No worse than getting stuck in a full fledged hurricane in the gulf...
great lakes flies
- Thread starter gbrian
- Start date
back in the early 80's we were inbound towards Duluth to pick up a load of red ore for a special order for J&l steal in cleveland. about 15 miles out the fog got so thick that we stopped and anchored. ( we stop in the fog up here on the lakes, you maine boy scare me), back to my story. S.S. Armco, 740 ft, blt 1953, mid 50s styling, forward cabins, in her columbia colors. it was summer time and all the doors on the main deck were open to the hallways and all the ports in the windlass room were open which was the routine on a steamer with no AC. the boat glowed in it's halo of fog. also in the fog, lost and scared was a flock of brown bats. they found us in their desperation and came aboard looking for a cave. all forward hallways and the windlass room became their cave. a million bats. so tired they could not leave. in the morning the fog lifted but the windless room was black with bats.
the ending was sad. they were hosed out with the fire hoses. alot of them did not make it. in minnesota the state bird is the mosquito and they love bats to help with the control, i have heard.
the ending was sad. they were hosed out with the fire hoses. alot of them did not make it. in minnesota the state bird is the mosquito and they love bats to help with the control, i have heard.
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I think maybe.
Insects torment me. My skin is thin and they just seem to know there's a good meal at hand. The wife on the other hand has hide for skin and never gets bit. I'll have hundreds of itchy welts.
WedPMSailor: I've sailed in two Mills races - good time. My lake Erie friends tell stories about the, I think, Stinkbugs, in light air which accumulate by the thousands on a sail, and when there's a tack or a luff they fall to the deck where they make a slimy, smelly mess, which attracts more of the critters. Fortunately I've never seen it first hand.
All we have are some nasty horse flies. They are aggressive but pretty slow. The bite hurts but you usually get the satisfaction of a kill. Kingdom Insecta will be here long after we are gone.
mayflys or canadian soldiers come out in the spring, mate, live twenty four hours, die. no mouth, no bite. stink like rotting fish. they make our walleys fat. us route 2 has been closed many times along the lake as they make the road slippier then black ice. very annoying but nothing else. they pop when you step on them. does not stain a teak deck
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The wife and I ran into a hatch of flies last week (50' of water about 3 miles off shore, near Port Sanilac, MI on Huron) covered the decks and were literally sliding down the main like a waterfall. I have seen bad hatches but this was like out of a movie! We had to cover our faces to keep them out of our mouth, nose, and eyes...
We headed in a bit and they were gone in 25' to 30' of water but you could see the cloud they created out in deeper water. Wild stuff for sure, glad we weren't racing and had no qualms about firing up the motor for a hasty retreat!
We headed in a bit and they were gone in 25' to 30' of water but you could see the cloud they created out in deeper water. Wild stuff for sure, glad we weren't racing and had no qualms about firing up the motor for a hasty retreat!
the upside of the mayflys is that they only survive in a healthy ecosystem and the are a major link in the food chain of the lakes. so when they show up like clouds it's a sign the lake is healthy
I grew up in Michigan, rented a dock on the Clinton River off of Lake Saint Clair. I would ride a motorcycle to the boat because I did not want to pay 50 cents per gallon for gas. If I screwed around at the dock too long and the street lights came on the May Flies would collect under the light. Damn slippery, and scary when the traffic lights turned red! I either left before dark or slept on board. Worst black flies I ever saw was at White Fish Point, the rocky Lake Supperior shore was covered with them. Worst mosquito swarm was on Great Inagua in Bahamas, the local jail only had bars no screens. Good incentive to behave while there.
Those buggers (fly's) are always worse just before a rain, man they can be irritating, stern rail seats help a bunch, gets your feet out of the calm of the cockpit. A few years back did a kayak trip in Lake Superior, you had to make sure there were none of those beast's under the spray apron, if there were you were at their mercy and no they don't have any!
What works for us:
Wear long slacks. (These flies bite through sweat sox!) as an alternative, I sometimes wrap my legs in a large, thick beach towel.
Raise your legs. Putting them up on the cockpit seat really does help, especially for crew.
Swat them. But we have seen about 1 per sq. yard sitting on the surface in the middle of Lake Erie on a flat, glassy calm, summer day. They are out there waiting for us!
At the helm, I'll have my feet up on the cockpit seat opposite, a towel around my legs, the tiller in one hand, and the swatter in the other. We have survived hours like this, until we reach port, or the wind comes up. By the the way, these flies do not follow us into port, or when we anchor! Go figure!
Wear long slacks. (These flies bite through sweat sox!) as an alternative, I sometimes wrap my legs in a large, thick beach towel.
Raise your legs. Putting them up on the cockpit seat really does help, especially for crew.
Swat them. But we have seen about 1 per sq. yard sitting on the surface in the middle of Lake Erie on a flat, glassy calm, summer day. They are out there waiting for us!
At the helm, I'll have my feet up on the cockpit seat opposite, a towel around my legs, the tiller in one hand, and the swatter in the other. We have survived hours like this, until we reach port, or the wind comes up. By the the way, these flies do not follow us into port, or when we anchor! Go figure!
I believe that some people are allergic to the black fly bite. My wife will have itchy red welts for the following week. While I do not like being bitten (it hurts), I have no lasting effect after that day. As far as prevention, at last week's beer-can race I saw a race crew with one flyswatter per crew member. I've not seen so many flyswatters in a 32-foot space in my life!
Two different oils seem to work for us and fellow cruisers. Sesame Bath oil we picked up in Walmart. Sprayed it on our legs and it worked enough to limit the number of bites. A Canadian woman (red hair) on the boat next to us was near tears from being bitten so much. She tried it and had no more bites. Totally happy she brought over some wine for my wife. The second oil is Amber Romance from Victoria's Secret. We had success with the no see-ums plus I don't mind buying it one bit. If you have a calm evening try burning some Sterno fuel in the cockpit. It is amazing how it keeps the flies away.
If these don't work the last option is spraying with Holy Water. I had an old Irish priest explain to me how to make my own so I'd never run out.
All U Get
If these don't work the last option is spraying with Holy Water. I had an old Irish priest explain to me how to make my own so I'd never run out.
All U Get
I'm telling you, between the flies, the ice and the long winters you have be cut from stern cloth to endure the north!
Oh heck when the black flies are bad it can be terrible but don't let that keep you away.
The sailing here is fabulous - we just tough it out, swat, swear, and scrub the mess off the boat when you get back in.
Those are only the half of it..... mosquitoes the size of rats, black bears that can swim out to your boat, beaver that will knaw through your anchor line in the middle of the night..... yup, don't want too many of them tourists up here....
