Poison Oak

Tight_Lines · Member

Poison Oak

windknots · Senior Member

Get some tecnu, follow the directions and no matter what, if you think you've been exposed scrub down with that stuff (follow the directions! you only use water to rinse it off, it;s not like soap). I think a slathering of mineral spirits would probably do as well. It makes a huge difference and often times I won't break out even though I know I've been in the PO thick. key thing is to get the PO resin (urishiol) off of your skin, equipment, clothing, etc. otherwise you will continue to break out as long as it's in contact with your skin. Time is critical, you could even bring the tecnu with you and clean up by the car, then clean up again at home.

Never back down from a good hole!

lightfoot · Senior Member

Be darn sure of what it looks like, with and without leaves.� Sometimes you just cant avoid it so at the end of the day your boots, waders and wading staff are evil.

Tecnu with cold water and be real careful of your waders etc as mentioned above.

SuperFlyGuy · Veteran Member

I havent been back since my summer flare up that lasted for a month and a half. My entire arm swole up and was nasty oozing. Up until this year I never had any issue with po at putah creek.

brian clemens · Senior Member

thats cuz putah isnt just your ordinary creek, it has mutant bows and browns, and mutant poison oak. theres nothing you can do. whooooooaaaaaahhhhhaaaaaahhhhhaaaa

Beastie · Member

windknots is exactly right. tecnu when used properly is the best product for po. i work in po environment daily, and tecnu has taken care of all my po problems. just follow the directions. sack up and fish!

bono · Master Fly Fishing Guide

Maybe you can do what I did which seems to have worked very well for me, but you must follow my directions CAREFULLY!! First you must find alot of poison oak (preferably near a good fishing hole) then make contact with the stuff,and then repeat over and over for a period of at least 20 years. You will finally,after continuos itchy days and fever filled nights gradually become immune like I am now, remember be patient.�Keep an eye out for my new website WWW.BONOMD.COM biggrin

SK60 · Senior Member

Sorry Greg, that recommendation would constitute�malpractice. PO is a form of allergy and loss of sensitivity over time is rarely seen-it typically just gets worse. You are one of a few lucky folks that have experienced loss of sensitivity. Technu-a�crude gasoline extract-seems to be the current treatment of choice to remove the oil from skin.

East Bay Ed · Senior Member

It may be true that it is a form of allergy.��I suffered for many years with poison oak. �In fact, I missed my junior prom after getting a massive case of PO while looking for golf balls on the Mira Vista Golf Course.� (Couldn't afford golf balls and green fees both.)�
Somewhere in my late 30's early 40's I developed an immunity.� Now I wade through the stuff regularly and will suffer�little more then a patch of PO on my hand or cheek.� However, the road to immunity is paved with many years of suffering.�
One thing I do recommend to Tight Lines.� When I was still getting PO I used to make it a regular habit to immediately wash my hands and face in the creek right after forcing my way through a patch.� It seemed to help.� The problem is taking off your waders and fly vest.� The oils of PO sometimes remain on your clothes.�
The last is a very important point, especially if you are married.� My wife got PO several times after putting my clothes in the washing machine.� There is nothing worse then getting a douse of your wifes wrath after giving her PO.� Now I drop my clothes in a bucket of water and rinse them before they ever go to the landry basket.
East Bay Ed

shon42073 · Senior Member

I guess I'm one of the lucky ones, But its weird, I only get a small patch sometimes on my left arm, I never get it any where else, And trust me this fall I've been pretty deep in it since I like to fish the far side of the creek. Putah creek has probably the biggest pison oak bushes I have ever seen.�

youngtalent29 · Member

I like bono am ammun to po but I'm in my early 20's and was born with this great gift.

Codym · Senior Member

I am also immune and I am only 15, but I do realize allergies change.

Tight_Lines · Member

Thank you everyone for your replies!

LilWhippersnapper · Senior Member

I've never had PO, so I don't know if I'm immune to it or just lucky to never come in contact with the oil.

BROKERFLYMAN · Member

Tight Lines take it from someone that smell's the **** and get's it
to the point of having to go and get a shot for it.
But about 6 months ago after a trip to the McCloud in which
I got it real bad.�I did some research and came across
IVY BLOCK. You can get it at Walgreen's and it did the job
for me. You might want to try it. Good Luck!