The Highland Midges (Midge equals small fly not to be confused with the barbie toy no one bought) are 2mms of pure annoyance, pure aggravation and pure irritation. Whilst researching for my trip to the highlands which by the way was unreal and cannot recommend enough, I came across an article on midges which described our 2 winged friends as mini mosquitos to which stupidly I thought “I’ve been to Asia, all you need is citrous shower gel and repellent then I’ll be fine” It was not fine…
They aren’t anything like mosquitos, they are more like vampires biting and only appearing at night! (Well dusk and dawn) Whilst camping in Glencoe my left hand actually changed ethnicity that’s how many swarmed me. Every single spec you see in the picture above is a highlands Midge!
Only the female midges bite which is typical women behaviour, do anything they can to prevent a boys night out. To be fair to the female midges in the world the male midges are just as annoying, as they’re the ones who stay floating in the air from your toes to your head.
Just so you’re aware midges aren’t big fans of any sort of wind, someone could fart and they would disperse. If you’re like me and actually have self respect, I would suggest making your own wind by waving your arms or walking as midges struggle in those climates. I would also suggest making sure you have fire wood and fire lighters as smoke is their kryptonite. It’s crazy how quickly you’ll see them disappear as soon as you have a fire a blaze.
I wouldn’t waste your time with bug spray, even the ones with 50% deet don’t work. Obviously bug spray is still handy to have cause there still could be mosquitoes around but don’t assume if you spray your whole body it won’t attract them. To be brutally honest, nothing really works in regards to stopping them blitzing you, it’s just luck of the draw when it comes to how bad they are during the hours of dusk and dawn.
The one thing I definitely suggest you get before travelling is a face net as this is an absolute lifesaver especially when you’re being attacked whilst setting up your tent or even just making a fire.
While I’ve voiced my frustrations about the midges quite a bit, looking back, they’re not as disruptive as I am making them out to be. Sure, they can be a nuisance when you’re trying to relax, and their bites may be annoyingly itchy as you try to drift off, but you are in the Scottish Highlands, the best highlands in the world! I know my advice has no credibility but my suggestions are: put your face net on, tuck your trousers into your socks, tuck your sleeves into some gloves i.e. have no skin they can buffet on and get your fire going pronto. Once the fire is going you can take off some layers and get your tent set up for a night of star gazing underneath the most breathtaking scenery the UK and possible Europe has to offer.
If you are worried about where you get the anti highland midges face net from. You get it from here – Face Nets
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