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They can occur anywhere........ we as Pilgrims carry them. :mrgreen:GunnarW said:.............I would also avoid the albergues (Astorga, Villafranca del Bierzo,...) where several bad reports were generated by different members.
C clearly said:The biggest concern is not to bring them home (mature bugs, eggs OR larvae). Before flying home, I organized my backpack so I could easily remove all washables and put them straight into the machine, I wiped down a few things like shoes and electronics, and everything else went into the freezer at -18C for a week.
While that might keep the bugs away from that part of your mattress and pillow, it won't keep them from biting you! DEET is a repellent, not an insecticide. You have to put it on yourself for it to do anything. If you are going to endure the toxicity of DEET, use it right.Buy a bottle of DEET spray and use it around your mattress and pillow each night
Your point is well-taken. I shall include it in my new book, "Things I Worried About, But Should Not Have." Another chapter will be "Crowds on the Camino." :wink:They are an issue, just not enough of one to not go.
HeatherWriter said:Well, must've been a combination of bed bugs loving me and bad luck, but I got them twice in 6 weeks from SJPP to Santiago (September/October 2012). I consider myself an unwilling expert now. I've concluded that I got them the first time in the big, very comfortable and friendly albergue at Azofra. I'm not certain because I did stay at Granon the following night but they wipe down all the mattresses every morning with disinfectant. I've concluded that it is often the blankets which also harbour the mites, so even if the mattresses are treated, you can get them from blankets.
I worked as a hospitalera at Granon from 1 October to 15 October, and I can assure you that the bedbug problem is taken very seriously there. Not only were the mattrasses disinfected every day but they were also treated with a special bedbug spray, and the blankets were also sprayed on a regular basis. We went to great lengths every day to take preventative measures, and sprayed all around the dormitories, and in every nook and cranny - especially around warm places close to the bathrooms. We did have 2 pilgrims arriving with signs of bedbug bites, and we immediately swung into action and followed the standard procedures.
I think it opens for the off-season. I stayed in it last March when the municipal was still closed. No bed bugs at that time of year! (too cold)the parochial (which I believe is closed down now?)
Yup , chances are this was where I was bitten in October 2012.Anniesantiago said:I've seen them crawling in Azofra, unfortunately.
It was in the large municipal ........................ Anyway.. my bet would be it was Azofra where you got bitten.
I do love that albergue, just don't like it's bugs!
max44 said:I will be careful on my Camino, however they are just another critter to suck blood, mosquito and tax man are just two others. Let's not forget who carries these things around .
My daughter is a lawyer. lol..She just told me they won't get bitten out of professional mutual respect. lol something like that.koilife said:Lawyers . . . any present company excluded.
Returning after a few months - the bug certainly did bite? :mrgreen: :arrow:Sedona2012 said:I walked the CF in end of September and October of 2012 .............. I will return this spring for my second Camino.
RENSHAW said:Returning after a few months - the bug certainly did bite? :mrgreen: :arrow:Sedona2012 said:I walked the CF in end of September and October of 2012 .............. I will return this spring for my second Camino.
Pieces said:some of us actually find the meseta to be one of the best bits of the Camino...
You Betcha Max! Bigguns. :mrgreen:max44 said:Are there bugs there?
cpstar said:hi
I am walking the Camino alone starting in Saint Jean on 10 April 2013, this post has made me for the first time, not want to go!
are they really that bad!?
help!
Caroline
cpstar said:hi
I am walking the Camino alone starting in Saint Jean on 10 April 2013, this post has made me for the first time, not want to go!
are they really that bad!?
help!
Caroline
cpstar said:hi
I am walking the Camino alone starting in Saint Jean on 10 April 2013, this post has made me for the first time, not want to go!
are they really that bad!?
help!
Caroline
Would you like a stranger spraying stuff in your home? Albergues are home to all the pilgrims. Please don't take it as your right to spray anything there. Leave it up to the hospitalero during off-hours. You may be doing something that is lethal to an allergic fellow-pilgrim.Spray the seams on both sides of the mattress.
Where?the wild packs of abandoned dogs
falcon269 said:Where?the wild packs of abandoned dogs
That is a bit off the Camino Frances, and this forum section!Via Francigena near Radicofani
All domestic pets in Spain must be identified by microchip or by a clearly readable tattoo. The tattoo will only be accepted as a means of identification until 3 July 2011.
Dangerous dogs
Any person owning a potentially dangerous dog (perros potencialmente peligrosos) in Spain must have an appropriate licence (by law of article 3 of the Royal Decree 287/2002, of 22 of March 2002) and the dog must be registered with the municipality. Handlers and walkers of dangerous or potentially dangerous dogs must also be licenced (article 1, 2 of Law 50/1999, of December 1999). A licence is valid for five years.
Potentially dangerous dog are identified as being in one of three categories:
1) Breeds and breed crosses classified as potentially dangerous:
Doberman (Andalucia only)
Pit Bull Terrier
Staffordshire Bull Terrier
American Staffordshire Terrier
Rottweiler
Dogo Argentino
Fila Brasileiro
Tosa Inu
Akita Inu
UPDATE - May 2012 - The Junta de Andalucia has added Bull terriers, Presa Canarios, Napolitan mastiffs and Boxers to the list. These breeds cannot be taken out in public without a leash and muzzle and must be registered at the town hall.
2) Dogs with certain characteristics of these breeds are also classified as potentially dangerous. The characteristics are:
Strong musculature, powerful or athletic constitution, robustness, agility, vigor and endurance
Short hair
Deep chest (60 to 80 cm), height of over 50 cm and a weight over 20 Kg
Big, square, head, with a wide skull and strong jaws
Broad, short and muscled neck.
Straight, parallel forelegs and muscular hindquarters, relatively long back legs standing at an angle
3) Dogs that have a track record of aggression to humans and other animals must also be licenced and registered.
[/quote]falcon269 said:
A search of items in the Decathlon website, the largest sporting goods chain store in France, does not return any results, so it may not be available in France. There is a 7 oz. spray bottle of Sawyer that you could take with you. Since Sawyer advertises that permethrin is effective for 6 weeks or 6 washings, I think that it is likely that it lasts longer than six weeks. After all, six washing would remove a lot more of the chemical than the passage of six weeks!Do you know if permethrin is available in The Puy en Velay or St. Jean Pied de Port?
RENSHAW said:If you go in summer then there is a very good chance that you could become a victim. I have been bitten in August as well the end of October. It was the inconvenience of washing everything , spraying and putting all the other kit in black rubbish bags out in the sun, as well as feeling that I was a lepper.
When bitten this year , the well trained hospitaleros at Granon took me though the process step by step which was a lot of extra work for them. Looking back I am most greatful to them through at the time I wallowed in self pity and anger - WHY ME!!
A treated personal sheet may help , but the critters can still get in your pack and on your clothes.
I guees that you will have to deal with if it does happen and just get on with it.
I saw this link a while back. el-camino-frances/topic13650.htmlcpstar said:Hi
Has anyone used the Lifesystem Bed Bug Undersheet?? It only weighs 100g so is an attractive alternative to another bed bug sheet I've found, but which weighs 600g...
thoughts would be very appreciated!
A buddy of mine tried that once. The bedbugs didn't bite, but the bear sure had good breath the next morning! :wink:Lise T said:It was recenlty recommend to me ....a natural product that is used on pets for fleas. :shock:
Its made up of:
Sunflower Oil, Neem Oil and essential oils of Cedarwood, Rosemary, Lemongrass, Thyme and Peppermint.
Im wondering if anyone has tried or heard of anything like this working?
YES! Very experienced hospitalero friends of ours, who volunteer yearly at the Refugio Guacelmo and who follow a very strict protocol as regards cleaning the Albergue, picked up bed bugs in a hotel in Santiago! It stands to reason that as Pilgrims sometimes switch from albergues, Pensions and sometimes a Hotel, there is always a chance of the bed bugs moving also from place to place. Frankly, I would imagine that most Albergues do a more rigorous cleaning job each morning than a chambermaid in a hotel or pension. Annehealthytoo said:I am travelling the Camino Frances in May & June 2013. I'll be staying in hotels rather than Auberges. Does anyone know if the bedbug problem is also a problem in Hotels? If so, is it wise to be prepared & travel with appropriate products?
Thanks for your replies in advance
Lise T said:It was recenlty recommend to me ....a natural product that is used on pets for fleas. :shock:
Its made up of:
Sunflower Oil, Neem Oil and essential oils of Cedarwood, Rosemary, Lemongrass, Thyme and Peppermint.
Im wondering if anyone has tried or heard of anything like this working?
Terry's original bug resistant bag-liner came with a note that it was effective for 20 washes. If there is a number in the name it might be an indication of how much washing it will take before the repellent is ineffective.Pieces said:I brought the bedbug sheet this summer and was bitten. One thing I noticed is that it states that the permetrine wears of but the sheet doesn't come with and expiration date (go figure)...
Great link Max, thank you. :arrow:max44 said:http://www.badbedbugs.com/
Tia Valeria said:Terry's original bug resistant bag-liner came with a note that it was effective for 20 washes. If there is a number in the name it might be an indication of how much washing it will take before the repellent is ineffective.Pieces said:I brought the bedbug sheet this summer and was bitten. One thing I noticed is that it states that the permetrine wears of but the sheet doesn't come with and expiration date (go figure)...
annakappa said:YES! Very experienced hospitalero friends of ours, who volunteer yearly at the Refugio Guacelmo and who follow a very strict protocol as regards cleaning the Albergue, picked up bed bugs in a hotel in Santiago! It stands to reason that as Pilgrims sometimes switch from albergues, Pensions and sometimes a Hotel, there is always a chance of the bed bugs moving also from place to place. Frankly, I would imagine that most Albergues do a more rigorous cleaning job each morning than a chambermaid in a hotel or pension. Anne
Linda T said:A S.African pilgrim bought bedbug spray in SJPP before starting her Camino. She sprayed all her clothes + back pack. She used her sprayed sarong as a bed sheet. This worked for her as some of her fellow pilgrims got bitten but she escaped. Her Camino was April 2012. I will start my Camino on 3 May 2013 and hope to meet you somewhere on the route. Bueno Camino
I respectfully disagree with the statement of wrapping yourself in toxic chemicals every night! There has been ample studies about the safe use of permetherin on clothing. On the http://www.epa.gov/pesticides/factsheet ... thing.html site is the following information:I cannot bring myself to wrap myself in toxic chemicals every night. Now while, if desperation sets in, I may resort to that I am not making it my default position.
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