Thanks, hive !

Wifey got her other eye done today, less than two hours in and out the door. They do about 140 a day so very happy that was quick.

We're both kinda shocked we'd missed this obvious nest until now, she had half an excuse.

I'll be going past Home Depot tomorrow and will pick up some SpectracidePRO Wasp & Hornet Killer. Thanks, cparktd. So another night of Raid, the Pro stuff tomorrow and then the hose with jet stream nozzle (I have one!) when activity drops off.

Thanks again. When we saw the nest, the cable guy was here and had time to kill. So he Google image searched a nest pic and yep, bald face hornets. I knew they were bad but reading about them got my attention. One source claims they are the most aggressive of stinging insects. If I never follow this thread up, say a prayer.

quote:

drop the light and run!

YES! No likey headlamp idea unless as a spectator....

quote:

Originally posted by P250UA5:

Nuke it from orbit.

^^^^^^This!

It's the only way to be sure.

Had a nest of yellow jackets in an above ground nest like that a couple months ago. They built on a swing at moms house. I got back about 25 feet at dusk, blasted it with a shotgun, then hoses down the remnants with bee spray. It worked and I didn’t get stung a single time. Scared the crap outta the neighbors though.

The best advice is wait for fall. Don't consider acting until below freezing. There really is no hurry. There was a huge one up in the park where I walked my dog. They had a crew come in and care fully removed the under growth. Then the fun began. A profession crew came in with a really long "lopper" pole. They placed a garbage can under the thing. Then a fool had the can lid and got ready. Another fool took the long pole and cleanly severed the attachment at the top. The nest fell and the "lid" fool ran at the can. He got there before the nest was done falling and slammed the lid on the can. A third guy took 2 rubber tie downs, thru the top of the lid and to the side handle. Then the crew took a break. I stuck around to hear them talk.

Some interesting things the idiot in the video didn't do. They were wearing long sleeves. And long pants of course. There was some banter about how bad the things hurt. I can believe without first hand feeling it. Because it was a park, the city didn't mess around, they hired pro's.

For fun, if you're a pervert, shoot the nest with a 22. They get pissed off. Like majorly pissed.

I've told this story before... But it's a good one and one of my favorite memories from when my mom was still with us.

Way back when, before my first marriage, and right at the start of my career, I was a poor, poor young public servant still paying off debt and loans for my schooling (fuck me, right)

So my family had a house next door to my parents, the house below was my deceased grandparents house, and there were two apartments in the top floor where my long deceased great parents lived way back when (before me).

Well, all the places were rented, one of them to me. So sitting on this 40 acre/2 house complex was my mom and dad, and this house, which I rented a 1 bedroom apartment from my family while I started my career.

One day my doorbell ring, and it is my dad. He had walked a couple hundred yards to my door to talk to me.

Dad: "There's a hornets nest in the tree off the driveway. You want to go shoot it with shotguns?"

Me: "Yes. Yes I do."

So we grab out shotguns (just basic 12ga pumps) and head out.

Now, again, this place sits on a hill, shooting downhill off the driveway and retaining wall, so our backstop is into another hillside, and there is nothing but golf course about 700 yards away (no chance of birdshot pellets going that far, even if we missed). Because it is over the edge of the retaining wall, we are shooting down at it into the hill side, and the nest is hanging from a branch lower than out line of sight, but below the wall where the tree is, about 15' above the ground.

So we take position, load up about 15 yards away, about 25 yards from the basement door. My mother is looking at us and shaking her head as if we are idiots (and we are).

We gather a hasty plan. Each of us will load 3 shells, will shoot aimed shots and run like hell for the back door into the garage and hope to god the hornets don't chase us.

We decide to keep the outside door closed (double checking that it is open and easily entered, and the doors to the family room downstairs from the garage are open and ready to be slammed shut if the hornets give chase.

So we line up Napoleonic War style in a line and give out commands of "load" "aim" and "FIRE" and we fire the first volley. It has little effect. We fire again. It has little effect except seeing little black dots swarming around the nest as if somehow, SOMETHING pissed them off.

We panic, because apparently #8 birdshot isn't having the effect we thought. We panic shoot our 3rd shot and take off running as these black dots swarming around are increasing their range from the nest, and are looking positively murderous.

Then of course, the comedy ensues....

I remember my dad telling me on a hike in the mountains of Colorado about what to do if we encounter a bear. He informed me that bears are faster than humans. He also informed me of his plan, that it was NOT to outrun the bear, but to make sure he outran me. I had forgotten this trauma until this point. Remind me to bring THAT up in therapy.

We both make for the door at the same time, and it was if Moe and Curly were both trying to get the hell inside the door. We pull each other back, jockey for position and for what feels like 10 minutes (but was probably 10 seconds) fight to be the first inside and slam the door behind us.

Luckily, the hornets were either too angry or stupid or slow to follow us.

We watched out the window as they swarmed around, very, very agitated that some assholes would shell their home with 12ga shells.

After about an hour we braved going back out, and another volley from us dropped that nest to the ground, where I'm sure some animal feasted on all the larvae.

Good fun, and probably an explanation of why I'm as messed up as I am.

*I tell this in jest, my Dad is great and he would have never let anything happen to me, I think, unless it was funny, or I would learn someting.

Kevin

You'd be surprised how cheap you can get a pro to do that. Call a few. For $40, I'd take that fucker down with the telephone. You'll spend half that pissing poison all over your siding.

Going price for a hornet nest is $150 (that is what google indicated, and that is what I just paid in MT to remove a hornet nest--not Bald Faced however). Figured it was money well spent. I don't like stings, and every time you get stung, the reaction notches up. Nest was about 20' up in a tree, just above the grandkids swing. Grandson got stung, and his reaction warranted an epi-pen for any future encounters.