Scottish midges

[snorri]

. Diese Midges

Educate him on the spelling please, singular Midgie, plural midgies.
All he has to do is cycle in excess of 5kph, and they won't catch him, easy.
Can't say I have ever been bothered by midgies in Edinburgh, Glasgow or Thurso so he'll be fine.
This guy sounds like a bit of a wimp, I thought it was the Spitfires that saved Britain, now I realise it was the fear of midgies and fear of the cold.

 

[Telemark]

All he has to do is cycle in excess of 5kph, and they won't catch him, easy.
Can't say I have ever been bothered by midgies in Edinburgh, Glasgow or Thurso so he'll be fine.

that'll be a non-stop ride then, unless the wind picks up .

Sorry to destroy your image of a midgie-free Edinburgh, there's clouds of them at my allotment rising out of the strawberry patch and the beans (at least there were over the last few years, it's too early yet to tell for this year) . Only a problem if it's a nice calm evening, rather than the usual breezy conditions .

T

 

[scots_lass]

Tell him to be careful of the sabre-wielding haggis hiding in the heather !

 

[fossyant]

Is the issue in evenings near water then - never had an issue in the North West, until we went camping last year near a river in Hayfield......(like just down the road from where I live) loads of the buggers having a munch - fortunately, someone brought some spray for our faces......

No issues at a campsite a couple of miles a way (local scout camp).....and I've been at that site a fair bit, but it's in the hills.

 

[graham56]

Some big annoying Midges in Scotland, especially that Ure tw@t.

 

[guitarpete247]

Midges are rife from March to October. One answer is Avon's "Skin-So-Soft" as used by the Royal Marine Commandos on duty at Faslane. I think it was their wives who put them onto it. I found it worked last year. It is only the West coast that has the problem but the West coast is by far the prettiest.

 

[snorri]

Sorry to destroy your image of a midgie-free Edinburgh, there's clouds of them at my allotment rising out of the strawberry patch and the beans

Sure, well, maybe sometimes, but he's not going to be cycling through your allotment.

 

[Telemark]

Sure, well, maybe sometimes, but he's not going to be cycling through your allotment.

I hope not ... he might eat my strawberries, but then again the midgies would rise to their defense and take revenge (natural crop protection)

T

 

[slowmotion]

I know this has been discussed elsewhere, but does "Jungle Formula" work to keep away the little bastards? I think it is Deet-based, but it certainly has powerful chemicals. I slopped some onto my face once. Half an hour later I picked up a plastic-bodied camera. My fingerprints were etched into the plastic. Oh well...a very small price to pay for keeping them away. Totally evil.

 

[darkstar]

Hmmm i was planning on doing LeJog in september, this thread has got me slightly worried!

 

[Globalti]

There have been books written about the Scottish midge. It's even thought that the midge has been responsible for Scotland's under-development as an economy over the centuries because all through the summer they make it impossible for anybody to work outdoors. As somebody else wrote above, visitors can't believe that such a tiny insect can have such an effect but I can well remember countless holidays in Scotland where you would arrive at the camp site and straight away clock the fact that nobody is outside and all tents are firmly zipped shut despite the humidity and the warmth. We have abandoned plenty of holidays and fled home and this is what causes so much damage to the economy.

 

[ufkacbln]

Sure, well, maybe sometimes, but he's not going to be cycling through your allotment.

Depends on his navigation skills!

 

[Bad Company]

The midges are OK. It's the Scots you have to watch.

 

[Globalti]

Maybe, just maybe, with the spring having been so cold and even freezing at nights the midges will have a bad season this year.

 

[Theseus]

It might be worth waiting for the portable version of the device shown at the end of this talk.