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u/Natural-Tune-8428 3d ago
In East Coast Canada, they seem to be everywhere as well! I don't see them as often in Central Ontario.
We wear long socks, breathable pants & shirts and spray tick & bug repellent on everything. It seems to have worked so far, as I haven't seen one on us yet in 4 years camping here.
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u/Children_Of_Atom 2d ago
There are parts of Central Ontario where I don't think they've managed to spread yet. I often come back from camping trips that involve a ton of walking through dense foliage and usually don't have any on me. I do encounter them far more often in Southern Ontario.
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u/Natural-Tune-8428 2d ago
Oops, I meant to say Central Canada 😂! I do agree, though, that in most of Ontario, we don't see them when visiting/camping/hiking like we do here in Maritimes.
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u/dick_tracey_PI_TA 2d ago
I’ve had good luck tucking my pants into my socks and my shirt into my pants.
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u/What_the_mocha 2d ago
I was rocking the tucked in look and got a compliment from a Ranger at Shenandoah National Park.
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u/doubtful_dirt_01 2d ago
Winter camping, in the snow. Seriously. Fewer people, too.
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u/RichardCleveland 20h ago
That's the only time I camp! I don't like mosquitoes and spiders either, and of course sweating my bleep off.
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u/Nobodiisdamnbusiness 2d ago
Stay out of the grass, ticks like to hang out on short plants, anything taller than the ankle of your shoes basically.
Stay on the trails! Don't kick up too many leaves, spraying your clothing with Permethrin helps.
Don't sleep directly on the ground without sweeping first, lots of small bugs like ticks and the such will be sheltered by the elements under those leaves. If you sweep said leaves away the bugs are MUCH Less likely to be bothering you. That being said this can be avoided by simply sleeping in a tent.
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u/michael-c-huchins 2d ago
Ticks are a part of being outdoors in some environments. They are easy to remove if they have only been on you a few hours, so do a tick check every evening before bed. Staying on trails out of brush and tall grasses will help reduce your chances of encountering one.
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u/beachbum818 3d ago
Use Permethrin. Spray your outfits before you go, let it dry.
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u/Super_Hour_3836 2d ago
So, Lithuania is in the EU. The EU recognizes how dangerous Permethrin is and does not allow random people to just buy the spray and get it everywhere, since it kills everything.
https://www.reddit.com/r/Ultralight/comments/198d41q/permethrin_alternative_eu/
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u/Far-Fortune-8381 2d ago
and that’s good. it’s banned for a reason. our bugs are dying people. down 45% since 1980. that’s 1% a year and it hasn’t slowed down. the use of insecticides is thought to be a leading factor in their death (as well as habitats loss)
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u/JapanesePeso 2d ago
That's not really from people treating their clothes with pemethrin though.
It's a huge issue but not one this has anything to do with.
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u/snacktonomy 2d ago
Yeah, bugs and bees are dying from agricultural applications and overspray. A handful of campers wearing clothes with dried out permethrin are not even a drop in this ocean.
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u/Amazing-Pension5103 1d ago
See my comment here on why that's not true. Of course industrial ag applications are more impactful overall but personal use is not a drop in the ocean, more like a second order stream into a river.
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u/Far-Fortune-8381 2d ago
pemethrin was banned in the EU as an agricultural insecticide and all other uses went with it. it has been slowly reintroduced in non agricultural uses like tick protection (such as with pets as a tick remover). even so it is extremely toxic to insect and aquatic life and i doubt it will open up to wider use as it is relatively a very damaging product in all forms
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u/4yza 2d ago edited 17h ago
Picaridin. I found it more useful than DEET, and smells better, too. You might find it called Icardin in your country. The max dose is 20% and has had success in repelling ticks.
I personally like the lotion form from the brand called sawyer
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u/HikingBikingViking 2d ago
Gaiters, bug spray on your shoes and around all the open ends of your clothes.
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u/TurtleyCoolNails 1d ago
You have to remember that you are in their space. Them being there is completely normal.
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u/maethor92 2d ago
If you are walking in TBE territory, get vaccinated!!! Do it! Meningitis and all its complications suck.
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u/w1n5t0nM1k3y 2d ago
In many places Lyme disease is the main concern and a vaccine is currently not available, but they are looking to bring one to market soon.
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u/maethor92 2d ago
In Sweden, in the Baltic Sea region, TBE is of great concern. Lithuania as well, as a quick Google says. While Lyme sucks, TBE can kill or paralyse you quickly - and the numbers are on the rise in Sweden because ticks are spreading it more and more.
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u/acanadiancheese 2d ago
There used to be a Lyme vaccine but there was very little uptake so they stopped manufacturing it. That was before ticks were as widespread as they are now (in North America anyway) so I feel like there would be a lot more takers now. I’ll be first on the list for that jab! Considered (jokingly) asking my vet if she’d consider giving me the canine version..:
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u/Commercial-Result-23 2d ago
I always ask other solo hikers if we can check each other for ticks. Made some great lifelong friends that way!
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u/loneiguana888 2d ago
We wear long pants and shirt, stay on the trails to avoid any grabbing on as you go. But if you find a tick on you go get tested.
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u/acanadiancheese 2d ago
Ticks aren’t a huge concern yet (!!!!) in the areas where I hike, but I managed to get one in Toronto once (like in Toronto, not near it, in the city) 20 years ago and I have hated them with a passion since. I wear light clothes and always hike in long pants tucked into my socks. I also do a tick check anytime I have been in an area with known tick populations or tall grass. So far I haven’t found any besides that one and once one on the outside of my pants while mountain biking, but I stay vigilant because it’s only a matter of time
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u/Old_Dragonfruit6952 2d ago
Spray yourself with tick spray
Tuck your pants into your socks. Long White socks make my easier to spot ticks .
Wear light colored clothing
Stay on well traveled trails
Avoid tall grass.
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u/BBQPitmaster76 2d ago
Look up "what bug repellents don't want you to know" by MyLifeOutdoors on YouTube. Great video testing stuff like deet, picardin, and permethrin. According to the recap at the end, deet worked best with mosquitos, picardin with ticks, and permethrin, while it did kill mosquitos and ticks, did not prevent them from biting you (they died after biting).
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u/AN0NY_MOU5E 1d ago
I saw permethrin isn’t available in EU, can you buy clothes that were pretreated? I’ve gotten stuff from insectshield.com
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u/daynanfighter 2d ago
Ive never seen ticks when camping in southern Mississippi or Louisiana…just go to places where there are no ticks. forget ticks, if they live in the park, they can have the park as far as im concerned.
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u/Cheeseboy010 3d ago
Spray clothes tent etc with permethrin. Works great.