UKC

There’re here. Lochalsh Sat am. 

Sounds about the same as last year when I was car camping in Argyll. On the 10th May they were annoying but tolerable. By about a week later I'd had enough and headed home. Scotland is lovely but I've had too many years and years of summer holiday midge-fests to care for it now. Had a squally week this March on Arran and a sunny week in Kintyre in April so that may be it north of the border until autumn?

There's a few about in Ardgour today but no bites...won't be long though.

Scotland season is last week September to first week May. Too many miserable summer holidays to bother trying again.

Just back from a few days in Lochaber: glorious sun, light winds and not a midge to be felt. 

That's great, but could you spread the word a bit more?

We got midged at Morlais Quarries in Merthyr Tydfil on Thursday night.

Midge hysteria season is first week in May to last week in September. 

Imagine avoiding Scotland in May and June!

A few hungry ones out on the streets of Tarbert (Harris) last night.

I returned from a run this morning and went straight to hang out the washing in my running kit (shorts and vest). Got midged badly with so much skin exposed 😕 I don't normally complain about them too much, but they are early this year so I do feel a bit hard done by!

Got midged last night camping near Oban, and again at the new sport crags there. Did 2 routes and scampered. Finally went to the Padlock (near lochgoilhead) and it was tolerable.

Smidge wasn't even working! And had no deet... (does it get old / have a life span?) 

I don't have to imagine

Well I am genuinely astonished. If there are two months I would generally avoid leaving Scotland they are May and June. Long established, I would have thought, as the prime non-winter climbing and hill months. So often great weather, long days and before the worst of the midges.  

Nope. There are two weeks at the end of April and the start of May when, with a meteorological miracle, Scotland can be tolerable. No coincidence that's when we met you last year. The rest of the year is just not worth the dark/wet/midges/lichen/midges/grockle traffic/crumbly rock/midges/caravans/cold/third world roads/midges/Gary Latter guidebook lies/ticks/midges. I have to drive past a lot of climbing to get there, so don't.

Actually most of April and the (almost) first 3 weeks in May have been great on the west coast. 

The roads aren't great but I'm guessing you have never driven in a third world country? 

You forgot the cuckoos.  

Yeah good point. They were pretty annoying actually

If he'd mentioned cuckoos, he might have had a point. 

Edit: I see he has now.

Thanks for saying that. I was beginning to worry that the cuckoo issue might just be me.

No, they're dicks. I'll never forget trying to get back to sleep way too early in the early hours in Torridon, and being prevented by what after a while began to sound like "F*** you. F*** you. F*** you"

The weather in the NW is so often the best in the UK at this time of year. June too.

Despite the moans about the NC500 and so on, the roads in the north are still a real pleasure to drive compared with the rest of the country. 

We had 2 weeks last year of great weather in the NW, all the way from Skye to Sheigra and most of the way back down through the middle. That's our lifetime quota of good Scottish weather used up so no point going back now.

?! Which rest of the country have you been visiting???! 

I've been most places. The roads are one of the things that discourage me from heading south. I like an open road.

I don't even know where to start with this.... You stay where the roads are single track, have a wheel-smashing pothole every few yards, and you're 100% stuck behind either a giant gin palace or a logging truck because the A-roads of england aren't 'open' ?!

Oh well, if yours and others' delusions about Scotland keep it even quieter compared with the southern honeypots than it already is, I'll settle for that.

Plenty of midges out and biting on the west coast (I was savaged at Cambusbarron a couple of weeks ago, and we've seen plenty since then). Has anyone seen them out in the Cairngorms yet, though? They seem to emerge a bit later over there. We're due to spend the weekend in the Glen Feshie area, with the plan to camp at low level, but we're wondering if we should be revising our plans given the early emergences...

Excellent. 
 

the boy still has not had a proper midgeing and we are camping for a couple of nights near fort William at the end of May - I have high hopes!