Bugs and Babies

Keeping babies completely safe from bugs while living in the outdoors is almost impossible, especially while limiting/ restricting the use of bug spray. It is recommended that infants under 2 months don’t use bug spray at all and then very limited DEET in older babies/ toddlers (definitely not an expert- so feel free to check with doctors/ other resources). This issue caused me a lot of stress in the first summer of adventuring with a baby. Surprisingly, after a handful of canoe trips, back country and front country camping, we were able to get through the summer with very few bug bites!

Here are some tips that worked for us:

1) The use of a peapod tent (or similar) to allow baby to be outside nearby while being protected from bugs (and sun!)

2) Dress baby in long sleeve and pants/ full length sleepers when not inside the tent to minimize skin exposure

3) Summer spray or similar citronella sprays that are natural and safe to use on baby as a bug deterrent

4) Thermacell Backpacker used in the evening around our supper area to provide an invisible “supposed” 15‘ dome of protection from mosquitos

5) Bug nets! These were super helpful especially during portages or situations where baby was unable to be stationary in a peapod. Tip: a large adult size head mosquito net is a great size to cover almost the entire body of an infant.

And if all else fails, infant Benadryl for bug bites can provide some much needed relief. (Make sure to consult with a doctor if using on an infant under 2 months)