Teal Season Essentials: How to Keep Mosquitoes Off You in the Blind

If you've been in the marsh since Saturday's opener, you already know. The blue-wing teal are coming in fast, the sunrises have been worth the alarm clock, and the mosquitoes are worse than anywhere else you'll be all year.

Why teal season is the worst for bugs

Early teal season is a warm-weather hunt. You're sitting over shallow standing water at dawn with high humidity and no wind, and those are the conditions mosquitoes like best. 

In a blind, the bugs cost you more than an itch. Every slap or swat is a distraction from the hunt. You can miss a flock that was committed because you were too worried about the mosquitoes. Nobody wants to lose a limit because they couldn't sit still.

One application, all morning

HUNT Refined Repellent gives you 12 hours of protection against mosquitoes. You can put it on at 4 a.m. at the truck and still be covered when you're cleaning birds at the camp that afternoon. You won't have to reapply in the blind or dig for a can while birds are working, and there's nothing to spray while you should be sitting still.

What to use and when

Before you leave: lotion. Extra long 14 hours of protection that you put on exposed skin before you head out: neck, ears, hands and wrists. It stays put, it doesn't make a mist, and it lasts well past the time you've shot your limit.

At the boat launch or side-by-side: spray. Cover your back, arms, legs, and any spot you missed. Do it at the truck, before you're in the blind, so you do not have to even think about it. 

In the blind: wipes. Same 12 hours of protection as the spray, with no spray can and no noise. If you got wet in the decoys, a wipe covers you again without a sound. Keep a pack in your blind bag next to your shells.

Zero DEET. No smell.

Old-school DEET repellents have a strong chemical smell, and it gets on your gloves, your gun and your calls. DEET can also damage plastics and synthetics, including some gun finishes, optics coatings and waders. HUNT Refined Repellent has no DEET and no smell. You get long-lasting protection without bringing anything into the blind that doesn't belong there, and it feels clean on your skin, not greasy.

Before the HUNT

• Check your licensing. You need a basic hunting license, a waterfowl license, HIP certification and a Federal Duck Stamp. Youth 17 and under are exempt from state license requirements.
• Only teal are legal. That means blue-winged, green-winged and cinnamon teal, so positively identify your target before you shoot. Whistling ducks and other waterfowl aren't legal during the early season.
• If you're hunting public land, WMAs like Pass-a-Loutre, Atchafalaya Delta, Pointe-aux-Chenes, Sherburne and Russell Sage are open for teal. Check the LDWF regulations before you head out.
• Pack your repellent with your shells so you don't forget it.

Protect the Pursuit.

September teal season does not last long, so make every opportunity count. Don't spend it swatting and itching. Get 12–14 hours of protection with HUNT Refined Repellent lotion, spray and wipes.