How bad are the rodents in the shelters in GA?

[foreversuperawesome]

I'll be doing the AT in January and I'm wondering how many rodents is there going to be in January in the shelters in Geogia.

I have my own tent, but it would be nice to not set it up and shack up in the shelter once in a while and last thing I want is a mice/rat walking on me or worst, get in my sleeping bag.


Thoughts?

[ChinMusic]

Those mice should be good and hungry in January.

[Gray Blazer]

Never say never, but, I'll never sleep in a shelter because I don't like mice crawling on me while I'm sleeping. I speak from experience.

[johnnybgood]

I'm wondering how many rodents is there going to be in January in the shelters in Geogia.

they work in shifts....

[SCRUB HIKER]

The rodent thing is so overblown on this website. Hang your food on the mouse trapezes (they look like this IMG_1917.JPG and are in almost every shelter) and don't have your head in the very back corner of the shelter and you will sleep undisturbed 99 times out of 100. Unless mice are your Room 101 fear, it would be dumb to skip out on shelter use just because they're around.

[RyanK817]

I agree with Scrub Hiker that it's overblown on here, but I did a section this past January and stayed at Gooch Mtn Shelter. I put all my food on the bear line and hung everything else from nails in the shelter. It rained that night, and when I woke up the next morning a mouse had climbed the bear line and chewed through my stuff sack into my food bag, and another had chewed up the mouth piece of my water bladder hanging in the shelter. They may only get you one time out of a hundred, but that one time will be a major bummer. I'd take advantage of the plethora of tentsites along the trail at the very least through Neels Gap if it was convenient.

[hikerboy57]

if you cook them properly, they arent bad at all.
think tarragon.

[aficion]

Never say never, but, I'll never sleep in a shelter because I don't like mice crawling on me while I'm sleeping. I speak from experience.

I will sleep in a shelter again only after reincarnation as a cat.

[Malto]

I avoided shelters completely until last week in Tn. Of the four nights there was only one that had severe mouse problems, Tri Corner. I finally had to resort to hanging my pack and food from my bear line from a rafter. They must not have been able to climb that skinny slippery cord. Perfect night sleep after. It was amazing how loud a mouse is running down a cuben fiber rain suit.

[MuddyWaters]

It just varies.
May not see a mouse, or it might be a circus.
I sleep with earplugs, they dont bother me much.

[mrcoffeect]

I found the shelter mice in georgia to be much more polite, than the shelter mice in connecticut . I think it's southern hospitality.

[Del Q]

Ditto Vermont, got to the top of Killington in the rain after dark.........Cooper Lodge, ate what I had left of a sandwich as the critters began stirring, gutsy little rodents, no windows, skeevy shelter, decided to pitch my tent and deal with the rain, good decision, 3rd hiker during that Vermont hike who had their gear chewed on during the night, this time a nice big hole in her down sleeping bag!

With the new super lightweight tents I don't ever see going out without one...........be it in GA, VT or the PCT.

[Half Note]

^--That would be my biggest issue is the ruining of gear. I'm hoping they won't be too big of a problem as they are made out to be.

[Two Speed]

The rodent thing is so overblown on this website . . . it would be dumb to skip out on shelter use just because they're around.

All it takes is one mouse doing a burn out on your face to change your opinion on shelters.

That, or observing how much gear gets chewed up by mice might do the trick. Or maybe thinking about the amount of time spent "mouse proofing" your food and gear, and how often the mice manage to defeat all those counter measures, and tear the crap out of gear or screw someone's food up anyway.

I'll check back with you in a couple of years.

if you cook them properly, they arent bad at all.
think tarragon.

So how many mice does it take to make one decent sized hiker meal?

[daddytwosticks]

It just varies.
May not see a mouse, or it might be a circus.
I sleep with earplugs, they dont bother me much.

Agree. When you get to the shelter, just read the register. If there is an active mouse problem, it will usually be mentioned in the register. It no mention of the problem, stay in the shelter. If there is, just tent nearby and still enjoy the amenities there.

[Wise Old Owl]

http://www.examiner.com/article/what...the-hantavirus

Nearly every state except Georgia that the Appalachian Trail runs through has seen the Deer Mouse, known to science as the Peromyscus Maniculatus mouse. What is so important about this little mouse if you are hiking the Appalachian Trail? Well if you’ve hiked any portion of this trail you will know that all along the trail there are built what the hikers call AT shelters. The problem with these shelters are they are riddled with mice, and in every state except Georgia the mice can be the deer mouse and the deer mouse carries a potentially deadly disease called the Hantavirus.

[Rasty]

All it takes is one mouse doing a burn out on your face to change your opinion on shelters.

That, or observing how much gear gets chewed up by mice might do the trick. Or maybe thinking about the amount of time spent "mouse proofing" your food and gear, and how often the mice manage to defeat all those counter measures, and tear the crap out of gear or screw someone's food up anyway.

I'll check back with you in a couple of years.So how many mice does it take to make one decent sized hiker meal?

Six should do it!
imagesCA91XAST.jpg

[Grampie]

The mice in most shelters are bad. You must except the fact that you are the one invading their home. I had carried some gorp in a zip lock in my gortex rain jacket and forgot it was in there. During the night a mouse got into my pack, hanging on the wall, and ate a hole in my jacket to get to the gorp. Later on in the spring when the snakes come out of hibernation they eat a lot of mice so it isn't that bad. If you want to stay in a shelter you have to get use to the mice.

[Gray Blazer]

The mice thing is not overblown on WB. They will eat holes in your pack even if there is no food in there. They are always looking for nesting material and TP is good for that.

[Gray Blazer]

I will sleep in a shelter again only after reincarnation as a cat.

Or a black snake.