Watch your step!!!

[TheGDog]

Ugh... last time I was hiking back up and up and up outta the hell-hole... I must have missed a turn in the trail and was going further and further up into a water lane in a draw line.

Look up and see the young dude I was following behind and realize, Aw sh!t... I wandered off trail, Damn it! And it was hot too, so I DID NOT want to backtrack or anything. And his line up on that switchback was not that damn much above me... (or so I thought!).. so I'm like screw it... I'll just pioneer up to that line and meetup with it.

Pssh... mistake!! First of all it was crazy steep, so traction was a total P.I.T.A. !!! You had to carefully step onto the backs of the clumps of grass/brush growing out of the soil so you wouldn't be walkin' on soil that wants to just crush and crumble and slide away.

And this operation is burning calories and creating exertion like nobodies business in 90 F weather! My calves are being quick to let me know "You done f**ked up! Now hurry your stupid @$$ up and get the hell up this damn thing!"

Aaaaaand.... that's when I came upon the juvenile Rattler. Damn it! Little 'tard! I had to sit there and wait... on that steep incline and terrible traction... calves just burning and complaining even just standing still!!!... waitin' for this young dumb mofo to finally calm his aggitated butt back down and Finally....Finally.....!!!... Relax his little stupid behind and Finally ease on down the Yellow Brick Road!

Then.. as if that wasn't enough of a b!tch... I struggle and strive and get up to that trail line above... whipped.. gotta sit-down... wouldn't you know it?... Fire Ant... Bite my @$$! Just was not my day!.. I'm tellin' you!

I was exerting soo much and building up soo much heat that day my damn face was starting to droop on the one side that had gotten Bell's Palsy once before years ago after a basal skull Fx.

Moral of the story? I wouldn't be soo worried about the snakes. Just take it slow and whenever isht starts getting more bushy to where you can't see the ground all to well, make sure to use your trekking pole and place it down there by the base of those bushes where you're about to step first... before you put your foot there. Easy peasy. Just keep them on your mind is all and act accordingly.

Most of the time... your loud-ass crunchin' and stompin human self will have them lettin' you know well ahead of time that you need to pump your brakes a lil bit. But do pay attention and if you hear that damn sound make sure to immediately create some distance. I've encounters where I'm pretty sure I must have woken 'em up and it startled 'em... 'cause they rattled loud and mad as hell! For a long distance after I'd left their side. Their all different. Some have a definite perimeter around them, and the moment you go 1cm inside that perimeter they slowly start rattling and increase in volume in direct relation to how much closer you get... whereas other.. go straight to mad as hell and pissed off and as loud as they possibly can go directly!

 

[TrapLine]

They will try to move away from vibrations so will avoid you most of the time but if you step on it hes going to strike. I always wear Combat boots and feel safe enough in them. Keep my pants bloused so it is loose away from my leg so if it strikes the pant leg it will get fabric instead of skin. The little ones are the ones you have to worry about, the large ones know to save energy and venom for food and will get away from something it cant eat.

 

[TheGDog]

The danger is the young ones will blow their wad and inject a sh!t ton of venom.

They haven't learned control over that muscle/system yet.

 

[Prime]

Thats a good sized southern pacific. Ive seen a few while walking around but never a big one. They've all been relatively calm. Only one that wasn't happy was a speckled. He let us know he was there when we were still 20+ feet away. Took pictures of it and they were used on a snake ID website, had a unique coloration. Could still hear him rattling from a ways off when we were walking away.

 

[DoubleTrouble]

Now that we are talking snakes, what do you guys wear to protect yourselves? Brand, type, hight?
I wonder if they could bite through my boots.

Fabian, I picked these up on Amazon after the last NWTF meeting. Too many guys having close calls.

Foreverlast Snake Guard Shields

 

[SurfNHuntSD]

Now that we are talking snakes, what do you guys wear to protect yourselves? Brand, type, hight?
I wonder if they could bite through my boots.
So far in all my outtings I came across of only one. Actualy, one rattler and one that was dark in color, we were both scared of eachother, I was going down to seat under an oak and was going straight on top of it, when I saw his eyes I jumped and ran!!! LOL when I checked again it wasnt there any more.
I think that I shitted my pants... LOL

Fabian,

I also had a close call awhile back that drove me to get some gaiters.. almost put my foot right down on one while rabbit hunting.. somehow I didn't get hit. Now I wear my Turtleskin Gaiters when I'm out in the spring and through the fall.

 

[d16ridgehiker]

Ive got a pair of snake boots for sale in the classifieds......just saying.....

 

[msailor]

Time to break out the my turtle backs!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Dawnandusk]

Fabian, I picked these up on Amazon after the last NWTF meeting. Too many guys having close calls.

Foreverlast Snake Guard Shields

I have those too Phil, for me and my son, the issue he has with them is that the upper edge is hard and causes pain when walking. I have no problem with that, but also they tend to rotate on your calfs. Becareful, you can loose the latches ( plastic clips?) too.

 

[WaterDawg]

I’ve come upon many rattlers in the field and it sounds like Everyone here has had close encounters. I’m curious if any of you guys have actually been bitten? Or Has anyone been struck but saved by their snake boots?

 

[Dawnandusk]

Ive got a pair of snake boots for sale in the classifieds......just saying.....

I have seen them a while back. Too small for me, too big for my son...

 

[oscar]

Now that we are talking snakes, what do you guys wear to protect yourselves? Brand, type, hight?
I wonder if they could bite through my boots.
So far in all my outtings I came across of only one. Actualy, one rattler and one that was dark in color, we were both scared of eachother, I was going down to seat under an oak and was going straight on top of it, when I saw his eyes I jumped and ran!!! LOL when I checked again it wasnt there any more.
I think that I shitted my pants... LOL

I use Crack Shot, Snake Guardz Snake Shin Guard
A bit more affordable than the turtle skin. No complaints in my one season of use. A must have when going solo.

 

[TheGDog]

HaHA! Now ya see! That's why I've been training my liver for YEARS, for just such a toxicity threat! With all the meds and occasional drinks... Damn snake would bite me and HE'D end up dying of liver failure, HA!

 

[TrapLine]

In east TX Bank fishing there would always be a bunch of cottonmouths within 10-15 feet of me all the time, they were everywhere. We never bothered each other unless they tried to take my fish. This time of year I would think is more likely to step on and since they are still cold and lethargic and cant move away from you fast enough like the warmer weather.

They will strike with a warning nip more often then opening wide and going all in to something they cant eat.

I will take a snake on the ground over an eel on the hook anyday.

 

[TheGDog]

I will take a snake on the ground over an eel on the hook anyday.

Oh man.. Brother you took me back with that comment!

I was like maybe 8yo. On this lava rock jetty by my GrandMa's place down in Ensenada, I had my favorite spot. There was this last rock you could only see at low tide. Some adult was out on that last rock casting, so I thought. "You know what? I'm gonna go try off that last rock!" Me and my pole of 6 feet of Bamboo and maybe 12-15ft on line.

So I'm out there a bit and nothing. So I'm thinkin' to myself "Pssh this blows, I'm going back to my Honey-Hole!"

Back over to my Honey-Hole, drop it in... count to 5..BOOM... nice little Buttermouth Perch.

Adult sees this right, so then the **cker decides he's gonna come over and fish right damn next to me in my very small little nook in the rocks. Pssh... whatever.

So then he drops his line down in too.

Eventually... BOOM... Oh dang.. something big! Hey now! Aww dang it.. it's got both our lines tangled up with each other... argh.. oh well... so we both lift up and OH SH!T!!! Damn Morey Eel and that mouth full of Teeth!

It becomes obvious this adult is freaked out by the Eel and doesn't want touch it or have anything to do with it.

We lower it back over into a tide pool on the surface of a large rock behind us. But it has a crevice in that pool, and that mofo started trying to wedge himself in there so I'm like "No, no, no, no... not there... lift him up!" Had him put the Eel down on a dry surface instead. Neither of us had needle-nose, and I wasn't ABOUT to get anywhere near that damn mouth full of teeth until I'd neutralized the threat.

Had the guy hold his rod steady, ran to the shore to grab one of the river stones they covered the shore with to prevetn erosion of the bank. Ran back... and proceeded to beat the ever loving snot outta where I figured this things brain should be.

Man! Did it take a lot of beating with a rock before that damn thing finally stopped moving! With the commotion of all this some family of locals that was obviously supplementing their food intake came over and had some neednose pliers, so I got his hook out finally, then we got the lines free of each other finally. Gave it to that family. They got all kindsa happy!

And while all this was goin' on, I'd remembered what my StepDad told me about grabbing for a snake or an eel. That you gotta be careful and grab 'em in two places... otherwise they can wrap their bodies around your arm... then pull their heads out of your hand, then bite you.

Probably not true, that StepDad seemed to have a tendency to stretch the truth a bit at times. But definitely had me sketched out about grabbin' at that Toothy Mofo!

 

[ilovesprig]

I use the Rattler Brand snake gaiters....I've worn them for years and they're still in good shape.

I've been hit once while fishing Lake Wohlford….It was a little guy and the hit was on my boot....If I'd been wearing maybe flip flops or tennis shoes....The outcome might have been different.

.

 

[Bowman]

OK my 2 cents.
The ones that get you (bite you) is the ones you don't see, because they
Blend in so well.
Were you sit, climbing up hill were you place your hand. Lots of people get bit when climbing up to get hold of something.
I have trained my self to look for them while hiking. We're I put my hands and we're I sit.
Just like any wild animal most are shy and just want to get away.
But and I mean but.
On occasion I have had aggressive rattlesnakes which actually came at me. Every one here is different and have had different experience, this is mine. I actually had to pull my side arm and dispatch it because it had me in a pickle. I was trapped.
Sitting at my usual spot, on a set of boulders, no way down except the way in. An aggressive snake came in behind me , I blew it away with my
Side arm. That was a close one.
While hiking over the years I have had two or three hits on my overly thick leather boots.
Some heart pounding scary poop.
So #1, I walk slow, I take the time to look at every place an walking into.
Pay attention to details.
I done this for years with only boots.
In the warm days don't hike with out protection. If you do make it, anti venom cost an arm and a leg.$$$$$$.
So even $500 Gators are cheap.

 

[SDLIVIN]

Funny thing is, I look back to when I was a kid...
The whole neighborhood of kids would be up in the local mountains of Poway above Pomerado Hospital all day, every day playing, dawn to dusk.
hiding in cracks and crevices, cruising in and around everything without a care in the world.
I can only recall seeing a snake once that whole time up there.
And no one ever got bit.

 

[Bowman]

My wife got bit in her front yard when she was a little girl.
I had numerous close calls in my yard and walking to my mail box at my old place. Even as a kid at parents home I had one strike my boot. And numerous close calls.

 

[BIGCIM]

Now that we are talking snakes, what do you guys wear to protect yourselves? Brand, type, hight?
I wonder if they could bite through my boots.
So far in all my outtings I came across of only one. Actualy, one rattler and one that was dark in color, we were both scared of eachother, I was going down to seat under an oak and was going straight on top of it, when I saw his eyes I jumped and ran!!! LOL when I checked again it wasnt there any more.
I think that I shitted my pants... LOL

Different size and species of rattlesnake will strike with an slightly different amount of force. I was always told if you don't think your boots would stop a dropped hypodermic needle then don't rely on them to stop fangs.
YMMV