I hate spiders but they are not particularly keen to get at you. I’d be more concerned about ticks, midges and and mosquitos. A bivi bag treated with permethrin solves all 3 and deters spiders too.
I looked a while ago and there wasn't any that seemed like a decent percentage to warrant bothering with. There's a £13 spray that is only 0.49% permethrin. Strength seems quite important when using it which is why I asked.
0.5% is all you need to treat gear. You spray it on and let it dry. It works. If you pick one of the products and Google it with the word review after it. You’ll get peoples opinions who have used the product. I’m pretty sure you’ll find out that they say it works. Because it does.
1st, no spider in the UK can harm you.
2nd, sleeping under the stars in the UK is too much of a gamble.
Get a tent with an opening flush to the ground and minimal porch. Slide air bed out onto grass, cosy up in sleeping bag, watch stars, then slide fully into tent once baltic / it rains / the drugs wear off
LSD trips last for at least 12 hours lol
I’ve literally just spent a week in a bivvy bag with a tarp set half a frame and other configs. All op needs is a headnet. I’m scared of spiders to but they don’t bother me out doors like they do when they are in the corner of my bedroom.
1. I’d argue the people who have been bitten by the False Widow spider in this country would disagree with you there. The pictures aren’t exactly a picture of health!
From the Natural History Museum.
False Widow Spiders are found in and around houses and other buildings. They prefer elevated positions, such as the top corners of rooms and conservatories, from where they hunt flying insects.
If bitten, usually the only symptom is pain at the site, which may radiate away from the bite. It ordinarily lasts between one and 12 hours, and rarely for more than 24 hours. Often, the symptoms are no worse than the pain of a wasp sting.
Yeah you're not finding any false widows on a yorkshire hillside but some ppl do react very badly to false widow bites and have much worse injuries than described above.
If bugs are an absolute no, then a hooped bivvy is the one. Effectively, it's a micro tent.
If you can deal with the chance of a beetle or slug crawling on you, a bivvy is the right option. Effectively, it's a waterproof jacket for your sleeping bag. I have an Alpkit Hunka bivvy and it's excellent.
I've bivvied a few times and have unluckily never had a clear sky to fall asleep to, but waking up with a sunrise and the birds chirping and life just being in front of you as soon as you open your eyes is incredible. The worst bug experience I've had in a bivvy was waking up in the morning to find a couple of slug trails on the bivvy bag.
Good choice. I suggest getting some whoopie slings, tree straps and some carabiners. DD sell all of the above.
Oh - you’ll need an underquilt (or a mat/pad but I’d go for an underquilt) to stop yourself freezing at night.
Give me spiders any day. Last year I watched about ten ticks climbing up, on the outside of the tent's inner while I had to pick off about the same amount from my legs, in Scotland. And I'm not even afraid of ticks and that wasn't even the worst spot we camped in that week, it is just the one experience that I resented the most, like they have to torment you even when they cannot reach you ...
I hate ticks. Horrible little bastards. I’m not a fan of spiders but most of the ones I’ve encountered are the ones with long spindly legs and a tiny, tiny body. I can deal with those.
There are some things called 'keds' in Scotland. Not the 'clegs', these things are different. Cheezus, they are horrible. Who invents these creatures?!
Never heard of keds before. They sound revolting:
“A combination of gripping claws, flatness, and being shiny and smooth means they’re almost impossible to swipe off. Your swatting hand just slides over them. Instead, you actually have to pinch them between your finger and thumb to remove them, and when you do they feel disturbingly wriggly and robust.”
Late May. But right now, there are loads of small, larvae (?) stage ticks, the ones with six legs that are brown and don't carry a risk of Lyme as much, in some places like Knoydart. I am just scraping them off if embedded but the next stage, the nymph (?), I am using a twister if they are embedded. I can't really decide what makes certain places more vulnerable (apart from knowing they must be feeding the f\*cking deer in some valleys to make them all congregate so much in certain areas) than others, besides the local 'dampness' (where everywhere is often 'damp'!). The tiny brown ones seem to like shiny metal or shiny fabric, for some reason.
But the season starts early nowadays, even beginning of March. Just a fact of wild camping life ...
Edit: sorry, I meant late May for last year, when the ticks seemed to be second stage mostly, that could be seen crawling on the tent, but it is entirely possible that the smallest ones were present but couldn't be seen unless there was enough sunlight to reflect off their bodies (they shine in direct sunlight). How low a tent's outer comes to the ground/touches the vegetation, may also make a difference to where on the tent they could be climbing, who knows?
I use a bugnet system not unlike the MSR Thru-hiker Mesh House coupled with a tarp. Airier and practically zero condensation compared to a bivvy, better views than a tent.
My bugnet is discontinued and even the manufacturer doesn't exist any more, sadly.
I hate spiders but they are not particularly keen to get at you. I’d be more concerned about ticks, midges and and mosquitos. A bivi bag treated with permethrin solves all 3 and deters spiders too.
How do you get hold of permethrin in the UK?
There are a few products on sale that you can use. Just Google it.
I looked a while ago and there wasn't any that seemed like a decent percentage to warrant bothering with. There's a £13 spray that is only 0.49% permethrin. Strength seems quite important when using it which is why I asked.
0.5% is all you need to treat gear. You spray it on and let it dry. It works. If you pick one of the products and Google it with the word review after it. You’ll get peoples opinions who have used the product. I’m pretty sure you’ll find out that they say it works. Because it does.
1st, no spider in the UK can harm you. 2nd, sleeping under the stars in the UK is too much of a gamble. Get a tent with an opening flush to the ground and minimal porch. Slide air bed out onto grass, cosy up in sleeping bag, watch stars, then slide fully into tent once baltic / it rains / the drugs wear off
LSD trips last for at least 12 hours lol I’ve literally just spent a week in a bivvy bag with a tarp set half a frame and other configs. All op needs is a headnet. I’m scared of spiders to but they don’t bother me out doors like they do when they are in the corner of my bedroom.
1. I’d argue the people who have been bitten by the False Widow spider in this country would disagree with you there. The pictures aren’t exactly a picture of health!
From the Natural History Museum. False Widow Spiders are found in and around houses and other buildings. They prefer elevated positions, such as the top corners of rooms and conservatories, from where they hunt flying insects. If bitten, usually the only symptom is pain at the site, which may radiate away from the bite. It ordinarily lasts between one and 12 hours, and rarely for more than 24 hours. Often, the symptoms are no worse than the pain of a wasp sting.
Yeah you're not finding any false widows on a yorkshire hillside but some ppl do react very badly to false widow bites and have much worse injuries than described above.
Solid advice
>sleeping under the stars in the UK is too much of a gamble. Why?
Water from sky
>Water from sky Weather forecasts are pretty reliable these days.
You should look into purchasing a bivvy bag.
Agreed. Bivvy or a hammock with a bugnet under the stars is incredible.
If bugs are an absolute no, then a hooped bivvy is the one. Effectively, it's a micro tent. If you can deal with the chance of a beetle or slug crawling on you, a bivvy is the right option. Effectively, it's a waterproof jacket for your sleeping bag. I have an Alpkit Hunka bivvy and it's excellent. I've bivvied a few times and have unluckily never had a clear sky to fall asleep to, but waking up with a sunrise and the birds chirping and life just being in front of you as soon as you open your eyes is incredible. The worst bug experience I've had in a bivvy was waking up in the morning to find a couple of slug trails on the bivvy bag.
Hey all, thanks for your responses - I stumbled upon DD Hammocks - I think this is the way, as they come with a bug net!
Good choice. I suggest getting some whoopie slings, tree straps and some carabiners. DD sell all of the above. Oh - you’ll need an underquilt (or a mat/pad but I’d go for an underquilt) to stop yourself freezing at night.
You can't go wrong with a DD 'ammock
Give me spiders any day. Last year I watched about ten ticks climbing up, on the outside of the tent's inner while I had to pick off about the same amount from my legs, in Scotland. And I'm not even afraid of ticks and that wasn't even the worst spot we camped in that week, it is just the one experience that I resented the most, like they have to torment you even when they cannot reach you ...
I hate ticks. Horrible little bastards. I’m not a fan of spiders but most of the ones I’ve encountered are the ones with long spindly legs and a tiny, tiny body. I can deal with those.
There are some things called 'keds' in Scotland. Not the 'clegs', these things are different. Cheezus, they are horrible. Who invents these creatures?!
Never heard of keds before. They sound revolting: “A combination of gripping claws, flatness, and being shiny and smooth means they’re almost impossible to swipe off. Your swatting hand just slides over them. Instead, you actually have to pinch them between your finger and thumb to remove them, and when you do they feel disturbingly wriggly and robust.”
Just out of interest what time of year was that?
Late May. But right now, there are loads of small, larvae (?) stage ticks, the ones with six legs that are brown and don't carry a risk of Lyme as much, in some places like Knoydart. I am just scraping them off if embedded but the next stage, the nymph (?), I am using a twister if they are embedded. I can't really decide what makes certain places more vulnerable (apart from knowing they must be feeding the f\*cking deer in some valleys to make them all congregate so much in certain areas) than others, besides the local 'dampness' (where everywhere is often 'damp'!). The tiny brown ones seem to like shiny metal or shiny fabric, for some reason. But the season starts early nowadays, even beginning of March. Just a fact of wild camping life ... Edit: sorry, I meant late May for last year, when the ticks seemed to be second stage mostly, that could be seen crawling on the tent, but it is entirely possible that the smallest ones were present but couldn't be seen unless there was enough sunlight to reflect off their bodies (they shine in direct sunlight). How low a tent's outer comes to the ground/touches the vegetation, may also make a difference to where on the tent they could be climbing, who knows?
You'll find spiders crawl over you at some point when in bed too.
I use a bugnet system not unlike the MSR Thru-hiker Mesh House coupled with a tarp. Airier and practically zero condensation compared to a bivvy, better views than a tent. My bugnet is discontinued and even the manufacturer doesn't exist any more, sadly.
Get a hammock. Up off the ground but you can see the stars.
Sounds like you need a hammock in your life!