Do not read this blog post if you are at all squeamish. I have started this post off with one of my favorite pictures – that way you will actually need to open and scroll down in this post to see the image that has the potential to make you run screaming. OK that my be a bit dramatic, but without this key piece of “gear” you will definitely find yourself running screaming through the forest.
I am talking about the deer fly patch.
Deer flies are the fly that looks a bit like a stealth bomber. They are light brown and shaped like a triangle. If you have ever been out in the canoe and had a fly circling your head – making you feel anything but peace loving, you know the fly I am talking about.
Luckily deer flies are very predictable. Their “attack pattern” is to land on the back of your head. So …. put the sticky deer fly patch on the back of your hat and all your worries disappear. They will still circle but you don’t need to worry about trying to kill them. Sit tight and they will soon be dying a horrible death on the sticky tape. If you are like me, you will take your hat off and put them out of their misery.
The worst thing about deer fly patches is the pain you put the other campers through when they are walking behind you or sitting behind you in the canoe – who wants to look at that. But if the deer flies are bad like they were this year, it makes being in the forest manageable.
We often turn it into a contest – who can get the most deer flies by the end of the day.
My father never went to the garden without one on his hat and he enjoyed counting his victims at various points throughout the day.
BTW, the stickiness will last several days, but leave it outside on a rock at night – you don’t want it in the tent with you.
To buy this critical camping tool, just Google “Deer Fly Patch”.