ThermaCELL Mosquito Repellent Review

Disclosure:

Any links to merchants in this post are affiliate links.  If you click on a link and purchase a product mentioned in this post I may earn a commission.  This will not add to the price you pay for that product.

Thermacell Mosquito Repellent Unit

It's that time of year again..... The biting insects are making a return attempting to chase the outdoorsman back inside.  Thankfully there is now a solution to this annoying problem.

After practically being eaten alive at the start of last years archery season, I purchased a Thermacell and put it to the test. I figured it was just a gimmick and I'd be returning the unit after trying it out, but to my surprise it worked so well for me that I couldn't figure out why I hadn't bought one sooner!

The Thermacell unit claims to protect an area of 15' in diameter.  I don't know if it does, but I do know that it protects an area large enough that I had a lot less issues with the pesky biting insects in the space I took up while hunting.

The Thermacell units are small enough to fit into your hunting or fishing pack right along with all your other gear.  Powered by a small replaceable butane cartridge, it heats up a small mat that contains allethrin creating the area of protection against mosquitoes, black flies, no-see-ums and sand flies.

Thermacell has no cords and does not require a lighter or matches to light.  Instead it has an on off knob with a starter button.  The unit weighs 7.1 OZ. with a full butane cartridge and will protect for up to four hours with one mat.  The butane cartridge will last long enough to burn through 3 mats which is enough to pretty much get you through the whole day.

I took the Thermacell with me whether I was hunting on the ground or in my tree stand with good results under both circumstances.

Thermacell is also U.S. Army tested and approved.

I would recommend this mosquito repellent device for hunting, fishing, barbecuing and most any other outdoor activity.  There are replacement butane cartridges available for purchase as well as replacement mats in both scent free and earth scent.

Overall I would highly recommend this item for anyone who loves the outdoors but hates the bugs that go along with being out there.

Thermacell mosquito repellent units can be purchased at Bass Pro Shops  along with the replacement mats and butane cartridges and is available in several different colors including camo and pink camo.

- Any day in the outdoors is a good day

Fishing Topwater Lures

Topwater Fishing Lure

You have probably heard that the fish aren't biting when you see them hitting the top of the water.  Although fish seem to become more difficult to catch when this is happening, with a little bit of patience they can still be convinced to bite.  You will need to adjust your tactics in order to catch them and this is an excellent time to put your topwater fishing lures into action.

Fishing with topwater lures is fairly easy, but it is a much slower fishing method than the normal cast and retrieve method used with jigs and other crank baits.  The best method I have found to use with any topwater lure is to cast the lure and let it sit until the ripples caused by its hitting the water are gone.  Once the ripples are gone twitch your rod to move the lure slightly and repeat the process waiting until the resulting ripples are once again gone.  Continue repeating these steps until the lure has been completely retrieved.

You can move the lure just a tiny bit or you can choose to make it move several inches at a time.  Experiment with this as some days the fish will attack it with only a slight movement and other days they will have to see it move a bit before they're convinced it will make a good meal.

Another lure that can be used similar to a topwater lure is a floating shallow diver.  One method for using these lures is the same as for topwater lures.  An alternative to the topwater method  for a floating/shallow-diving lure is to reel it in a foot or two after the initial ripples are gone causing it to dip below the surface of the water before allowing it to pop back up to the surface.  As with the above methods allow the ripples to dissipate before moving the lure again.

There are a seemingly infinite number of different topwater lures available in all different price ranges.  Bigger and more expensive is most definitely not always better.  Many times a smaller lure will attract fish before the bigger ones will.

By patiently working your topwater lures you can bring in fish when no-one else seems to be having any luck at all.

- Any day in the outdoors is a good day