No, it’s not recommended, but those beggars at Lands End in Grand Mesa National Forest are hard to resist!

Inches from my head was a critter scratching, skittering, gnawing, hellbent on creeping me out and doing a fine job of it. I wondered if it was looking for a secret passage through the propane tanks, storming the storage compartment under our bed, or using the headboard as a jungle gym. Wherever the intruder was, it was not the nature I’d come to commune with. Other pests we’ve picked up  over the years have been more considerate-except that mouse that built a nest on our pickup’s engine and started a family overnight.

I had a better picture of anti-critter lighting under a trailer, but I can’t find it. Maybe one of the 7 mice we brought home from our last trip chewed it up.  I’m thinking it’s best to use your critter fix even when you’re not sure you need it.

The festive looking light strings I noticed under many of the RVs in Tucson Mountain Park are not to attract party animals but to discourage them.  RVers, being creative problems solvers, come up with all kinds of preventative measures: light strings, solar lights, glow sticks, and “popping the hood” to make that engine compartment seem less secure.  We also follow the advice of ranching folk in Colorado’s Grand Valley who protect their vehicles with pine scented air fresheners in every engine compartment.

Rodent repellent