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My favorite type of snake and what a prolific clutch!

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Donotbelieve 9 Mar 15
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There is nothing I can say that won't be construed as rude...

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I once ditched high school and went hiking alone in the local mountains. I went down a trail a couple of miles and sat leaning backwards resting on my hands in the gravel beside the stream for about twenty minutes listening to burblings of the water over the rocks. After awhile as I was about to get up knocking the gravel from my palms, I noticed a rattlesnake perfectly camoflaged in the brown and tan gravel sunning itself as well about a foot or so alongside where my left hand just was. My heart skipped a best or two. If bitten I would have surely died. It was pre-cell days (no signal in the canyon regardless) and I would have had a two mile uphill hike just to get to my car.

It was quite a beautiful animal, perfectly adapted to its surroundings. I do admit to finding a forked stick to immobilize the head to hear its rattle but afterward left it in peace, still a bit shaken.

@Donotbelieve No, I would have died. I would have curled up into a ball by the riverbank and felt sorry for myself (at the time maybe even thinking it was God's punishment for ditching). ? I've always been a long tall, drink of water (skinny actually) and it wouldn't have taken much venom, I'd imagine. I did consider qualifying the statement when I wrote it, but went for dramatic effect with hyperbole.

Others options were, "most likely would have died," or "quite possibly woud have/could have died."

But instead, by the grace of Glob, I'm here to regale you with tales of my exploits (gonna save first and then go make sure I used regale right - glad I did as I had first typed "regail" ).

@Donotbelieve The winding road down to the hospital would have been a challenge as well, what with venemous reptile toxin coursing through my veins, amplified by the adrenalin of fear, and the extertion of the hike back (should I have made it that far) as it is a pretty steep climb out. The downhill traverse alone gets me winded.

In fact, another time while driving up to a different hiking spot on the same road with friends after ingesting some substances intended to put us in an altered state once we got there, it kicked in early and I declared excitedly, "We're driving on the back if a snake!"

@Donotbelieve Mmm... cranberry sauce, Arrrgh.

I defer to your expertise, Dnb, but am glad the contemplation of possible outcomes is just a purely academic exercise.

I mean... look at my profile pic. Is that the look of a man calmly interacting with the world around him? ?

@Donotbelieve speaking of the peril of injuries... a warning for all households with babies to heed.

[bugmartini.com]

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I don't do snakes! I don't do snakes! I don't do snakes! Did I mention that I don't do snakes. Yikes.

Not an unreasonable concern on the whole. A local cow and one resident were killed by a rattlesnake not too many years ago iirc.

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You know, I'm not sure I even have a favorite snake.

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one of my favorites too. I have seen them on exhibit in the zoo and they do blend in with the leaves. they are beautiful though

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In the mid 1980s I came across a clutch of 3/4 inch babies in the drain at the side of my house in Kampala. Never found the parent, though.
I grew up in Kenya, and as a child always carried a stick for protection against snakes when exploring in the bush.

@OwlInASack As my profile shows, decidedly "colomial".
I'm a member of "Kenya Friends Reunited' on Facebook, as Petter_Talisman. Real name Finne.

@OwlInASack No, can't say I've heard of them. I'll ask my wife, also a Kenya girl.
We had farms in Karen, Athi River and Limuru, but not since the early 1960s. This might be of interest to you.
[mojacar.ws]

@OwlInASack My wife doesn't recall them either. My father's drilling company was called Karlssons and Finne Ltd. My grandmother was Dorothy Hale (she sometimes used Hillman-Hale) Her 650 acre farm, Park Grange Dairy, was in Karen, on land she bought when the Karen Blixen estate was put up for auction. Her original farm was only 1 mile from Nairobi town centre.

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Incredible snake. Love it’s head.

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