Insect Swarms

As posted on the Usenets by Bill Walters.

Bradford Angier (in his most excellent book How to Stay Alive in the Woods ('56) 
- if you haven't read it you should do so) says the following:

Insects are considerably more dangerous in the wilderness than any wild animals,
and in fact mosquitoes and black flies become so thick in many regions of the 
United States and Canada that they can actually kill a full grown man in good 
health who is lost or stranded without sufficient knowledge or ingenuity to 
protect himself.

Modern insect repellents can solve the problem more quickly and easily than 
anything else, short of keeping inside an enclosure whose openings are 
protected with fine netting. Present compounds are colorless, do not damage 
most clothing, and have an odor not at all disagreeable to most individuals, 
whereas the old pine tar products used to dirty everything and were not 
particularly effective to boot. These newer repellents are being so continually
improved that it will be well to check with several as informed sources as you 
can contact as to what at the moment is best for your purpose.

Smoke, too, will help discourage the pests while one is camped. Mud plastered 
on exposed parts will afford protection during travel. Plugging the ears lightly
with cotton will often make buzzing insects a lot more bearable. Inadequate 
clothing can be reinforced with some wild substance, a sheath of birchbark 
beneath the stocks for example adding protection for the legs. The most 
comfortable provision is to keep whenever possible to windy stretches such as 
bare ridges and wide shores.