Mosquitoes in Alaska & Canada: How to Keep Them from Driving You Mad!

Are the mosquitoes in Alaska really as bad as they are rumored to be?  It depends.  As environmental educators we recognize, and even respect, the important role that mosquitos play in the ecosystem, but that doesn’t mean we have to enjoy them.  While traveling through Canada and Alaska this summer, we have found that the rumors about flying and biting insects are (mostly) true -- in fact, there are 35 different species of mosquitoes up here and the females of all but a few species will risk dining on humans.  What we really need is to maintain a healthy habitat for bats, birds, and dragonflies!  But I digress...

The bugs here are certainly not the worst we’ve ever seen...by a long shot. So far Alaska’s got nuthin’ on the bug population on the upper peninsula of Michigan in early July or the coast of Maine in June!  It's also important to note that we've been in some parts of Canada and Alaska (e.g., Juneau, Haines, Glacier Bay National Park, Wrangell St. Elias National Park, Gulkana Glacier, etc.) with almost no bugs whatsoever.  But, when they are "a bit thick" as the locals say, we have employed some key strategies which have served us well. Instead of just Deeting up or building a smoky fire every time we want to be outside, here are a few key items with which we arm ourselves: 

Thermacell Mosquito Repeller:  We wouldn’t have believed that these magical devices work as advertised, but we trusted the advice of a new friend who lives in the Yukon Territory, Canada.  He swears by them in the summer, so we promptly armed ourselves with 2 units plus some refills.  We have found them to be absolutely worth the investment and have kept us enjoying cooking, and just being outside without having to suit up every time.  If it’s really buggy, we position one on the ground just outside Hamlet’s door to keep them away from the screen, so we can open and close the door, come in and out without worrying about letting in the hoard.  We even took one of them into the backcountry with us on our recent Glacier Bay National Park paddling trip!  They recharge off of any USB/12V system, such as our Phoenix 300 PowerStation or our truck’s utility port while driving.

The Original Bug Shirt + Frog Toggs Rain Pants (Mens & Womens):  When the bugs are REALLY bad, like swarming and instantly biting, we suit up in both of these lightweight, yet bite proof barriers and can enjoy hiking without swatting, running, and generally losing our minds. The Original Bug Shirt is made in Ontario, Canada and has an attached hood with face net to keep the bugs off your face, ears, and out of your hair.  Both items are quite comfortable, and the rain pants stand up to the job of keeping moisture out, too.

Sierra Designs Screenhouse Room:  We used this tent all last summer while living and working on the coast of Maine.  It's roomy when set-up (168" x 120") and it folds down relatively small, so it fits well into our life with limited storage.  It takes a bit more time to set up and stake down (about 15 minutes) than the “easy up” tents, but we love the hands-free, magnetic doors which allow us to carry things in and out without having to set them down, unzip, rezip, repeat, etc. every time we enter/leave the tent.  Also, Sierra Designs perfected the “threshold” so that there is no tripping hazard (can’t tell you how many times we did that with our previous tent!) and it has a good coverage over the top to keep most of the moisture and sun off of you and your stuff. 

Coghlan's Mosquito Bed Net:  As a last resort (and we’ve only had to employ this strategy once while camping in the Northwest Territories, Canada), we put a bug net over our bed in Hamlet.  The bugs were so thick and we simply couldn’t find where the little buggers were coming in, so instead of making ourselves absolutely crazy, we installed the net over the bed and slept comfortably knowing we weren’t going to get eaten alive in the middle of the night.  We haven’t need it since then, but it gives us some peace of mind knowing that we can sleep comfortably with a cloud of bugs outside of our door.

Which mosquito prevention strategies have you employed that have worked well for you?  Let us know, we'd love to try them.  Check out our website for more resources for RVing to Alaska!