Newcomer

[scotsgent]

Richard Claydon is 2 hours away on mostly 'A' roads.

A long trek but do-able in a couple of hours, but he may know someone nearer.

I agree, it would be a full days driving there and back to get to Robert Johnston.

Cheers, Terry

[Rumpelchen_W]

Thanks a lot for your hint with the midges.
I allready have read about this but know i am a little bit "scared"
So after your suggestion with the skin so soft cream, i started an internet research and only found the Avon Body Spray with jojoba and citronella.
Is this what you are talking about?
We know that we are in the middle of nowhere we start our journey in newcastle drive 1 week the east cost up over Durness west cost down isle of sky and then one week in the loneliness ( the midges and us)

I will try to sent an email to Richard Claydon, but i think a one day trip is to long, because my fellow-traveller are all BorderCollie Owners and not interested in gunddogtraining. But maybe we can connect it with a nice day trip for them. We will see

So i´m happy for other hints and proposals.

Expectant and full of pleasant anticipation greetings to you

[Nickheref]

I haven't been up to Scotland for some time, but I am heading up there soon to do some training. I'd forgotten how bad the midges can be. Frantically ordering Avon Skin So Soft now!

Some years ago I was fishing in Sutherland and liberally applied Jungle Juice to any exposed parts, it worked very well but I was slightly concerned when I looked at my Swatch watch and realised it was being dissolved by the JJ!!

[trekmoor]

That happened to me too about 45 years ago. The midge repellent melted most plastics.

Wullie

[Nickheref]

I was fishing with a pretty tough keeper mate from Wales who declined to use repellent on the first night, I think he thought we were a bit soft, he lasted all of 20 minutes before he arrived begging for some!!

[scotsgent]

I spent 25 years working for Outward Bound at their LochEil centre, Fort Willam as a mountaineering and sailing Instructor and then another 15 years as a keen fly fisher. I still live here.

I can tell you the following for sure:

Bright sunshine; no midgies
Any breeze: no midgies
Wind and rain, no midgies
before May, (generally): no midgies
After September: (generally): no midgies

Dull, windless evening or early morning, in the Highlands: plenty of midgies.

So, you can see that during any week or two, even in the summer here, its quite possible for there to be NO midgie problem at all.

Avon-skin-so soft is a myth! Deet based repellents are the only things that work (a bit).

One of the reasons that confusion abounds is that there is never a classic, consistent midgie attack: it can be mild, or bad, or very bad, or terrifying, thus when folks try a repellent during a mild attack they think the stuff has worked because they were'nt too badly affected. The reality is that the creatures never really got going!

Why do you think there are upwards of 100 different repellents? Because non of them work!

See here, Avon-skin-so-soft was tested and found to be useless and note the obvious! - Avon do NOT promote there product as an insect repellent - if it worked, then they would!
https://www.consumerreports.org/insect- ... bug-spray/

Remember the 'Midgie eaters' of a few years ago/ (A machine which you positioned in your garden, it gave out C02 gas that was supposed to mimic the breathing out of a mammal and thus attracted midgies to a blood meal). For a couple of years here it was the talk of the town. Lots of folks here bought them for a couple of hundred quid and raved about their effectiveness - the effect of the 'Emperors new Clothes' struck again and if you did'nt own one you were considered to be backward!

Guess what? You couldn't buy one anywhere these days even if you wanted to - they didnt work, they never did - folks just wanted them to and thus convinced themselves they did!

The Avon stuff is the same thing - absolutely NO component of this skin softener has any scientific anti-insect repelent properties, it can't work! All the gubbins you read about the Royal Marines using it is just tosh I am afraid.

Buy a midgie head-net, some DEET based repelent and keep your eye on the forecast weather conditions.

Cheers, Terry

[Jangles]

Another possibility is to contact the Moray Firth Spaniel and Retriever Club (based around Inverness area) in advance of your trip as they may have a training session (evenings) running the time you are over here. The General Club Sec lives close to Inverness which is about 60 miles from Kinlochewe. Their website has all the contact details :

https://mfsrc.co.uk/

All very helpful and knowledgeable people.

Jangles

[Rumpelchen_W]

Thanks @scotsgent für your detailed post.
I will follow your Suggestion and buy a midgeheadnet
and a reppellent with DEET inside.
Additionally we cross fingers for brezzy sunshine.

Thanks @jangles dir your idea, i will ask them.