Chiggers in Colorado?

Rich_Senn

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Dec 28, 2018
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Location
Oklahoma
I've had many friends come visit from the Northern states down to Oklahoma and head out to the field in shorts for spring/summer hike, fishing trip, etc, only to unfortunately discover one of Oklahoma's summertime luxuries...Chiggers!

If you've never had them before, all I can say is that it's pretty much a living hell if you get into them! Because of this I practically never wear shorts if I'm doing any summer activity in the field or woods here unless I have deet in hand.

Is it cold enough in Colorado that these little buggers are not an issue or is this something I should be aware of when I head out in September?
 
I grew up in TN. I know all about chiggers (getting them on your balls is the worst).
I’ve never encountered them in CO and I’ve only ever had one tick on me since I’ve lived here and that was early summer.
 
I grew up in TN. I know all about chiggers (getting them on your balls is the worst).
I’ve never encountered them in CO and I’ve only ever had one tick on me since I’ve lived here and that was early summer.

Excellent! I was hoping they weren't a problem. Good to know on the ticks as well. Seed ticks are so bad here early spring it's one of the number 1 reasons that keeps me from getting excited about Turkey hunting.
 
I lived in OK for 8 years, ticks and chiggers didn't bother me like they did most people, I hunted with some guys that would just get eaten up. You won't run into chiggers at all in CO and ticks are not super common especially in the higher elevations.
 
Aw chiggers, love telling friends about them when we go down for a hog hunt.

No chiggers in Colorado or Wyoming, yeah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Ticks can be an issue though.
 
The sting of finger nail polish remover on freshly itched chigger bites is a distinct childhood memory
 
I hate chiggers! I’ve never had an issue with them in CO or MT, I never even knew about them till I moved to KS.
 
Chiggers can get bad around here, never know where they will be. I got a bad dose one time in town working behind an apartment complex. Nasty stuff.
 
No chiggers. Grew up in SD and didn't even know what they were. Flies, skeeters and ticks are about all you see, and not many ticks or skeeters(unless you are close to water)
 
You know, I have no idea, I've spent a lot of time in central Kansas, some time in East Texas and southern Louisiana, Western Tennessee, never had them that I know of. I don't react at all to bug bites though and wonder if they either didn't like me or I couldn't tell I had them, haven't heard of anybody here in Colorado getting them though
 
Had them in Texas, had them in North Carolina, and have them here in KY. Always wear long pants and if you tuck in your shirt and tuck your pants legs in you boots, there is a slim chance of getting them.

As for the folk remedies? None of them ever worked. Might make you feel like your doing somehting, but they really don't do much. Once the bite starts to itch, the chigger is long gone. What the chigger leaves behind in your skin is what itches so much. The best thing I found is actually extra strength clearasil acne medication. Seems it cleans out the bite better then the other stuff and helps it to heal up faster. The more you scratch, the more it itches.
 
I had one friend report running into chiggers one time during a hot summer at about 7K ft in a valley near Carbondale. Everyone scoffed in disbelief, but she knows chiggers so I trust her. That said, she's the only one I know to ever report an issue. They are very soft bodied critters and very sensitive to cold weather. You will not find them in the mountains at elevation.

Finger nail polish, etc do nothing.

Chiggers do not bury under the skin, the bit and inject their saliva that saliva causes skin to break down and causes the small hive/pimple looking reaction. After they bite, they leave. The prior poster stated that home remedies don't work was right, in that they don't kill the chigger.

Permethrin is the bomb.
 
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