Musings & (Mis)Adventures
Alaskan Mosquitoes, in abundance.
Often when folks find out I’m into primitive living in places like the Northwoods of Wisconsin or the Interior of Alaska, one of the first questions they ask me is “How do you deal with mosquitoes?” Or “What’s the best natural mosquito repellent?”
For a long time I was unsure how to answer, there didn’t seem to be one simple replacement for DEET. But it finally dawned on me.
read more »
“A man can be short and dumpy and getting bald but if he has fire, women will like him.” –Mae West
I sure hope that’s true. Especially the “fire making up for going bald” part.
Anyway, as I mentioned in a previous post, I once participated in a year-long primitive skills immersion in the Northwoods of Wisconsin with some mighty-fine folks. However, when we went into the forest to make camp, we kinda over-did the building of our first hearth.
“A man thinks he amounts to a great deal but to a flea or a mosquito a human being is merely something good to eat.” – Don Marquis
Once upon a time, in the Tanana river valley, it was a good month for mosquitoes. They were thick, and in the dark parts of the forest (especially near standing water) they would collect along the way as I walked. If I stopped they would swarm in clouds like bees defending a hive, but instead, they were buzzing for my blood.
I had been walking for hours in 80 degree heat, using a modern version of an old Eskimo strategy for dealing with mosquitoes.
read more »
