Urushiol!!! Does that word sound familiar? No, it didn’t to me either. Well, sit right back and let me enlighten you. Urushiol is a chemical that is produced by a number of lovely little plants growing in the mountains. It is used in Japan to make laquerware called Urushi which you may have seen and thought looked like expensive plastic. Well, here’s what happened with my little Urushiol encounter. Monday I went fishing. Tuesday, apart from a little sunburn I had some spots on my arms, supposed I had probably rubbed up against a plant or something. On Wednesday the spots began to blister and became quite painful and with a little research I found that the offender was Urushi or the Japanese Laquer plant. Apparently the people who make the laquerware have built up a natural resistance to this stuff so they can handle it no worries but for the uninitiated Urushiol is really quite a treat. I am currently sporting blisters from wrist to elbow on my right arm which honestly looks like someone has doused it in boiling water. The left arm has a few spots but is otherwise all right. The same chemical is found in Poison Oak and Poison Ivy (notice the recurring theme!). Nothing but fun! I should note that I will be going fishing next weekend, I guess I just cant stay angry at good old Mother Nature.
Interested to hear if anyone has had similar experiences while on the river. Let’s see what you’ve got!
Hey there Plastic ( perhaps you could consider giving us your first name ?);
I haven’t been to Japan since 1962 at the Kodokan Judo Nationals ( took 7th place). I wish I had known then about Japans GREAT trout waters.
In any case, your experience reminds me of fishing the Carmel River in the Carmel Valley in CA. NOBODY told me that the cute, very green plant with small shiny leaves was POISON OAK. Unfortunately for me, I was wet wading with shorts and a short sleeve t-shirt. Three weeks of of excruciating pain and itching followed and that’s putting it mildly. Later I found out that this plant is basically the green stuff that covers the California coastline.
Sorry to hear of your painful experience and thanks ( arigato) for the heads-up on this plant. We’ll be careful next time we’re in Japan.
Mark
I was wet-wading, shorts and t-shirt, crossing an island to get to the main body of the river. I went through 40 yards of a waist-high fuzzy looking plant. About 2/3 of the way across my legs started to itch, then BURN. I had forgotten what stinging nettles look like. Unlike urushiol plants, this only lasted about 15 minutes, but it was excruciating. I felt like my legs were blistering. I stood in waist-deep water for several minutes trying to brush off my legs under water.
I’ve since discovered that if I can ignore the itch, it goes away in about 2 minutes. If I scratch, I add 3 minutes to that. And of course if I scratch during that 3 minutes it keeps on giving.
I now take great joy in carefully stomping the life out of nettles. Unlike locust thorns, nettles can’t pentrate shoes.
Ahhhhh, I itch just thinking about it. It definitely adds a new level of realism to the idea that misery loves company. I don’t feel anywhere near as bad knowing that I’m not alone. Look forward to hearing some more of your stories, anyone who knows any nice spots in Japan (or stories about their travels over here), I’d love to hear.
never had any problems with plants, but i had about 8 or 9 fire ants bite me on the inside of my thigh while fishing. i was just standing there, even wearing jeans, and all of a sudden i feel sharp pain in my upper thigh. of course, i swat at the general area, accomplishing othing more than aggravating the other ants that had climbed up there, and wound up with a mess of bites. my thigh was swollen, itchy, and felt like it was on fire for about a week. not fun at all…
Had a very unpleasant encounter with “stinging nettles” last year while trouting in a mountain stream close to home. It was the only time I wore shorts last year, naturally, instead of long pants. Had to walk around a large boulder and started through a waist high stand of green plants without paying any attention - OUCH!!! About halfway through my legs started burning like crazy and I immediately looked down and realized I was standing in the middle of a large patch of “stinging nettles.” Nothing to do but wade on through ASAP; but, made the mistake of lowering my left hand to part some of the heavier growth. Immediately waded into the water; but it really had no effect on the burning on my legs or hand. Tried to ignore it and kept on fishing. To my surprise the cold water didn’t really help and the burning stayed with me for several days not minutes like you Lux. My hand would burn and the slighteset touch of something would set it off again. Took over a week, as I recall, for it to subside. Last time I’ll wear shorts there and I do know where that dang patch is located now!!! Had a similar encounter with stinging nettles about 50 years ago while chasing some banty roosters through a patch of nettles. So, two in fifty years isn’t too bad!!!
Oh yeah. Big time nasty plant experience. Since I know what poison ivy, oak and stinging nettles look like, I know to avoid them. Before coming down with a murderous itch from another plant, I didn’t know what cow parsnip looked like. Even after asking my husband to leave the house for his own safety and to get me some antihistamine cream, we still had to hide the firearms (kidding).
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A plant like this apparently slashed me across the throat, about the only exposed skin on me, on a hot sunny day. Urushiol? I don’t know. Avoid it now? Like the plague.
Had a similar experience with poison ivy a few years back. Forearms were blistered and swollen so that I couldn’t button my shirt cuffs. My doctor put me on a cylce of steriods to reduce the swelling, worked like a charm. Other than that, try benadryl lotion on the affected area, it relieves the itch somewhat.
Vels–Naptha laundy soap is a cure all preventer of getting poison ivy. I can pick it then wash with the soap. It is an oil and must be removed. Of course it’s hard to carry in your fising vest.
Thanks Sushi man!! Now I am sitting here with ghost itches all over my hands and arms! AAAARRRRGGGHHHH!
The places I learned to fly fish (okay, fish in all forms), and most of the ones I still go to have vast patches of stinging nettles. I cannot think about it without the itching starting, as I don’t think I have EVER gone fishing without ‘finding’ some with my bare arms of something. Mostly I can keep from scratching, but just thinking about it makes me itch!
I am one of the most experienced poison
ivy experts. I got into it every spring
growing up in Michigan. I beacame so sensitive to it that I could catch it standing in the road. I would typically miss
2 weeks of school an episode which would not have been so bad except I was in agony
covered from head to toes in blisters.
Now I live in Oklahoma and all the bass lakes have poison Ivy. In fact I think the
better the lake is for fishing the more poison Ivy there is.
I have tried all the remedies. Phels Napha soap doesn’t work at all for me.
I now leave as little exposed skin as possible when i am out and if I see posion Ivy or know there is some in the area i wash with zanfel creme($40oz). It will last most of a season. The bottle says not to use it until you break out but If I wait until I break out it the poison ivy goes systemic an I start breaking out all over which results in a doctors visit. The creme actually removes the urushi oil that binds to your skin. The Zanfel also helps relieve the itch and shortens the duration of an episode. It completely cures some people. It is the only product I have found in a life time of looking that works for Urushi oil.
Believe it or not an extemely hot shower as hot as you can stand also gives a 3-4 hours of relief from the itching. Warm makes it worst.
The few times I’ve tangled with stinging nettles I used my Grandmas remedy to take care of the itch and burn. The juice from fiddlehead ferns kills it immediately. Fortunately, at least around here, both plants grow in about the same places so the cure is usually close at hand.
I have heard of a product called IvyBlock, you can buy at the drug store, that uses an ingredient called bentoquatum or bentonite. It forms a protective layer on the skin.
I don’t know how well it works. I am lucky, I have never had a reaction to any of the “three leaved” plants (looking for some wood to knock on!) It’s a good thing for me because so many areas of California are covered with poison oak and I am always coming in contact with it, although I am careful not to intentionally touch it.
I have know people that can have a reaction just by coming in contact with someone that has been in an area of poison oak.
plasticsushi, does Urushiol have groups of three leaves like the poison plants over here?
That is odd that you bring this up, My family and I went to Mexico a few weeks ago and we got these blisters exactaly how you decrcibed them on our hands and arms. they seemed to burn then they would just dissapear (I probably just poked or ripped them open) but then I would get a few more. Mine are finally going away after 3 weeks.
Wow, a little bit of tree goes a long way, sounds like everyone has had their fair share! In answer to your question Joe, I didnt actually notice when I brushed against the stuff but I have read that Urushi is in the same family of plants as Poison Oak and Poison Ivy. It says that they all have leaves in groups of 3 so from now on all plants fitting such description should be treated with suspicion.
CHIGGERS !!!Hadn’t had them since I was a kid,then last year I got them buggers.I had to go to "Ask Jeeves"to see what to do for them.I went out Sunday fish’n and damned if I didn’t get a dose of them buggers again…Thats it,time for some waist highs.
John
This brings up a very interesting point to all the guys here. Make sure you watch where you relieve yourselfs and wash your hand when in doubt. Can lead to even more pain
So thats where they came from.Obviously some one from MO was pass’n through,wet waded up stream from me,and dropped a few off before leaving.I guess I’ll have to keep my eyes open and check out license plates before entering the water.Nah! I’ll just pick up some waist highs and hope that the person from MO. that I bump into could be you.
John
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AAAARRRRGGGHHHH!