Oregon Hikers

On Saturday, I hiked from Top Spur to Elk Cove and back. The views and wildflowers were stunning. Biting flies were present the whole way, but starting at 5pm they swarmed in clouds. Pelting back to the trailhead, I passed dozens of thirty-somethings heading in to camp. One asked me hopefully whether the flies got better up the trail?

I can't remember flies this bad at the timberline level. When might we expect them to diminish?

The end of the heat wave and chilly nights will certainly help, and it takes a few weeks really for the generation to pass and it's probably too dry for another generation.

They were on Three Sisters a couple weeks ago, horrible, enough to drive you insane.

They must have a short season during which there are huge numbers. Maybe in a few weeks it will get drier and they will complete their life cycle.

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I did McNeil from Top Spur today.
No flies on the way up early. It was chilly.
Some on the way down but I used Picaridin and they weren't diggin' it.

We went partially up the Mazama trail, they were pretty obnoxious for much of the way.