Ticks, or lack thereof

[Namtrag]

Hi everyone...I just began backpacking last fall, and have been on 6 multi-night trips so far. I know that the ticks wouldn't be out in the late fall and early spring hikes I have been on.

The last two trips I went on with my meetup group, one in early June to Tar Jacket Ridge in Virginia, and the other to Dolly Sods this past weekend, none of us (9-10 in the group) had a single tick on us despite walking through knee to thigh high grass many times during the trips.

Did we just get lucky, or is there a reason we didn't have any tick issues? I actually dreaded going on both trips because of the tick hype, and was very happy that I didn't see any.

[Dogwood]

You got to get out of the, IMO, mistaken mindset that tick problems exist EEVERYWHEEER or to the same degree EEVERYWHEEER. That idea is similar to the, IMO, mistaken idea that water is always tainted with parasites EEVERYWHEEERE or to the same degree EEVERYWHEEERE.

[mankind117]

I wouldn't let ticks stop your from backpacking. Yes they are out there, some places more than others. It's hard to say if you got lucky or what. Looking at the lyme disease maps the monagahela doesn't seem to have much lyme disease. I've been hiking and backpacking a lot in the mid atlantic region in all seasons the last several years, especially up in central PA which is tick central. I've probably only seen 10 ticks over 4 years and none has ever attached. Other people I know have seen more. It is very random and of course walking through high grass or lots of leaf litter is the most probably say to pick one up. That being said, I never ever hike in shorts anymore because I am paranoid about ticks as well. In the spring and summer my hiking socks, shirts get a dose of permethrin (http://www.rei.com/product/768970/sawyer-permethrin-pump-spray-24-oz) and I hike in these pants that are pre-treated (http://www.railriders.com/men-eco-mesh-pant-with-insect-shield-p-837.html?cPath=104_110). I always try to check myself as best as possible or have my wife check me after hiking. I think with simple precautions such as these you can have reasonable peace of mind about ticks. Just remember to check and go to the doctor if anything seems amiss.

[Namtrag]

Thanks, guys! We are treating our clothing with permethrin next trip, and we treated our tent and packs with it last trip.

I wasn't panicky and not going to go, but based on what I had read (tick hysteria), I had expected for us to see a few on our pants amongst the group.

I like the analogy with the water parasites...interestingly enough, one of the dudes in our group said he never treats his water in any way...not sure I would be that much of a dice roller!

[Kerosene]

Treat those Lyme Disease maps with some skepticism, as that reflects where patients were treated, not necessarily where they contracted the disease.

I was very concerned about deer ticks on last year's section hike from Pinkham Notch to Rangeley. I saw nary a tick, of any type -- although I did treat my gear with Permithrin. The disease map shows a concentration in western Maine, but my guess is that this is because long-distance hikers were bit somewhere in southern New England.

Still, it's certainly a concern, and unless you have someone to look at your back and scalp, you do run the risk of never seeing the tick that got you.

[Dogwood]

In all fairness though we should take things within context. Being TOTALLY unaware of or sticking our heads into the sand regarding ticks isn't, IMO, a wise approach either. You know that so took some steps that you thought appropriate. You DO NOT want to contract a tick borne illness when there exist simple preventive measures.

It's not a perfect tick borne disease avoidance strategy but I look at tick born North American disease geographical distribution maps and match my level of protection accordingly. For example, for an AT thru-hike or Northeastern U.S. states hike where I feel the risks are higher I'm being a bit more mindful of ticks.

[Wise Old Owl]

You got to get out of the, IMO, mistaken mindset that tick problems exist EEVERYWHEEER or to the same degree EEVERYWHEEER. That idea is similar to the, IMO, mistaken idea that water is always tainted with parasites EEVERYWHEEERE or to the same degree EEVERYWHEEERE.


I agree - and there is no month when ticks take a day off.

[Pedaling Fool]

You know the most dangerous ticks are the ones not too easily seen, i.e. tick in the nymph stage. And the pics on this link don't do justice to just how small they are and how difficult they are to find. http://www.cdc.gov/ticks/life_cycle_and_hosts.html


The adult ticks are not really much to worry about, because they are so easy to find.

[Meriadoc]

I agree with a lot of what others have posted. It's quite possible you didn't see them and quite possible you didn't have any. Also if you stick to the path, there is relatively high traffic on the path which may (conjecture!) help spread the ticks out among more people and deer thus leaving fewer ticks per person.

For the record, in my 200+ nights on the AT, I have found 10-15 ticks total, and that was usually 3-4 at a time. I found as many in two nights of bushwacking. And I know a few people who found tick breeding grounds and had over 50 ticks on them.

It happens. Not that often. But it could be a lot of ticks. Pay attention, but that's it. No need to worry.

[1234]

You all were just lucky! I went blackberry picking in Chesapeake this past week end had over 30 ticks and I only went into the brambles 1 or 2 steps. Big ones and little ones. Now I twitch at every tingle.

[TIDE-HSV]

I live in north Alabama and the vector here is not the deer tick, although we actually have deer raising a family on our three acres every year. IIRC, the vector here is the wood tick. My wife and I pull them off each other regularly. Here, they drop out of the trees (the area is wooded). Despite our vigilance, a couple of weeks ago, my wife got one in a hard to see spot, and it remained for several days. (The longer the tick remains on, the greater the risk of Lyme and other diseases.) She had the characteristic rash and received the usual antibiotic prophylactic course...

[coach lou]

I've seen many here in southern New England, at home. I took a dozen off me in New Jersey, in May and 2 off of me in Mass. I was worried about skeeters and flies in New Hampshire, so I doused by walking clothes in Permethrin. It may or may not have worked, I did not get bit. The ultrathon kept everything else off...but I did not see a tick fromFranconia to Glencliff.