"Tick" a Hike!

Help me travel to the West Coast, visiting National Parks and many interesting, weird or famous places in between.Some places I would love to visit other than National Parks while on my way to the West Coast: Area 51 (Nevada), Jackson Hole (Wyoming), Wall Drug (South Dakota), Boeing Factory (Washington). NOTE: I would love to see photos of where this guy has gone. If possible, please take a photo of the Travel Bug with you or of a nearby famous landmark it has gone to. I would also love to hear stories of where you discovered this bug while on its travels, so feel free to write a brief or long note on the log page. Isn’t Geocaching great, especially when we pick up a few of these little guys along the trail…right? Feel free to use the tick remover to remove any unwanted hitchhikers. Make sure to sanitize the tick remover if you use it.

Ticks vary in color by species. Adult ticks are smaller than a sunflower seed (1/8- to 5/8-inch long if engorged with blood), while nymphal (or immature) ticks are less than 1/16-inch. Common problem ticks include the American dog tick, deer or black legged tick and lone star tick. There are four stages in a tick’s lifecycle – egg, larvae, nymph and adult. Ticks have only six legs during their larval stage and eight legs during their nymphal and adult stages. Ticks found on pets or people require cautious and thorough removal. Ticks should be grasped behind the head by tweezers and pulled slowly away from the host's skin. Crushing the tick may lead to the release of further dangerous fluids. It is important that the mouthparts be completely removed from the wound, as well. Infected areas should be thoroughly washed and medicated followed removal. In the event of illness resulting from a tick bite, seek medical attention immediately.Ticks are known to carry and transmit typhus, spotted fever, relapsing fever, Rocky Mountain spotted fever and tularemia. However, the most dangerous of all tick-borne diseases is Lyme disease. Named for the town of Lyme, Connecticut, Lyme disease is passed to humans primarily through deer tick bites, although other tick species, such as the lone star tick, are also known vectors.

"Isn't it funny how the word 'politics' is made up of the words 'poli' meaning 'many' in Latin, and 'tics' as in 'bloodsucking creatures”?