Lake erie FLIES!!!

[Knot a Clew]

Lake erie FLIES!!!

As a new sail boater on Lake Erie we had a fabulous sail on June 17th. Sailing  a Macgregor 26 was great! out for twelve hours with all different wind speeds up to 20 knots, down to drifting. Used my "Generator " sail for the first time and it performed as advertised. Not quite a Spinnaker but a windfinder. With just a breath of wind, it moved the boat quite nicely. The "Generator" is a relatively  new sail design called a triradial. I love the sail but I can't say anything good about the company that sells them. Contact me for more on that if you need to know more. But back to my Topic. Does anyone have a way of dealing with those vicious flies that are all over the lake? They are brutal. constant biting and a real downer. Three different repellants didn't work.

[L&M]

[Big Spoon]

So how was the fishing? 

 

My best advice... sail faster than the flies can fly!

Edited June 20, 2017 by Big Spoon

[GAMBLER]

On ‎6‎/‎20‎/‎2017 at 8:57 AM, Knot a Clew said:

Lake erie FLIES!!!

As a new sail boater on Lake Erie we had a fabulous sail on June 17th. Sailing  a Macgregor 26 was great! out for twelve hours with all different wind speeds up to 20 knots, down to drifting. Used my "Generator " sail for the first time and it performed as advertised. Not quite a Spinnaker but a windfinder. With just a breath of wind, it moved the boat quite nicely. The "Generator" is a relatively  new sail design called a triradial. I love the sail but I can't say anything good about the company that sells them. Contact me for more on that if you need to know more. But back to my Topic. Does anyone have a way of dealing with those vicious flies that are all over the lake? They are brutal. constant biting and a real downer. Three different repellants didn't work.

Sell your blow boat and buy a real boat and it will go fast enough to get away from the flies! 

[Sk8man]

[Fishnut]

So the new sail is too fast for trolling?? Lol [emoji38]
I'd suggest a sea bag.


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[Hillbillyx-press]

The flies only bite sailboaters!

[LakerTaker]

The normal repellents don't work on those flies. They are stable flies and they are out for blood. They are attracted to your legs (standing). Sometimes sitting helps (no joke), but likely hard to do on a sailboat. Some things that might work: white vinegar, liquid lemon joy dish soap, Avon skin so soft mixed with listerine, and fly spray (the stuff for barns). Find a Tractor Supply store or local feed store for the barnyard biting fly repellents (though highly toxic). Deet won't work.


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[horsehunter]

So why are Stable Flies so thick out in the lake not a horse for miles

[Fishnut]

They like sailboats! Lol [emoji23]


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[LakerTaker]

So why are Stable Flies so thick out in the lake not a horse for miles

LOL! No idea! None at port, but then you find them miles from shore. It's an issue on all the Great Lakes. I searched the topic and was surprised to find so many threads.


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[Fishnut]

Maybe there Stitching them sails with horse tail hair?? [emoji23][emoji23]


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[djw13cwru]

The stable flies in Erie were thick this year. I had my 4 yo niece out trolling for walleye in OH waters and we gave up after about 1.5 hours. The flies were everywhere and a bit too much for her. We went tubing instead and I broke out a fly swatter. I killed over 200 on the transom in about 20 minutes. I looked at the side of the boat and it was still covered, so I just gave up.

 

If you keep your legs horizontal instead of vertical it helps....some. They key in on vertical legs (like livestock) hence the name stable fly. Some people swear by the thermacells to repel them, I haven't tried though.