planning a '13 NOBO (if you hadnt collected that already...) and i was wondering if anyone knew what the size of the average "mouse" is in the shelters... "They" (i dont know who exactly...) make plastic mousetraps that weigh probably an ounce and are only open either 3/4" (for mice) or about 1 1/2" (for rats) I dotnt think carrying one of these would be unfeasible, and I dont know what size they are... mice, rats, squirrels... just wondering. (and no, i am not attempting to irradicate all mice within 1 mile of the shelter... just any that think my pack looks edible...

[Manwich]

There are no such things as mice in shelters. It's just an urban legend perpetuated by flat earthers who think there should be no shelters.

[Trailweaver]

You couldn't take in enough traps to keep the mice away from your pack. There were enough mice at the last shelter I was at to literally take the shelter off. I stayed in my tent, but the mice got to my pack, and it was hung on the bear cables. (I lost food and there were mouse droppings in plastic baggies where my food had been. . . it was not a dream or a mistake.) They were all around my tent during the night scratching and squeeking, too. Other campers had noted it in the shelter register, but I thought they were kidding - they weren't.

[johnnybgood]

Forget the traps. Don't sleep in shelters.

Problem solved.

[Graywolf]

FYI,, All mice on the Georgia section are Special Stealth Mice.. They get special training from Camp Murrel over by Hawk Mountain.. That is where they do their training..So you can't see them and you can't hear them.. But as you set up.. AND set your traps,, they will be watching you... AND laughing at you, and once you are a sleep.... They will invade.... Their invasions are planned..... Leave the traps at home... they will be useless to these invaderss....


YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!!!!


Oh, good luck on your hike...

Graywolf

[Lyle]

I think you've gathered by now, traps will be useless, except to give you the feeling of gaining some revenge. Better to just learn to live with the mice if you stay at/near the shelters.

[Dances with Mice]

Mice are bear larvae. Fact.

[emerald]

i was wondering if anyone knew what the size of the average "mouse" is in the shelters...

Well, David, they don't call them deer mice for nothing. I've haven't seen any as big as a deer yet, but I've seen some big enough to carry off a pack. Be careful where you put your stuff.

[Wise Old Owl]

[Panzer1]

Hikers like to kill mice because it somehow satisfies a need to be cruel to small animals. Otherwise it serves no useful purpose.

Panzer

[kayak karl]

FYI,, All mice on the Georgia section are Special Stealth Mice.. They get special training from Camp Murrel over by Hawk Mountain.. That is where they do their training..So you can't see them and you can't hear them.. But as you set up.. AND set your traps,, they will be watching you... AND laughing at you, and once you are a sleep.... They will invade.... Their invasions are planned..... Leave the traps at home... they will be useless to these invaderss....


YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!!!!


Oh, good luck on your hike...

Graywolf

on the nite of 1/1/09 the mice at hawk mountian shelter ate my food, holes in my longjohnns and ate a hole in the crotch of my never worn rain pants. they were sending a message. i was in my hammock, but pack was in shelter. they are definitly special forces mice. others were there, but they didn't touch SGT. Rocks stuff

[Blue Jay]

they are definitly special forces mice. others were there, but they didn't touch SGT. Rocks stuff

Now that you mention it, mice do seem to leave vet equipment alone. Very strange, how do they know which hikers are wennies?

[Graywolf]

Actually I was thinking ( yes, me) and came to a conclusion that mice ARE needed at the shelters.. After all the hikers packup and leave, they leave behind a certain amount of trash and food crumbs... This gives the mice something to clean while the hikers are gone... thanks of them as natures shelter caretakers..

Graywolf

[David@whiteblaze]

Mice are bear larvae. Fact.

Oh, my bad. I thought they were squirrel larvae.

[kayak karl]

Now that you mention it, mice do seem to leave vet equipment alone. Very strange, how do they know which hikers are wennies?

Wennie LOL , but i was the only one in a group of 7 that was on the trail for my first time. maybe its the funk that keeps them away.

[MintakaCat]

One trick I've seen is from a hiker I knew sometime back. He carried a ziplock bag with about a dozen real smelly moth balls. He would put one in each pocket of his pack and would put the rest in his bear bag and leave the ziplock bag open.

The mice never touched his stuff. The next day he would collect his moth balls and seal them in a bag and hike out. The only drawback was that his pack smelled link my grandmother's closet.

[Blissful]

Wow I couldn't take the smell of moth balls.

Just hang your food. Problem solved...except for GA bears.

[Pootz]

Okay, I don't know exactly where to post this, so mods... if you see somewhere better... be my guest to move it. Alright, I am planning a '13 NOBO (if you hadnt collected that already...) and i was wondering if anyone knew what the size of the average "mouse" is in the shelters... "They" (i dont know who exactly...) make plastic mousetraps that weigh probably an ounce and are only open either 3/4" (for mice) or about 1 1/2" (for rats) I dotnt think carrying one of these would be unfeasible, and I dont know what size they are... mice, rats, squirrels... just wondering. (and no, i am not attempting to irradicate all mice within 1 mile of the shelter... just any that think my pack looks edible...

The trap for 3/4" traps mice will work just fine. You will need to have 30-40 of these traps with you when you get to Maine. You will also need several of the larger ones for the red squirrels. We caught 24 mice in one evening in Maine and the group the night before caught over 30 from the same shelter. We used the bucket/peanut butter and water method.

Good luck if you decide to take this mission.

P.S. My plan for mice is to hike 1 day behind you.

[Rambler1]

really.....mice.....really......come on.....put your pants on. There are bigger things to worry about than mice.

[ShelterLeopard]

Okay, I don't know exactly where to post this, so mods... if you see somewhere better... be my guest to move it. Alright, I am planning a '13 NOBO (if you hadnt collected that already...) and i was wondering if anyone knew what the size of the average "mouse" is in the shelters... "They" (i dont know who exactly...) make plastic mousetraps that weigh probably an ounce and are only open either 3/4" (for mice) or about 1 1/2" (for rats) I dotnt think carrying one of these would be unfeasible, and I dont know what size they are... mice, rats, squirrels... just wondering. (and no, i am not attempting to irradicate all mice within 1 mile of the shelter... just any that think my pack looks edible...

A- most shelters don't have too many mice, especially if a lot of people are sleeping there.
B- when there are mice, there are a LOT (I've come to find), and you will be emptying that trap every five minutes.
C- You really need to worry about chipmunks. (They like to hide in your boots, so you may want to give 'em a shake before shoving your foot in- it was very funny actually, last time I made the mistake of not checking, I picked up my boot, and this ball of fur comes flying out, straight at my head.)