When I was in the army in 1991 I picked up scabies from a mattress whilst on guard duty the one night away from my base camp. Not a nice experience at all and never want that again. I have 4 overnight hikes lined up this year.
Has anyone picked up bed lice from the overnight huts or are they well treated nowadays?
Is there a spray bottle of somesorts that you can take with you and spray the mattress when you arrive? Keen to hear others experiences.
Riller stories…Yes I’ve heard that to get rid of a proper infestation the bedding is burnt (extreme case), but for priority routes the mattresses are covered with plastic for this reason.
This is also why most backpackers tend to take a travel sheet to sleep in.
I think your more likely to pick up the odd bosluis.
Haven’t had any issues on the Otter (very clean!), the Outeniqua (great facilities) or the Amatola. will only take normal insect repellent for those hikes.