New Mainer Hopes For Some 'Realistic Expectations' Black Flies

Black flies are just getting started.

Over the weekend, I was out walking my dog around the yard, and at a certain point, the black flies became insane. Like, full swarm around my head and I had to put the hood up on my sweatshirt just to get a smidge of relief. Come to think of it, last weekend wasn't much better. But as Mainers, we've been dealing with this our whole lives.

But what if you're not from here, and have no benchmark to judge it against? Would a season like this seem unbearable? Would it seem nowhere near as bad as you thought it would be? Where in Maine are you? There are all questions that would factor into telling someone how bad the flies are going to be. There's no one answer that fits all.

A new Mainer from Ohio wanted to "realistic expectations" about black flies.

Maybe in Ohio they don't have black flies? They gotta have mosquitoes, right? Anyway, biting flies are everywhere in some way. But black flies in Maine can feel pretty over the top. But it's going to be a whole different situation depending on whether, for instance, you're in Bangor or the Allagash.

In Bangor, even in the quieter neighborhoods, flies aren't too bad. Where I am in Hampden is kinda miserable. But try going to the Allagash of up in the West Branch areas of the woods. The amount of black flies up there will leave you thinking you've discovered hell on Earth. The intensity is surreal.

The comment section seemed to back all this up.

Surprisingly, this person from Ohio wasn't completely roasted on Reddit like you'd sort of expect. But instead was most people agreeing that a lot depends on location. The further south you go, and the more dense the population gets, the fewer flies. But if you find yourself in any rural area at all, you'll be chewed apart.

It's a bit subjective, but for the most part, at least black flies do in fact, have a "season". Around here, by the end of June, most of the black flies have quieted down. Of course, then comes full-on mosquito season, and that's a thing all unto itself. Hopefully, these folks have some "realistic expectations" about mosquitoes.