First rattlesnake experience!

WalterDavis

WalterDavis

Knifemaker / Craftsman / Service Provider
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Nov 23, 2005
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Being a three-day weekend, I thought I'd scurry out of town and get a overnighter in up in the desert Saturday. Threw everything in my truck, picked up some food, grabbed the dog, and headed south to the 'Behind-the-rocks' area. Gathered some wood, cooked some steak and potatoes (and enjoyed them immensely:thumbup:), and set up camp just as the sun went down. Contented, I laid on a rock, listening to some music and watcing the stars when I heard some cicadas (I thought) start their annoying buzzing, and my dog went wild! He was carrying on at a tree about 20 feet away like he wanted it dead. I grabbed the flashlight and tried to calm him down as I started looking for that dang bug so I could squash it or scare it and get back to relaxing. As I scanned the base of the tree, I found the noisy end of a snake letting me know I was too damn close:eek:

Call me chicken, but I split:o Packed up camp, put out the fire and headed for the house. That snake was just a little too close to camp for comfort, and I really didn't know what to do to keep him away without killing him (or him killing me or my dog). I figured that nobody knew where I was, and at over an hour from town if either of us got bit it could be pretty bad.

What really spooked me though, was the sound. I really thought it was a cicada-which I thought I'd been hearing a lot of this year. The buzzing was much faster and higher-pitched than I'd expected, not at all like the movies:foot: So I guess the lesson was: don't get complacent! There's always something new out there, so pay attention!

How was everyone else's weekend?
 
Rattlers can only strike a distance about half of their body length. It also relieves them of a HUGE amount of energy-normally by their second or third strike, they're done. A 4-5 foot pointy stick will aggrivate them into striking, and once he's fagged out he's vulnerable to being speared. If you can catch him just behind the head, you're good to go. Cut the head off at that point because dead snakes still have reflexes and have been known to strike. They're pretty easy to skin, less so to clean-I just leave the bones in for cooking.
 
PayetteRucker said:
Rattlers can only strike a distance about half of their body length. It also relieves them of a HUGE amount of energy-normally by their second or third strike, they're done. A 4-5 foot pointy stick will aggrivate them into striking, and once he's fagged out he's vulnerable to being speared. If you can catch him just behind the head, you're good to go. Cut the head off at that point because dead snakes still have reflexes and have been known to strike. They're pretty easy to skin, less so to clean-I just leave the bones in for cooking.
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un huh.
 
Don't get yourself bit listening to that bullcrap. If you ever get the chance to see a rattler in a terrarium, you might shine an incandescent light in there for a better look, and have the snake strike at it. Fascinating seeing how wide the mouth opens on the strike, especially when you get to see it through glass from a few inches. Fascinating how the snake will strike dozens of times, and to hear the contant thumping of it banging it's head into the glass as it fades into the distance after you've walked away and the snake is still going at it.
The last one I killed was a 4 footer that had been run over by a car at the rattles, but sure did have plenty of strikes left in him. Had to maintain a little distance and take a shot at its head with my ASP baton at the end of 6 or 7 strikes before getting the job done, so I could behead him and throw the head down a drain in case any neighborhood kids decided to play with it.


Dogs get themselves into trouble with them sometimes. You wouldn't have known that snake was there if your dog hadn't stirred it up. You're not on their menu, so aren't in much danger from them unless you get really close by accident.
 
Take it as you will-I had a chemistry teacher in high school that grew up in Kentucky, he swore by flathead shovels...
 
I've lived in az my whole life and you really don't want to try and make the strike tell the get tired out. When they are fully extended they can strike half there body length. When they are coiled up they can strike further. I've walked about 3 feet away from a rattlesnake. As long as you don't freak out on it, it should leave you alone. Also there's not to big a possibility from you or your dog dying. My dog got bit in the face by a baby which release a ton more poison, and after a trip to the vet with some antivenin he was fine.
 
I gotta admit I did think for a second about having snake for dessert:p But it wasn't worth getting me or the dog bit, and I didn't think tangling with it by flashlight was really worthwhile. Discretion the better part of valor and all that!

What's really bothering me is that a couple of weeks ago I went out hiking on an old two-track up by Canyonlands and I heard the same buzzing a lot-pretty much every third tree or so for over a mile:eek: I'd always dismissed that sound as bugs, but it will be a long time before you see me out in shorts and sandals again:D
 
Sometimes being deaf in the outdoors is a plus. Sometimes not so much. :(
 
PayetteRucker said:
Take it as you will-I had a chemistry teacher in high school that grew up in Kentucky, he swore by flathead shovels...
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He was a smart man. I have nothing against them and leave them alone in the boonies, but if they're in my yard or workplace then off with their heads.
 
WalterDavis said:
...but it will be a long time before you see me out in shorts and sandals again:D
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Good call. Need something to keep the snakes and ticks from giving your legs and feet good lovin'. I almost always wear pants and boots when I hike.
 
So you went out to enjoy nature, then fled when she looked you in the face...
 
WalterDavis said:
Yep:p Mother Nature looked a lot like my ex that night, all noise and poison, no lovin' to be found:D
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Ouch. :eek:

For some reason Rattlers scare me -- and I am not scared of any other snake, just the rattle snakes. They freak me out.
 
i live in outback australia, so snakes are a pretty common animal to encounter when out bushwhacking around here.

in general, leave them alone and they'll leave you alone. regular stamping of the feet tends to keep 'em clear of you.
 
Glad you didnt get bit. Now, they will curl up with you at night out there..they like the warmth. That is the only thing I was worried about in my time in the desert.
 
My family are all from Montana where rattle snakes are as common as any other creature. The shovel works well for lopping the head off, or just a couple big heavy rocks can take em out from a safe distance. My cousins got a cigar box full of the rattles.
 
if you don't feel comfortable around a snake, there's no shame in moving or leaving, especially when you have animals or people that you are responsible for.

going gently in the wilderness is the safest bet.


i really enjoy rattlers, for watching as well as eating - i think of them as desert trout.

LOL.


as to rattlers or any snake getting tuckered out quickly, while i have found that to be true sometimes, it is dictated by where in the country you are and what time of year it is.

- desert rattlers are pretty energetic IME. in other places where there has been a lot of rain and evaporative cooling, they tend to quit earlier, but i wouldn't count on it.


good post, brother davis - if we ever go camping and we see a good rattler, i'll show ya how to make them into good breakfast sausage. - that oughtta cure ya.

one shot of a proper hawk on a big ol' rattler and they are ready for the skillet.

vec
 
i find a garden hoe to be an excellent tool to lopping the heads off snakes.

but a flathead shovel will also get the job done.

an out in the boonies tool can be a machete or similar lashed to a pole. i won't get closer to teh little bastards than i have too.

be wary of the head even once it's been lopped off. the venom is still toxic and they can still hurt you if you muck around with them.

i rekon i should just point out: in general, i prefer to leave snakes alone. i'll only decapitate them when they are either in my yard/house or if they hang around at my campsite for too long. i do the stamping of the feet thing for a while and if they havn't buggered off, then i whack 'em
 
vector001 said:
i really enjoy rattlers, for watching as well as eating - i think of them as desert trout.

LOL.


as to rattlers or any snake getting tuckered out quickly, while i have found that to be true sometimes, it is dictated by where in the country you are and what time of year it is.

- desert rattlers are pretty energetic IME. in other places where there has been a lot of rain and evaporative cooling, they tend to quit earlier, but i wouldn't count on it.


good post, brother davis - if we ever go camping and we see a good rattler, i'll show ya how to make them into good breakfast sausage. - that oughtta cure ya.

one shot of a proper hawk on a big ol' rattler and they are ready for the skillet.

vec
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You know, I'd really like to know how to prep and cook rattler. Just chopping off the noggin and ditching the body seems a terrible waste of flesh. Sounds like you've got a thread to start!
 
gunknifenut said:
Glad you didnt get bit. Now, they will curl up with you at night out there..they like the warmth.
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then push out of your bed (with your feet) something cold,it wasn't poisonous, but anyway :eek:

(no rattlers around,just horn-nosed vipers)
 
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