Guns, Snakes, and Mice OH MY! (WAS: [at-l] RE: Manassas Shelter)

[Charles Copeland" <charles@uswnet.com (Charles Copeland)]

>Darn, ouch!!!!  Got in a swarm last summer in the back yard just taking out
>the garbage.  6 on one leg total count.  At least I had a full tray of ice
>in the freezer.  What did you do on the trail to get rid of the sting and
>then the horrible itch?

There is (or was) a huge hornet's nest at the falls at Three Forks on the
AT.  Everyone was warned to stay away from the hornets.  When I got there, I
kept looking for the nest and couldn't find it.  I crossed the creek that
exits the falls, looking for the nest, when something hit my hat.  I figured
it was a horse fly.  Then there were a couple more hits.  Next thing I knew
I was in a swarm of hornets.  Seems I was standing *directly* in front of
them and must have bumped their nest.  By the time all the running and
flailing was over I had been stung 9 times.  My solution for the stinging
was to stand underneath the waterfall for a few minutes.  The water was
*freezing* cold and the cold certainly helped me forget I had been stung.
The best part is that afterwards I had no stinging or itching!

Charles