When are ticks most abundant in #RMNP? Would you guess April – June?! Yes, it’s tick season again in areas all the way up to subalpine elevations.
Ticks hang out at the tops of tall grasses and shrubs in areas where animals tend to travel. When an animal – or a human – passes by they will attach themselves to feed on the blood of their hosts. Ticks can transmit diseases to human hosts; in this area, Colorado Tick Fever is the most commonly-transmitted disease (much moreso than Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever).
When outside, try to walk on trails away from vegetation; when you brush against vegetation, ticks can get on you. Dress to cover skin by wearing long sleeves and long pants. Pull your socks over the cuffs of your pants to prevent ticks from finding your skin.
Insect repellents that contains DEET can be effective in repelling ticks.
Do a "tick check" every few hours when outside, checking yourself and your children carefully, head to toe. Ticks like tight places, like waistbands and tops of socks, hairlines, underarms, crotch areas, etc. Ticks can take up to several hours to embed, which gives you time to find them first and remove them.
If you find a tick, remove it as soon as possible, carefully and properly so you don’t leave its head embedded which can cause infection. Use tweezers and grab the tick as close to the skin as possible and slowly pull the tick straight out. Then wash and disinfect the area carefully and thoroughly.
Don’t just throw a tick away! Dispose of a live tick by either covering it completely and thoroughly on all sides with tape; or put it in a container of rubbing alcohol, or flush it down the toilet.
Remember - Think SAFE – Stay SAFE
Jeff
RockyMountainHikingTrails.com
HikinginGlacier.com
TetonHikingTrails.com
HikingintheSmokys.com
Ramble On: A History of Hiking
No comments:
Post a Comment