Health & Hygiene

DEET and Picaridin-based insect repellent sprays and lotions are available from a wide range of brands and in a variety of forms factors. How effective are they are repelling mosquitos and ticks? What are the best concentrations to get? Which one’s are the safest to use for children and pregnant …

Permethrin is a pesticide that you spray on clothing to kill black flies, ticks, and mosquitoes but has no harmful side effects on humans if used properly. It is the active ingredient used in Insect Shield and Buzz Off clothing and kills bugs when they land on your clothing. You …

Some people think I’m cracked when it comes to the preventive measures I take to avoid tick bites and getting Lyme Disease. But I still haven’t contracted Lyme Disease after 5000 miles of hiking, backpacking, and off-trail hiking through prime tick habit on the Appalachian Trail, in the northeastern United States, or …

There’s nothing worse than chafing on a hike – chafing between your thighs or butt cheeks. It is absolute agony when you can’t stop because your schedule or a limited supply of food requires that you keep hiking. Here are a few tips to prevent chafing or worst case, how …

Lyme Disease is reaching epidemic proportions on the Appalachian Trail yet hikers still insist on hiking in short sleeve shirts and short pants. The easiest way to protect yourself is to wear long pants, a long sleeve shirt, and hat when hiking, preferably ones treated with Insect Shield or Permethrin, both …

The best knee brace for hiking is the Cho-Pat Knee Brace. I use one when my knees bother me from carrying too much weight during a long backpacking trips and I have a few hiking buddies who swear by theirs. They wear two braces whenever they hike, one for each knee. At …

One of the oldest pieces of gear that I still carry with me on overnight trips is a portable travel toothbrush, called The Toob. It’s a completely self-contained toothpaste and toothbrush system that lives in my bear bag. It’s quite simple really. It’s a plastic tube that breaks into 3 …

Permethrin is an insect repellant and insecticide that bonds to fabric and can be used on your clothes, tent, or hammock to prevent Lyme Disease, Rocky Mountain Spotted fever, or the Zika Virus by killing ticks, mosquitos, and insects that land on your stuff. The liquid Permethrin application techniques discussed below …

Like many others, my backpacking plans are dictated more by available time than by the weather outside! Getting on the trail means carefully orchestrating time away from all my “big kid” responsibilities. Once I request time off from work, get someone to pick up the kid, and sweet talk my …

I wear a Sea-to-Summit Head Net with Insect Shield when I hike and backpack during bug season. When coupled with a wide-brimmed hat like my OR Sentinel Brim, wearing a head net is far more comfortable and effective than coating my ears, head, chest and shoulders with DEET insect repellent. I’ve …