We used to tell people to use DEET repellents, tuck your pants into your socks, walk in the center of the trail, and to do a thorough tick check when you get home.

Although those strategies can help reduce the risk of tick bites and disease, people didn’t like the feel of repellents on skin, or the look of long pants tucked into socks. Moreover, the poppy-seed sized nymphal deer ticks were still very hard to find.

We now encourage people to plan a little bit ahead. Treat shoes, socks, shorts/pants, and shirt with PERMETHRIN tick repellent the day before going on the hike. Let it dry onto the fabric (takes about an hour or two), then go out and have fun! It’s still good to practice walking down the center of the trail, and try to remember to do a tick check when you get home, but if you are wearing clothes treated with permethrin the chances of a tick bite are dramatically reduced. Repellents with at least 20%-30% DEET may work as well, but not with the same effectiveness as permethrin.

Ready for more good news? Your permethrin treated clothes are ready to protect you the next time you venture into tick country. On average, permethrin treated clothes can be washed up to 5-6 times and still be very effective. Products such as Insect Shield, which are designed specifically for clothes, are still effective after 70 washes!