Midges in Scotland ?

Kelpie said:
One of the stories my parents like to tell from time to time is of their trip around Skye in my Dad's MGB back in the 70s, before I came along and messed everything up.
The exhaust had fallen off and my Dad was lying underneath the car, in a layby, whilst my Mum fanned him with a newspaper in a brave yet futile attempt to fend off the midgies. Out of nowhere, a German car pulled up and a man ran out of it, sprayed my parents with repellent from a can, jumped back in his car, and drove off- all without uttering a word.
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Zyklon B, by any chance. That would see them off - and the whole local village population:rolleyes:

They have not been bad this year, as reported in the newspapers. But there is still plenty of time . I suspect the vicious devils are a-massing somewhere, ready to invade when I get home from exile.

Some ripe and charming descriptions on here of the little sweetie-pies !!
 
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Worst ones I've seen were in Glen Etive, they were voracious and had genetically mutated to the size of blackbirds. I've had to absel of routes and make a run for it when I've been climbing there! The Avon Skin so soft seems to work for me, you do have to replenish the protective layer frequently, though.
 
In port Ellen this year they moved into the pub!! The little feckers wouldn't even let a man have a pint'o'heavy in peace! On Jura they threw themselves against the windows but didn't get in. I was able to outrow them on the way back to the boat. If you carry a shovel with you you might be able to put a dent in one!
 
sniffyjenkins said:
Also, I never really found out what the locals do or use to deter the little monsters. I'd heard about the Skin So Soft stuff that many swear by and tried it. While it does seem to kill the midges when they land on you, you end up with a lovely oily crust of dead ones all over your skin.

Not entirely sure that's any better.

Also also, I love the (no doubt apocryphal) tale of an execution in Ye Olde Days, when a villain was tied down, naked, on the moors and left to the midges. One of the worse ways to go I'd imagine : eek:
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A good few years ago a brave man fund raising for the Kilmartin museum ran a lottery to guess how many midge bites he would get sitting stripped to the waist in Kilmartin Glen...

Smidge is the new favourite locally , taking over from Skin So Soft.
 
I've tried "Deet" left over from a holiday in Africa. While it worked against mossies, the midges seem to thrive on it so it was back to skin-so-soft.
 
I have changed to "Smidge", which seems to work - most of the time.
Skin-so-soft used to work very well, but I think Avon have changed the formula as it isn't as effective now - or the blighters have genetically modified themselves to withstand it.

Full midge-hoods with perspex visor, arms legs and hands covered is the front line defence in the northwest.
 
I'd been told I'd build up an immunity to the critters, and indeed it proved to be true. I've encountered them all over Scotland, but the worst were around Gairloch in the north west. After 3 or 4 days of pure hell, with literally millions of tiny biting midges everywhere in the tent, the itching began to subside, while the number of insects frying around the gas lamp continued to grow. After a week or so, they had become tolerable.
 
pmagowan said:
In port Ellen this year they moved into the pub!! The little feckers wouldn't even let a man have a pint'o'heavy in peace! On Jura they threw themselves against the windows but didn't get in. I was able to outrow them on the way back to the boat. If you carry a shovel with you you might be able to put a dent in one!
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What sort of boat were they rowing?
 
sniffyjenkins said:
Also, I never really found out what the locals do or use to deter the little monsters.
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Smidge works reasonably well, and a lot of places sell it now. It only deals with general midgieness, though, and not major infestations for which the only successful treatment is to hit the little sods hard and individually with a mallet.

Kelpie said:
One of the stories my parents like to tell from time to time is of their trip around Skye in my Dad's MGB back in the 70s, before I came along and messed everything up.
The exhaust had fallen off and my Dad was lying underneath the car, in a layby, whilst my Mum fanned him with a newspaper in a brave yet futile attempt to fend off the midgies. Out of nowhere, a German car pulled up and a man ran out of it, sprayed my parents with repellent from a can, jumped back in his car, and drove off- all without uttering a word.
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Dieter?
 
I came across this, which some may find helpful:

"But first, I'll clear up an orthographic point, especially if you've been using Google to search for biting insects in Scotland. Midge and midget are two entirely different words. We're talking insects here. Compared to these tiny insects, midgets are really, really huge. The Highland midge is only 1.5mm long, so it should be easy to tell the difference."

Though perhaps this might be more informative: http://www.snh.org.uk/publications/on-line/advisorynotes/29/29.htm
 
johnalison said:
I came across this, which some may find helpful:

"But first, I'll clear up an orthographic point, especially if you've been using Google to search for biting insects in Scotland. Midge and midget are two entirely different words. We're talking insects here. Compared to these tiny insects, midgets are really, really huge. The Highland midge is only 1.5mm long, so it should be easy to tell the difference."

Though perhaps this might be more informative: http://www.snh.org.uk/publications/on-line/advisorynotes/29/29.htm
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Ah, but there are exceptions ...

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(Spotted in Ardtoe).
 
The worst I met were at Arinagour, Coll. The locals seemed to wear head nets.

Back on the boat on its mooring there was not a midge in sight.
 
I would like to thank you all for your comments - tho to be honest they're really putting me off ! Some of them very funny though !

It's so beautiful - its full of midges - and, currently, its a helluva long way away. Had really thought about moving boat and house but am beginning to wonder ! Here on Exmoor we suffer about 4 months with lots of flies - especially in wooded areas and when there's little wind. Get them indoors too. But the midges sound worse.

So should we move boat/home to Scotland or will the midges win out ?

TIA
Penny
 
When I started sailing I was told a sure fire cure for sea-sickness was to sit under a tree. In similar vein, if you don't want to be eaten alive by midges, buy a house on a hill, out of sight of water (or in England, although the midges are worse on the west coast , so I suppose you could live in St Andrews. Actually St Andrews might just be the right place as the howling Easterlies from the Steppes of Russia are probably not conducive to midge reproduction).
 
Topcat47 said:
When I started sailing I was told a sure fire cure for sea-sickness was to sit under a tree. In similar vein, if you don't want to be eaten alive by midges, buy a house on a hill, out of sight of water (or in England, although the midges are worse on the west coast , so I suppose you could live in St Andrews. Actually St Andrews might just be the right place as the howling Easterlies from the Steppes of Russia are probably not conducive to midge reproduction).
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So is it your boat or your house in the Solent ? Or both ? And are the midges the reason :) ?
 
pragmatist said:
I would like to thank you all for your comments - tho to be honest they're really putting me off ! Some of them very funny though !

It's so beautiful - its full of midges - and, currently, its a helluva long way away. Had really thought about moving boat and house but am beginning to wonder ! Here on Exmoor we suffer about 4 months with lots of flies - especially in wooded areas and when there's little wind. Get them indoors too. But the midges sound worse.

So should we move boat/home to Scotland or will the midges win out ?

TIA
Penny
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Come Up and try it and see.

To be fair we have been out and about for most of the time since April - and only had one really bad midge attack (this week on Jura). And even it was only on the beach and we escaped in the dinghy and lost them by going flat out in the dinghy before heading for the boat.
Had more bites in two week charter in the med.
 
pragmatist said:
I would like to thank you all for your comments - tho to be honest they're really putting me off ! Some of them very funny though !

It's so beautiful - its full of midges - and, currently, its a helluva long way away. Had really thought about moving boat and house but am beginning to wonder ! Here on Exmoor we suffer about 4 months with lots of flies - especially in wooded areas and when there's little wind. Get them indoors too. But the midges sound worse.

So should we move boat/home to Scotland or will the midges win out ?

TIA
Penny
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Oh Scotland is the most beautiful country. I wouldn't let the horror stories put you off. I've experienced the worst midges can throw at a human and go back again and again and again. I love it, and would move there myself if things were different.

Hope you find what you're looking for wherever you end up :)
 
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