How bad are the sierra mosquitoes right now?

Probably. Check out the posts here:

http://www.highsierratopix.com/community/viewtopic.php?f=34&t=12302

I'm going up tomorrow, so I'll probably report in when I get back…if there's anything left of me.

Just got back from 5 days in the upper Kern basin.

I've got about 1000 bites on me. Seriously.

Bring a net tent/inner and bug protection.

Dang, I don't own any kind of mesh shelter. In camp I was planning on wearing my windshirt/windpants with a headnet.

That should keep them from biting, mostly, along with some sort of repellent, shouldn't it? But it might not be peaceful. Craig, what did you have for bug protection?.

I'm just hoping that it will somehow magically be ok, or at least that I can find a less buggy spot for camp. And I do have a netted shelter. Last time I was around bugs that heavy, I just retired to the shelter.

Justin,

I did an expedited trip out of Courtright last weekend. I went over Hell For Sure and into Kings Canyon, but spent time on both sides of the LeConte Divide.

The mosquitos are certainly out there. They seemed a bit worse on the west side of the LeConte Divide.

DEET on my legs (I wore shorts) and a head net kept me pretty much bite-free for most of the trip. The exception to that was the second night, spent at Fleming Lake (at around 9,700 feet). They swarmed in the evening. I was using a tarp + UL bivy setup, which wasn't optimal for this kind of swarm–I was a prisoner in my bivy between 8:00pm and 9:30pm waiting for them to abate. I stared out of my little crescent mesh window at them swarming above me. After 9:30pm or so, it got too cold for them, and I was free.

I covered a lot of ground in a short time, so I didn't spend much time stopped, but whenever I did, the mozzies were there–regardless of altitude. It wasn't very breezy last weekend, so that didn't help. If I were taking a more leisurely trip, I'd definitely want a bug-proof shelter that I could sit in, perhaps with a companion. That, DEET, and a head net, and you'll be fine, but expect to continually manage the mosquito situation (head net on, head net off, holy crap–don't stop here…etc).

Edit to add:
> Dang, I don't own any kind of mesh shelter. In camp I was planning on wearing
> my windshirt/windpants with a headset.

You might remain bite free with that setup–I wore similar garb before climbing in my bivy, and got no bites. But it's not a really pleasant existence. Of course, that means it will probably be memorable…

I don't really get any reactions to mosquito bites, I can kinda just let them bite me with no consequences, so that helps a bit.

Would camping away from a lake on a ridge somewhere help?

I wore a rainshell and headnet in camp….that'll work fine. Had a net inner for sleep.

The biggest issue was passing through wet areas while hiking and getting bit through my shirt.

Staying away from water will definitely help.

The friend I was hiking with (Tom Kirchner) was surprised I wasn't in some sort of allergic shock with the amount of bites I had…all mostly just from hiking through the wet areas. He did better than me because his clothes were treated with permethrin….noticeable difference in how many swarmed me vs. him. Lucky I don't get bad reactions/itch with bites.

> Would camping away from a lake on a ridge somewhere help?

Yeah, it always does. I was actually camped about 1/4 mile away from the lake and creek, and somewhat above them, hoping that would be enough…it wasn't.

Heading up to the Eastern Sierra this weekend which quite possibly is irrelevant to the Western Sierra, but I’ll try to report back on Sunday evening.

HJ
Adventures In Stoving
Hikin’ Jim’s Blog

So I figure if I layer up with bite proof clothes and a head net with gloves, I can just ignore the mosquitoes completely around camp and do whatever. But that sounds too easy. Is there any flaw in that logic?

You'll be fine like that. Dinner was the only issue; hard to eat with a headnet on.

Again, my biggest trouble was day hiking and spending time in wet areas during times of the day that it was too hot for a shell jacket, pants, and headnet. They're out in force around the water sources.

Just got back from Saddlebag/Conness lakes area above 10,000 feet. There were a lot of mosquitoes, but with permethrin treated nylon shirt, pants, and hat plus a headnet, dealing with the bugs even at the worst of times was not too bad – and with any breeze, which was a lot of the time, they were not troublesome at all. The headnet just got used around camp around breakfast and dinner time.

I've never used permethrin before, but I'm thinking that might be what made the difference for me.

I was in Yosemite yesterday, in the Lyell Canyon area. Really not a lot of mosquitos except right by water sources. No one in my party felt the need for a head net, and one of the guys is a self described “mosquito magnet.” They were annoying right around the Lyell Fork crossing of the JMT, but other than that really not all that bad, and almost non-existent when well away from water sources.

HJ
Adventures in Stoving
Hikin Jim’s Blog

So yeah, the mosquitoes are gone. During the evenings near the north fork kings river and the second night at blackrock lake, I had no need to put on pants or a head net or apply deet. I only got swarmed a few times near boggy meadows but even that was manageable.