Insect repellent use is a fact of life in the Neversink Gorge area during the warmer months. The following tips will assist you in using appropriate protection. This info has been culled from over 30 pages of information on the subject from various reliable internet sources.
Use insect repellent with DEET in it. The alleged risks of using DEET seem to be outweighed by its benefits. The origin of the myth that DEET causes seizures is that six cases of seizures were reported in New York State one year by males having used DEET. None of those persons had had a history of seizures. The New York State Dept of Health did an investigation and concluded that there was no evidence to indicate a causal relationship between DEET and seizures.
Use bug netting. Campmor in Paramus, NJ has good prices on cool mesh pants and hooded jackets to put over shorts and t-shirt.
Trail builders check each other for ticks when they get off the trail. We check under arms and in folds of fabric, as well as in tounge and laces of shoes. Tuck pants legs into socks or apply DEET to legs. Ticks are most commonly acquired when brushing up against plants. Ticks sense carbon dioxide and butyric acid in human sweat, as well as warmth. Ticks cannot jump, but typically wait on blades of grass for mammals to come by, then grasp the mammal by using extended forelegs. Since ticks tend to crawl upward, check hair. I use DEET on the hair on the back of my head. So far, 100 percent of ticks found in the area have been dog ticks. I have found no information to indicate that dog ticks carry any diseases we need to be concerned about, but am continuing to monitor Centers for Disease Control and NYS Dept of Health resources for info that would indicate otherwise. We have found no deer ticks yet.