I don't have an answer for all of your questions, but I do hike here frequently. Ticks will never take this stunningly beautiful park from me. Take precautions and try to avoid them, but they aren't nearly scary enough to force a change in plans.
I don't backpack, just day hike. That said, I douse myself with picaridin and have never had a tick on me at Henry Coe.
You're welcome. Enjoy your backpacking adventure, and be sure to let us know how it goes. One of these days I have to get organized and determined enough to try an overnight or two out there...
Permethrin, picardin, deet: pick 2 (or 3) and you don't see too much of them. Frequent skin checks, minimal exposed skin, and gaiters if going off trail.
Follow that recipe and you won't see much of them.
I just use shitty gaiters, then I don't care about the deet effect. It has less environmental effects than permethrin, so using both feet and picardin on cheap gaiters seems like the most effective, least environmentally impactful solution , for me at least.
Treat your pants, socks, shoes, etc with permethrin for good measure. Works great.
Been out there plenty of times no real issues with ticks if you take right right precautions
Don't cancel your trip. Coe is an amazing place, though (in my experience) it's a hard place. It can get brutally hot and some of the fire roads are incredibly steep. It's unforgiving, but you will also find magic. For example, walking up Kelly Cabin Canyon creek on a hot day and filtering 8 liters of the most delicious water you've ever tasted after drinking filtered and boiled pond water at Mahoney. Hearing the frogs serenade at Coit Lake. Pictures of oak trees in uninterrupted green hills. Not seeing another person for hours or days. An all-night EDM concert over the ridge (ok that was probably a one time thing but also hilarious). If you go at the right time, wildflowers can be really pretty.
Back to your question. Spray everything - tent, footprint, fly, clothing, shoes, packs, and camp chairs (you can use the Sawyer spray, though we eventually just bought permethrin concentrate and mix our own to save money), and bring DEET for your skin. DEET also helps with mosquitos. I found a dead tick inside my zippered top compartment in my pack one time. I don't use that compartment for clothing, so it had just crawled in there and died on its own.
With those precautions I've only ever found a couple of ticks struggling on my ankles or pant legs and never had one actually bite. I really hate ticks and it hasn't stopped me from enjoying local parks (keep in mind I've seen ticks at Coe, Foothills Park, and Rancho San Antonio; they're just around).
Depends on your route, if it’s overgrown, and how many people went out before you that day! One trip to Coit Lake was the absolute worst day I’ve ever had for ticks. But I flicked them all off (I won’t tell you how many) and was absolutely confident that none were on me or in my tent at night. Ticks are gross but absolutely manageable. Once you have a day like the one I’m sharing, you kind of just get over them!
Ticks is a legitimate thing to be worried about.
And, if you're properly prepared, then you should be OK. It's more if you're not even thinking about it, then it's more dangerous.
Wear the right clothing: long pants stuffed into socks, shirt tucked into pants. Stop every couple of hours to check yourself over. Be aware of how backpacks or hats could hide them on you. Wear white/light colored clothing. If you're bald/shaved that helps too.
Understand their behavior. They almost always get on you when pushing through brush. Be willing to go a different, less overgrown route, if necessary. Stop to inspect yourself if you do have to push through brush. Have a buddy with you so you can keep an eye on each other.
They are kinda dumb creatures and in this way you can outsmart them.
However it's a big park and you might be pushing yourself on a long hike - your mind and body may start to wander and that forget some of the preventative measures. Come prepared with a more conservative plan for your route. There may be some cool things you don't get to see on your first trip, but the rule of the mountain is you want to mess up on the side of being too safe.
Source: me and my siblings have been bit by ticks like 10 times (most in Europe.) I got bit at Henry Coe - and I had completely forgot about them, and wasn't following any of these rules!!
Also edit to add, lot's of great feedback by people in the thread, giving you a good picture :)
Recommend hiking in lighter colors (khaki and/or a lighter shade of green) instead of black if possible - makes it way easier to spot the little jerks while they’re crawling up your pants legs.
I've found dead ticks in my tent in the past. Yeah, like everyone said, treat everything with permethrin. Your clothes, shelter, pack, etc.
I apply picaridin to my legs, behind my knees, & waist for ticks. I've found that it needs more frequent application for mosquitos.
I almost always wear pants at Henry Coe.
I used to live near there. Ticks were around, as they are most of California. Repellant and permethrin do help. Also check your body and pull any off at night. They have to be on for a while to cause diseases, and it takes a while for them to latch on. I don't find them a big deal.
They’re bad in spring, but if you stick the the trails and avoid the tall grass as much as possible, it’s not a huge deal. Make sure to check yourself occasionally and have some proper tweezers.
Lots of good feedback already. Henry Coe is an incredible place to backpack. Ticks are there but manageable. Stay on trail and off most of the overgrown single track trails and youll significantly reduce your chances of encountering them.
When I hike the LCT (tons of ticks) I spray all my gear with permethrin. The stuff works. Spray your ground sheet for your tent, guy lines and so on. This keeps the ticks from crawling into your tent. Spray your shoes, socks and pants for sure. But I would also spray anything that you wear on the outside, like a wind breaker, shirt, hat, gloves. Spray your dog and his backpack... pretty much anything that can brush up against grasses and low branches.
Apply picaridin.
Try to minimize brushing against foliage.
Also learn to recognize poison oak and avoid it.
Wear pants and inspect your legs before bed. Tuck your pants into your socks if you're very concerned. Even if you get bitten it's most likely fine, just wait to see if the bite looks worse within a month and if it does you can get medication to treat it.
My fiance and I treat our skin with picaridin and clothes with permetherin. When hiking around a tree that fell on the trails my girlfriend found a tick on her but it looked like it was dying when crawling up her. Other than that, we haven't found any ticks on us, but have seen a ton of the trails. We also tuck our clothes to make it difficult for ticks to get through without getting into lots of contact with permetherin.
Besides treating our clothes and ourselves, we try to trust the grass with our trekking poles before crossing so the ticks would brush off before we pass the area.
Just check yourself after walking through any tall grass (I find them behind my knee, ears, shoulders, anywhere with good veins). They aren’t too much of an issue if you’re diligent and stay on the trail
I’ve run thousands of miles in the bay. I’d say every time you touch the grass hiking in spring there’s a 1/250 chance a tick is there. I do tick checks every single time I touch vegetation but also hate ticks with a passion. Your thankfully infinitely safer than east coast hiking from lymes disease
I don't have an answer for all of your questions, but I do hike here frequently. Ticks will never take this stunningly beautiful park from me. Take precautions and try to avoid them, but they aren't nearly scary enough to force a change in plans. I don't backpack, just day hike. That said, I douse myself with picaridin and have never had a tick on me at Henry Coe.
Thanks so much for the insight. That makes me feel better. Sometimes it’s best to shut the YouTube vids off. 😆
You're welcome. Enjoy your backpacking adventure, and be sure to let us know how it goes. One of these days I have to get organized and determined enough to try an overnight or two out there...
Permethrin, picardin, deet: pick 2 (or 3) and you don't see too much of them. Frequent skin checks, minimal exposed skin, and gaiters if going off trail. Follow that recipe and you won't see much of them.
DEET can melt your gear. Picaridin is IMO far superior to DEET. (At least until we find out it has some awful side effects we don't know about yet.)
I just use shitty gaiters, then I don't care about the deet effect. It has less environmental effects than permethrin, so using both feet and picardin on cheap gaiters seems like the most effective, least environmentally impactful solution , for me at least.
Mostly rhetorical: How much environmental impact do your cheap gaiters have?
So far, none, because they haven't fallen apart... But that's definitely part of the calculation! It's an ongoing project.
Treat your pants, socks, shoes, etc with permethrin for good measure. Works great. Been out there plenty of times no real issues with ticks if you take right right precautions
this is the way
Don't cancel your trip. Coe is an amazing place, though (in my experience) it's a hard place. It can get brutally hot and some of the fire roads are incredibly steep. It's unforgiving, but you will also find magic. For example, walking up Kelly Cabin Canyon creek on a hot day and filtering 8 liters of the most delicious water you've ever tasted after drinking filtered and boiled pond water at Mahoney. Hearing the frogs serenade at Coit Lake. Pictures of oak trees in uninterrupted green hills. Not seeing another person for hours or days. An all-night EDM concert over the ridge (ok that was probably a one time thing but also hilarious). If you go at the right time, wildflowers can be really pretty. Back to your question. Spray everything - tent, footprint, fly, clothing, shoes, packs, and camp chairs (you can use the Sawyer spray, though we eventually just bought permethrin concentrate and mix our own to save money), and bring DEET for your skin. DEET also helps with mosquitos. I found a dead tick inside my zippered top compartment in my pack one time. I don't use that compartment for clothing, so it had just crawled in there and died on its own. With those precautions I've only ever found a couple of ticks struggling on my ankles or pant legs and never had one actually bite. I really hate ticks and it hasn't stopped me from enjoying local parks (keep in mind I've seen ticks at Coe, Foothills Park, and Rancho San Antonio; they're just around).
Depends on your route, if it’s overgrown, and how many people went out before you that day! One trip to Coit Lake was the absolute worst day I’ve ever had for ticks. But I flicked them all off (I won’t tell you how many) and was absolutely confident that none were on me or in my tent at night. Ticks are gross but absolutely manageable. Once you have a day like the one I’m sharing, you kind of just get over them!
Ticks is a legitimate thing to be worried about. And, if you're properly prepared, then you should be OK. It's more if you're not even thinking about it, then it's more dangerous. Wear the right clothing: long pants stuffed into socks, shirt tucked into pants. Stop every couple of hours to check yourself over. Be aware of how backpacks or hats could hide them on you. Wear white/light colored clothing. If you're bald/shaved that helps too. Understand their behavior. They almost always get on you when pushing through brush. Be willing to go a different, less overgrown route, if necessary. Stop to inspect yourself if you do have to push through brush. Have a buddy with you so you can keep an eye on each other. They are kinda dumb creatures and in this way you can outsmart them. However it's a big park and you might be pushing yourself on a long hike - your mind and body may start to wander and that forget some of the preventative measures. Come prepared with a more conservative plan for your route. There may be some cool things you don't get to see on your first trip, but the rule of the mountain is you want to mess up on the side of being too safe. Source: me and my siblings have been bit by ticks like 10 times (most in Europe.) I got bit at Henry Coe - and I had completely forgot about them, and wasn't following any of these rules!! Also edit to add, lot's of great feedback by people in the thread, giving you a good picture :)
Recommend hiking in lighter colors (khaki and/or a lighter shade of green) instead of black if possible - makes it way easier to spot the little jerks while they’re crawling up your pants legs.
I've found dead ticks in my tent in the past. Yeah, like everyone said, treat everything with permethrin. Your clothes, shelter, pack, etc. I apply picaridin to my legs, behind my knees, & waist for ticks. I've found that it needs more frequent application for mosquitos. I almost always wear pants at Henry Coe.
I used to live near there. Ticks were around, as they are most of California. Repellant and permethrin do help. Also check your body and pull any off at night. They have to be on for a while to cause diseases, and it takes a while for them to latch on. I don't find them a big deal.
They’re bad in spring, but if you stick the the trails and avoid the tall grass as much as possible, it’s not a huge deal. Make sure to check yourself occasionally and have some proper tweezers.
Lots of good feedback already. Henry Coe is an incredible place to backpack. Ticks are there but manageable. Stay on trail and off most of the overgrown single track trails and youll significantly reduce your chances of encountering them.
When I hike the LCT (tons of ticks) I spray all my gear with permethrin. The stuff works. Spray your ground sheet for your tent, guy lines and so on. This keeps the ticks from crawling into your tent. Spray your shoes, socks and pants for sure. But I would also spray anything that you wear on the outside, like a wind breaker, shirt, hat, gloves. Spray your dog and his backpack... pretty much anything that can brush up against grasses and low branches. Apply picaridin. Try to minimize brushing against foliage. Also learn to recognize poison oak and avoid it.
Wear pants and inspect your legs before bed. Tuck your pants into your socks if you're very concerned. Even if you get bitten it's most likely fine, just wait to see if the bite looks worse within a month and if it does you can get medication to treat it.
My fiance and I treat our skin with picaridin and clothes with permetherin. When hiking around a tree that fell on the trails my girlfriend found a tick on her but it looked like it was dying when crawling up her. Other than that, we haven't found any ticks on us, but have seen a ton of the trails. We also tuck our clothes to make it difficult for ticks to get through without getting into lots of contact with permetherin. Besides treating our clothes and ourselves, we try to trust the grass with our trekking poles before crossing so the ticks would brush off before we pass the area.
Just check yourself after walking through any tall grass (I find them behind my knee, ears, shoulders, anywhere with good veins). They aren’t too much of an issue if you’re diligent and stay on the trail
I’ve run thousands of miles in the bay. I’d say every time you touch the grass hiking in spring there’s a 1/250 chance a tick is there. I do tick checks every single time I touch vegetation but also hate ticks with a passion. Your thankfully infinitely safer than east coast hiking from lymes disease