Be careful out there!

[jimmyraythomason]

The weather is still very warm here in the deep South as several hunting seasons begin to open. The woods are still green and the trees are still heavy with leaves but a few are beginning to fall. We have many dangers in the woods to be aware of,spiders,scorpions and the like but by far the most dangerous are the many snakes we have here. If you are going to be out and about please keep an eye on the ground...you never know what is down there.http://blog.al.com/east-alabama/2013/09/cherokee_county_man_dies_from.html

 

[Schwing]

We just got snow on the benches of the Wasatch mountains... I think I am living in the wrong state.

 

[fragout]

I would agree Jimmy.

More leaves on trees make for less visibility behind said leaves.

Be safe everyone.

 

[jimmyraythomason]

We just got snow on the benches of the Wasatch mountains...

We spent the day mowing the grass and pruning flowers while the grand daughters swam in the pool. (I sneak in occasionally to see a little football)

 

[MtnCreek]

Snakes around here (not too far from you) have been really bad this year. I suspect it has something to do with all the rain; just a guess. IMO, a copperhead is the hardest snake to spot.

 

[jimmyraythomason]

IMO, a copperhead is the hardest snake to spot.

I completely agree. Not only do they blend in with the surrounding terrain but they are also very "docile" (until provoked). They will remain completely still until you make them move,possibly by stepping on them. We have some very large copperheads around here. I have personally killed 2 in the 5 foot range and have seen some that were bigger. No need wasting time telling me they don't grow that big,tape measures don't lie. Two feet may be the most common size but spend some time around chicken houses during the summer in the South and you will see specimens MUCH larger.

 

[Arkansas Paul]

IMO, a copperhead is the hardest snake to spot.

I hunted our opening day in a ground blind just day before yesterday. I hunted the morning, then had to go out of town. My nephew decided to hunt my ground blind in the evening. He had been sitting there for about an hour when he felt something on his boot. He looks down and there's a foot long copperhead between his feet. He killed it with an arrow but nearly had to change his pants.

 

[jimmyraythomason]

There was a story in one of the Alabama Outdoor publications a few years ago about an Alabama turkey hunter falling asleep in the woods waking up to a large copperhead crawling across his legs. He and his hunting partner killed it after it had crawled clear of him. They didn't give a measurement but posted a picture of it and it appeared to be in the 4 foot range.

 

[Arkansas Paul]

 

[MtnCreek]

Another thing to keep in mind is they can and do climb. I've spotted several snakes in places that I wondered how they got there, mostly in dense creek bottoms and bldgs., sheds. I've got a decent story about an outhouse that I won't share here.

If you live or hunt, hike, fish in steep areas, be extra careful. I lived in W NC; the area was notorious for rattlers and the land was very steep / rocky. Walking up a steep ridge puts your face / upper body in striking distance and especially dangerous are cliffs that require putting your hands on ledges that you can't see what may be tucked in there.

 

[clamman]

When I was walking out to my range yesterday there was a copper headed rattle spider in the middle of my path!

 

[brainwake]

I saw 2 rattlesnakes this weekend while backpacking in the Ouachita National Forrest. Both were small and right off the trail.

 

[ZeroJunk]

Luckily all we have are Copperheads. But, they are enough to give me the creeps.

 

[SleazyRider]

The article states that he was bitten several days earlier, and emergency vehicles were then called to his home. It leaves me to wonder the outcome if he had summoned emergency vehicles to the scene, or even reported to the hospital immediately after the incident. It is no wonder he went into cardiac arrest.

 

[MtnCreek]

I know of an old timer that was rattlesnake bit. He was on his hands/knees picking galax and the snake bit him on the arm. He was found at his home a couple days later and taken to the hospital. He recovered and was able to keep his arm (not quite as serviceable as it was before). By the time he was sick enough to want to go to a doctor he was unable to do anything about it at that point (no phone).

A guy I know was bitten by a blacksnake on the hand (yep, being stupid! one of those 'Hey Y'all' moments) and got a really bad bacterial infection from it. There was talk that he might have to have it amputated. Similarly, he waited (a week or more in this case) before getting it treated.

I'm not the type to go to the doctor, but if a snake bites me that's what I'm going to do. Also, the main venomous snakes around here are rattlers, copperheads and cottonmouths and I've been told by several people that (should) know, the anti-venom is the same for them. Maybe someone here can confirm.

 

[herkyguy]

luckily all I've seen so far are harmless rat snakes. but I've whacked a few water moccassins with my .357 out on the ranch.

not keen on the idea of a copperhead coming near.

crazy thing is that some of the rattlesnakes are protected, so what do you do?

 

[Arkansas Paul]

crazy thing is that some of the rattlesnakes are protected, so what do you do?

Well, if I'm in the woods and not in any danger, I leave it alone, as I do other snakes. I'm not of the mindset that any good snake is a dead snake. They have their place. Now if I feel threatened, protected species be damned.
If I am in my yard I will kill a venomous snake. I have a 10 year old and a dog that I don't want getting snake bit. Non venomous snakes get a pass. They do way more good than harm.

 

[jimmyraythomason]

If I am in my yard I will kill a venomous snake.

I'm with you AP! I have a 7 year old grand daughter and 2 5 year old grand daughters. There is NO WAY a venomous snake will be tolerated on my property or anywhere my grand babies may be.

 

[BigBore44]

Saw this little gem the other day....

He was waiting on me when I stopped to check my trail camera. Didn't want him getting run over so I caught him and tossed him on the other side of the road. Only time I ever got scared by a snake was when I was up in my climbing stand one day. Had a hole in the tree above me and had some kind of black snake crawl out of the hole and onto my shoulder. He flicked my ear with his tongue. I figured it was probably a granddaddy long legs till I felt the weight on my shoulder. Faster than I've probably moved in my life and without looking I reached up, grabbed it by the head, and sent it airborne some 20+ feet to the ground. Took a second to gather my composure. Ok maybe a little longer than a second.

 

[BP Hunter]

I stepped on a rattler a year ago. I felt a squishy feel under my snake boot. I thought nothing of it until I took 2 steps later and heard the rattling. I never felt so cold so fast. I let it be.

 

[Lennyjoe]

I wear knee high Redhead snake boots during the early season bird/bow hunting out here in Arizona. Seen to damn many rattlers to wear standard hiking boots. Be safe everyone.

 

[Sentryau2]

For copperheads, cotton mouths and rattle snakes are all in the same class of snake so yes the anti venom is the same. Tho not all places have anti venom and if they do they may not always have enough. My little cousin was bitten by a small copper head while playing (she stepped on it) it took 7 bags of anti venom and 3-4 days of being in the hospital to get her in better shape. It might not have been as bad if she was older (being 4 at the time)
I tend to leave snakes alone if they are not in my yard, but near the house they are dead if venemous

 

[Armored farmer]

Non venomous snakes get a pass. They do way more good than harm.

.....same here unless they're coiled up in my bolt bin inside my shop..

 

[3212]

I got a snake story for you.Years ago we leased a cabin in southcentral PA.It was on the banks of a trout stream,with good deer and turkey hunting.It had been built many years earlier with an outhouse.We would go there on weekends in the summer(just my wife and I).It was located on the edge of a village with a backyard nearby.The owner had propped rails on the back of the outhouse.One Saturday we arrived and I took luggage into the cabin and said "I gotta go".I ran to the outhouse,pulled my pants down and sat.As I sat in the darkened interior,I looked around at the webs I had to clean.In the corner above me a hose was draped across from one side to the other.I looked up and a snake was flicking its tongue at me from about 2 feet away.I hopped out of there with pants around my knees in view of the neighbors house.I got organized and reached inside for the broom and poked the snake until it fell out from under the roof.It took off for the woods.It was a black snake.I found an empty birds nest in that corner.Apparently the snake crawled up the rails to get the baby birds.The next weekend I had a new campers potty to use in the cabin.My wife was thrilled,I never told her about the snake(she would never have gone back there).

 

[MCgunner]

I hunt private land. The east Texas public woods are too scary.