Little Black Flies..How to Stop!!

[AaronM]

Those little black biting flies are out in hordes this year, and regular bug spray doesn't really deter them from biting the ankles or legs. Is there a specific spray that works for them? Thanks much!

[gunflint]

I always tell my clients to wear long pants. They (the flies) seem to be drawn to people wearing shorts and white socks.

[T-water]

I know it may not be ideal, but I have (when it gets real bad) sprayed my boat down with raid, it lasts for about an hour. I also reccomend dousing your shoes and sock in bugs spray, for some reason they only want to bite the ankle...very maddening. Oh yeah and bring a fly swatter you can't kill all of them but you can kill a ew and revel in their death!

[Slyster]

I got your answer right here. No kidding.. I have them too.. but what stops them dead and for a full couple hours.. is only ONE thing... and I've tried a lot of things...

The green can Deep Woods OFF! Try it. It's the only bug spray I've found that completely stops those buggers.

[Questor]

gunflint has the answer: a combination of long pants, long-sleeve shirt, and adequate foot covering. Natrapel is an excellent repellent that doesn't have the neurotoxic attributes of DEET, so we use that most of the time and only resort to DEET repellents when absolutely necessary.

Long pants don't have to be hot. Good synthetic fishing shirts and pants like those made by Columbia are really excellent hot weather garb.

[Bandit]

I carry a bottle of Tempo in my boat, I use a 409 bottle and lake water to mix and spray all around the boat. Best thing I have ever tried. Its spendy, but goes along ways.

It sure beats throttling up every 20 min and having someone chase them out of the boat.

[fivebucks]

I agree that the bug juice is not too effective. The best thing I have found is to keep your feet elevated. When my feet are on the floor of my boat I get bit, when they are up on my bait cooler or gunnel I don't get bit very often.

[Bobby Bass]

I have been known to bring a can of yard guard and fog the boat, The best is to find a fishing partner that the flies like better then you !

[eyebjim]

on the minnesota regional-mcgregor forum there is a post on Big sandy deer flies that is also referring to those black flies. I think they had some good solutions on there. You may want to check it out.

Jim

[KaBar]

The guys in my family have gone up to Baudette to go walleye fishing on Lake of the Woods for several years now. First year up, many of us went out on the first day with shorts & sandals (middle of July), and we wondered why the guides wore long pants and boots. By the end of the day we weren't wondering anymore. I've still got a faint scar or two on my ankle from those flies.

Needless to say whenever I go out fishing these days it's long pants, socks and shoes for me now.

[Anylakeanytime]

I second the deep woods off with the green cap. They won't touch you all day with that stuff on.

[CNCMike]

Sawyers Broad Spectrum! Incredible stuff. Stops biting black flies, deer flies. horse flies, mosquitoes and ticks. I have yet to find it in Minnesota, so I mail order it. But I tell ya, it is great stuff.

[chaffmj]

Muskol!

[CNCMike]

can you still get Muskol? I love that stuff! Just about the best stuff ever made to repel critters.

[BillP]

I always go back to long pants when the flies start biting but they still get at my ankles and bite rite through my socs. Last week I tried something different! I have some spray for my dog to keep the flies and mosquito's off him, and I sprayed it around my cuffs, socs and shoes. Not on me just my clothing. My fishing buddy was wearing shorts but the flies ate him alive. They didn't bother me. Once is not a good trial but I intend to keep experimenting. I just don't know how long I can keep my buddy in the dark acting as my unwitting "control subject".

[eurolarva]

Skin tastic made by off. You need the combination sunscreen insect repellent. It comes in a tube and is a paste like suntan lotion. It is totally worthless against mosquittos but it works great against biting flies.

[kaz2611]

I use ULTRATHON either spray or cream and seems to work for both mosquitoes and black flies. I also like muskol.

[DogGone]

It was black fly, black fly everywhere

A-crawlin' in your whiskers, a-crawlin' in your hair

A-swimmin' in the soup, and a'swimmin in the tea

Oh the devil take the black fly and let me be

Now the bull cook's name was Blind River Joe

If it hadn't been for him we'd have never pulled through

For he bound up our bruises, and he kidded us for fun

And he lathered us with bacon grease and balsam gum

[Crow Hunter]

I finally found a product that works- it is called buggspray insect repellent for biting flies. I got it at Cub foods, they had it in the closeout shelf a week ago. The stuff works fantastic.