Juka (aka leeches)

Land leeches (juka in Nepali) are very common during the monsoons and make trekking quite the adventure. Juka is a name I find fitting for these fast, furious, and unrelenting creatures. When I see one scurrying up my boot for the next blood meal, I feel like Jerry Seinfeld, responding to his annoying sworn enemy, Newman. Grimacing with teeth together, I grumble: "Juka!" At that point, my heart starts racing and I begin jabbing my hiking pole at my boot, trying to fling it off. The problem here is that this requires me to stand still, leaving me vulnerable to the many other juka that have now spotted me. Here they come...

They can attack from all sides, coming from the front, behind and even from branches or leaves hanging above. Once they attach and you know it (most of the time you can't feel them due to an anesthetic they inject at the site), the question becomes - what to do? Some would say to just leave it there and once it feeds for about 20 minutes, they will fall off - for me, that's a little bit harder to stomach. Others recommend sprinkling some salt on the juka to get them to fall off on their own. Of course, you need to remember salt for the journey. Most don't recommend pulling them off as sometimes they may leave behind some of their mouth parts in the wound which could get infected. Often you just find a blood spot on your sock as evidence that they got you.

Sneaky juka on my boot

I have come to believe that it is best to be the first one on the trail instead of the last, at least in regards to avoiding juka. The heat and vibration from the first person alert the juka, who then begin to make their move just as subsequent trekkers are crossing their path. I don't know about you, but sounds like the perfect position for my bahini. =)