Ticks in Idaho? Elk Archery Hunt

[TN VOL]

Hey guys my son and I are going on our first elk archery hunt in Idaho sept 8-20 and was wondering about ticks in Idaho. Does anyone have any experience with hunting central Idaho and dealing with ticks? Here in TN we got eat up with them in Turkey season, which I. some years where we turkey hunt we don’t get in them much, then some years they’re terrible. We will be hunting 7,000-10,000ft in elevation not sure if ticks are up in higher elevation or not..thanks for any feedback

 

[Deleted member 28227]

I personally haven’t seen many ticks in the mountain west in the fall, they are definitely out, but it’s not usually a major concern.

 

[KayakMacGyver]

Not Idaho, but in have similar considerations hunting in Colorado. Coming from Florida, I deal with ticks all year long unfortunately. The ticks out west freak me out though, as the tick borne diseases are much more prevalent out there. At least anecdotally that's my understanding.

I spray down all my outerwear with Sawyers permethrin. You can find it in the camping section at Wal Mart or most sporting good stores. It's a spray on repellent specifically made for clothing and gear that lasts up to 6 weeks or 6 washes. Works tremendously when I use it as directed in Florida and, knock on wood, haven't had a tick issue yet hunting out west.

Good luck in ID!

 

[TN VOL]

Thanks guys! Good luck to everyone! I’ve had friends get rocky Mtn tick fever from ticks here in TN..I hate ticks, I’ve been covered in seed ticks and several other species of ticks and spend days freaking out while sleeping that they’re still on me lol.

 

[diamond hitch]

I'm not aware of any ticks in Montana or Idaho after the first week of hot weather in July.

 

[kwyeewyk]

I've never worried about ticks when hunting in the forested areas of Washington, every tick I've ever found came from sagebrush areas. I did shoot a whitetail doe in MT near Thompson Falls (at lower elevation, not up high) in late October that had hundreds if not thousands of ticks covering her whole body though, so it seems like you could find some if the circumstances were right, but I wouldn't loose sleep over it.

 

[406LIFE]

While I'm not overly concerned about them, I've regularly found ticks while archery hunting ID.

 

[jdf]

My experience in Idaho in backcountry this past May with ticks was like nothing I've seen before.
We have lots ticks in Pennsylvania but Idaho in May was new level.
Multiple days my wife and I had over 100 ticks on us. At night they would crawl out of our clothes and onto us while sleepi
It was actually unreal.

 

[TN VOL]

Ok..now I’m thinking we need to spray our clothes down before hunting perhaps..they suck literally lol

 

[GrantK]

Ticks in the west tend to be a spring issue, I've hunted ID archery for 5 years and haven't seen one yet, same for CO, I definitely wouldn't worry about repellant, just more stuff for elk to smell.

 

[jvanhoy]

I hunt that time frame in CO and WY every year from 8500-10000 and have never had a tick on me.

 

[belshawelk]

More of a spring issue but we had a real tick problem in Eastern Oregon. Definitely on the uptick

 

[Magnum Sherpa]

Spray your clothing down with permethrin before you go and let it dry. It will be effective for at least a month and it has no scent when dry. Another plus is that it will repel mosquitoes if any are still out.

 

[ChrisC]

Corey Jacobsen has a video about ticks in Idaho. If I recall correctly, he and his partner got 100+ on them on a shed hunting trip (they count them in the video). Not sure if they are as active in the fall.

 

[Gerald Martin]

I've never worried about ticks when hunting in the forested areas of Washington, every tick I've ever found came from sagebrush areas. I did shoot a whitetail doe in MT near Thompson Falls (at lower elevation, not up high) in late October that had hundreds if not thousands of ticks covering her whole body though, so it seems like you could find some if the circumstances were right, but I wouldn't loose sleep over it.

Those ticks were deer lice. They look similar but they are not the wood and dog ticks so prevalent in the spring in that area.
I have never gotten a tick on me in the fall. In the spring.... hundreds https://www.google.com/search?kgmid...0&source=sh/x/kp/osrp&entrypoint=sh/x/kp/osrp

 

[utah400elk]

The only time I have found a tick on me out west was after shooting an elk. I had Skinned and quartered the elk. That night I found a tick crawling on my leg. That was the only time I have found one in over 25 years elk hunting

 

[diamond hitch]

I never said they weren't there pre- july. In fact I have seen them in March in the sage.

 

[kwyeewyk]

Those ticks were deer lice. They look similar but they are not the wood and dog ticks so prevalent in the spring in that area.
I have never gotten a tick on me in the fall. In the spring.... hundreds https://www.google.com/search?kgmid...0&source=sh/x/kp/osrp&entrypoint=sh/x/kp/osrp

May have been, I didn't look too close, just skinned her off as fast as I could and got out of there.

 

[Werty]

Spray your clothes and go hunt.

 

[Hilljackoutlaw]

I get dozens upon dozens of them crawling on me April thru June checking cameras and what not. The rest of the year I have never had one on me. I spend atleast 3 days a week in the woods all year long. You have no need to worry about ticks when you will be here.