June blackfly conditions in Catskills?

[Art]

I am planning to backpack in the Slide Mtn / Giant Ledge area of the Catskills in early June. How bad should I expect the blackflies to be? Also, I've heard that they are generally worse at higher elevations than in the valleys, but that doesn't sound right, is it?

 

[Mark Schaefer]

I do a fair amount of June hiking in the Catskills, and I have never encountered biting black flies. Hopefully others who have will post their experiences. From reports that I have seen the season in the Catskills is generally late May through June, perhaps a 1-2 weeks ahead of the Adirondack High Peaks. It varies widely based on weather. As everywhere else they hatch out earlier at lower elevations and later at higher elevations. They can be bad at any level - just on a different schedule. There are wide temperature variations in June -- so it is difficult to predict how bad the black flies will be for you backpack. They tend to be out on warmer days, while cooler days may have no bugs of any kind.

Even if you do not encounter black flies the gnats, mosquitos, deer ticks, and pesky (but non-biting) May flies can be bothersome. So plan to have repellent with you. But in general the bugs in the Catskills aren't as bad as in the Adirondacks and other northern mountains.

 

[Jay H]

I concur with Mark, haven't really seen too bad a black fly problem, compared to the ADKs anyway in the catskills. They have bugs, biting ones and mosquitos but the black flies are not as bad as the ADKs.

Typically, I don't hike too much in the summer, at least recently, as I've kind of spent a lot of time on the water in my kayak when it gets hot out.

Jay