Ticks vs Floorless Tents

[Dgregory]

I'm going on a Spring bear hunt in Idaho in May and planning ahead for a heavy dose of ticks. I'll take measures with sprays and such, but I'm wondering about my tent. I was planning on using a ultralight two man floorless tipi, but I've been considering using a more traditional lightweight zippered backpacking tent. What are y'alls thoughts on getting bitten by ticks while sleeping, or even just having to wake up in the middle of the night to do more tick checks? I watched a bear hunt on youtube and a guy had a tick crawling up his nostril while sleeping in a floorless tent, so it's got me rethinking my tent choice.

 

[Turkeygetpwnd38]

I wouldn’t use floorless without a bivy or nest in May. Even on good years ticks are a pain, on bad years they are insane.

 

[BuckeyeRifleman]

I wouldn’t use floorless without a bivy or nest in May. Even on good years ticks are a pain, on bad years they are insane.

This.

Also permetherin on your clothes, bivy, tent, etc will help a bunch!

 

[Stalker69]

I got rid of my floor less tents years ago. I hunt quite a bit in Texas and the ticks, chiggers, scorpions and snakes made for a terrible sleep.

 

[BuckeyeRifleman]

I got rid of my floor less tents years ago. I hunt quite a bit in Texas and the ticks, chiggers, scorpions and snakes made for a terrible sleep.

Yeah there is no way I’d use one in certain locations, especially Texas. Even here in Ohio I pretty much only use them Nov through March. But for the northern Rockies they are hard to beat.

 

[id_jon]

Bug bivy is my go to. Plus spraying everything with permetherine.

 

[Dgregory]

Thanks for all the responses! Sounds like I’ll go with a traditional zippered tent since I don’t have a nest for my tipi.


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[Corvus Corax]

Sounds like you’ve got a plan for your shelter Permethrin on all of your clothes before you pack up to go will help you out a lot. Good for your technical fabrics unlike Deet products that don’t play well with some materials. A treated garment should hold repellent properties for a few washes.
https://www.consumerreports.org/hea...se-permethrin-on-clothing-safely-a4370607226/

 

[BuckSmasher]

Where are yall getting into the ticks in ID? I have lived here for 3 years and have seen zero ticks.

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[Marble]

For ticks, a good spray will prevent them. Second, if you have never been bitten by a tick, you'll feel it. Third, after being bit, it generally takes 24-36 hours for them to transmit lymes disease to the host. If you find a tick in your skin, remove it properly and go to a clinic for some antibiotics. There are other diseases ticks can transmit besides Lymes.

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[Wrench]

Lifetimer in the panhandle of Idaho/Eastern Washington guy here who camps A LOT. I have never used spray. Never worried about ticks. Found a few in my 40 years in the woods and pulled a half dozen or so off my dogs over the years.

I'm thinking this might be like expecting your kids to be abducted if you let them out after dark....

Sure it could happen, and it has happened.....but it's more the exception than the rule.

 

[ORJoe]

Where are yall getting into the ticks in ID? I have lived here for 3 years and have seen zero ticks.

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Independence Creek east of Lake Pend Orielle.
A bunch of years ago in an August. Rode my dirt bike through a bush in the trail, thought "that felt like a bad one" and pulled a tick off myself at dinner later.
Not exactly like sleeping on the ground in May, but they're out there.

 

[cfdjay]

Lifehack...I take an extra bottle of permethrin and spray the perimeter of tent, on the ground. Doesn't just work for ticks but most ground bugs.

 

[JD Jones]

Thanks for all the responses! Sounds like I’ll go with a traditional zippered tent since I don’t have a nest for my tipi.


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Not to persuade you out of new gear but a bug bivy that weighs 5oz used in conjunction w your floor-less tent you already own is cheap and effective and mentioned above.

Treat your clothes and pack (do this outside away from pets) and you’ll be fine.

 

[Stalker69]

For ticks, a good spray will prevent them. Second, if you have never been bitten by a tick, you'll feel it. Third, after being bit, it generally takes 24-36 hours for them to transmit lymes disease to the host. If you find a tick in your skin, remove it properly and go to a clinic for some antibiotics. There are other diseases ticks can transmit besides Lymes.

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I've had a ton of ticks, and cant recall feeling one bite me. I have felt them crawling on me several times. But 90% of the time, they are attached when found. Now fleas, you can feel them bite, most of the time. Depending where they bite yea.

 

[Cooter49]

I have not heard of perimeter before. Is it easy to find?

 

[dtrkyman]

Never had tick issues here in NM or CO. but I am camping at some elevation so maybe they are not around?

In the midwest no way you could camp in the spring without some treatment of the ground or a nest, you would have hundreds of ticks on you in one night!

Permethrin is amazing stuff for them. I treat my clothes a couple times per spring and never get ticks anymore.

 

[Jskaanland]

I've been spring bear hunting ID for 5 years. I just sleep under a tarp with a ground sheet and haven't had any ticks attached. Last year I sprayed my bag with permethrin for the first time. On of the guys there found one on his bag after he washed it when he got home. I will say, I hunted a different unit one year and the bear I shot had way more ticks than where I usually hunt. So we may be in a lighter tick area.

 

[EdP]

Ticks are exactly why I have a nest in my Kuiu Summit Star. Around here, even in the mtns, we get daytime temps in the 50s and 60s on occasion in Nov. On those occasions the ticks come out in force and the hunters become the hunted.

I was on a multi-day spring bear hunt in Idaho unit 10 (Lolo region) a few years back. There were plenty of ground squirrels and ticks in camp.

 

[BuckSmasher]

Independence Creek east of Lake Pend Orielle.
A bunch of years ago in an August. Rode my dirt bike through a bush in the trail, thought "that felt like a bad one" and pulled a tick off myself at dinner later.
Not exactly like sleeping on the ground in May, but they're out there.

Very familiar with the area. Can see Chilco mountain from my front yard and Bunco road is a mile from my house. I guess there are a few down there. Thankfully i havent had any run ins.

Hunted in PA in november 2019. Tick CENTRAL. Coming from East Texas sometimes there are ticks sometimes not. I have never seen anything like PA ticks.

I sprayed my stuff with permethrin and it worked.

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