Bee Sting Remedies

My roommates and I decided to raft the Provo River on Saturday. I had always wanted to go "float" on the river, and the timing had just never worked out. So I thought that rafting would be a great experience.

While the Provo River is gorgeous, rafting down it was a little difficult in the beginning. There was a sharp bend in the river and a fast current. To avoid hitting the shore, one of my roommates attempted to use the paddle to push off the rocks and tree branches. Unfortunately, her paddle got stuck, and we continued forward.

Not wanting to pay for the lost paddle, we asked other tubers if they could get the paddle, to no avail. We then rested on a calm part of the river a ways down the river. I volunteered to go get the paddle because I thought it would be a simple enough feat.

Well, I estimated to where the paddle was lost and attempted to descend the mountainside to get to the river. I ended up sliding down on my butt in a painful descent. I got caught in trees and scraped my arms and my legs. I thought that I was being pricked by a thorn, when in fact, I was being stung by a bee. I had never before been stung by a bee, and let me assure you, it's pretty painful. I tried to sweep away the "thorn" that was piercing my neck, when an angry bee buzzed loudly. I thought, I really hope I'm not severely allergic to bee stings because I'm basically a goner.

When I finally got down to the river, I spotted the paddle. It was significantly up current (maybe about 5-10 yards, but out of reach against a fast current). I thought, I should just give up because the current will sweep me away in no time. But I said, I made it this far, I must be able to get the paddle. I grabbed on to the trees and planted my feet firmly on the large rocks and made it to the paddle. Unfortunately it was not that easy to free the paddle from its location. After a few attempts, I eventually broke enough branches and dislodged enough rocks to free my roommate's paddle from the Provo River.

I made it back to the calm river bank and made sure that no stinger was in sight. My neck was inflamed and itchy, but I continued on. After a few hours, the swelling went down, and I determined that I was not deathly allergic to bee stings.

However, today, my neck is extremely itchy and have been told that baking soda and water is a good remedy for bee stings. According to wikipedia, it does nothing, but maybe the placebo effect will reduce the itchiness.

If anyone has any good bee sting remedies, please let me know. I'm currently in the market.