Night of the Rattler.
I was hiking with my friend and uncle about 60-miles south from my last Timber Rattler run-in on the AT looking to do some gear testing and had a little surprise. We got a late start and didn’t make elevation until dark and still had a 4-mile night hike. The area is familiar so warned everyone that there was a potential for snakes. We were hiking single file in the dark and then heard my uncle yell snake, turned around and discovered this bundle of joy behind me. These photos were done on the fly at night so the quality isn’t my best.
Judging from the location of the snake when first seen I could of walked within 6-12 inches of it. My friend also past by without knowing though my uncle stopped dead in his tracks as clearly he wasn’t going to walk within inches of a rattlesnake. The snake then moved back into the cover and promptly followed the trail for about 6-10 feet.
The rattler proceeded to cross in front of me and headed uphill into the brush. I really didn’t have any place to maneuver with unknown terrain below on the left, people behind me and higher ledge off to the right. Despite remaining motionless as most of the group walked very near it picked up speed once the snake realized the gig was up so to speak.
I was on the lookout for any risks like roots, unstable rocks and yes even snakes though perhaps the comradely of friends and family allowed a lapse of attention. I still don’t fully understand why we both nearly walked on the snake. Granted it was night and headlamps can only do so much, the snake’s breakup camo seems to fool the eye but still I was on point and clearly failed to provide warning.
We got up to the ridgeline 20 minutes later and my friend was a little on edge. There is absolutely no shame in this. Come to think of it I was feeling a bit out of touch with my environment.
My buddy wasn't a happy camper.
We still had miles of night hike ahead and I wasn’t going to make the same mistake twice. Like the last Timber I seen in Mass this one didn’t provide any warning which was rather unsettling however nor did it act aggressive though once aware it started to rattle. It rattled into the night as it moved off. Betting the Timber would have hit if trampled but the fault would have been mine alone. I dropped the pace down to about .75 of a mile per hour using my hiking sticks to poke at thick brush along the trail. No other snakes made an appearance during the rest of the night hike but everyone was tricked a few times by sticks and roots. We didn’t make camp until nearly 12 am.
I took point again on the way out and a few miles from the original encounter found yet another rattler just off the trail. This one had a bit different markings and was maybe a little shorter though such judgments are hard to define in the field. In any case daylight sure made spotting these things easier but the breakup pattern was still effective as it took pointing the snake out before everyone actually seen it.
This snake became agitated much faster and started to rattle so naturally we kept our distance. The rattler took up a defensive position which it never moved from. Seems they hold their ground to some degree.
Things to consider.1. Nature is neither for nor against anyone. It doesn’t care if you get crushed under a fallen tree, swept away in a flood, subjected to bugs or snakes nor if you have a fun time in camp.
2. Modify your plans in accordance with consideration number one. We turned all the headlamps on high and everyone took extra care looking in all directions. We decided to stop at the next good water though the drought forced us to finish the hike. We used the cell phones to inform family of a possible change of campsite and the reasons why. We turned off the cell phones to conserve battery power if needed to call for help. It may sound melodramatic but one mistake was enough for me and made sure all the ducks were in a row just in case. Nothing in nature is going to care if anyone gets hurt or if we went on our way without anymore issues. Depending on luck alone is for fools.
3. Once again these snakes wanted nothing to do with us and avoided conflict. The snake at night could have easily bitten anyone of us and we would have never seen it. In fact both snakes acted in a totally defensive manner.
4. Night hikes are risky. There is a greater chance of slipping on wet leaf litter, roots or unstable rocks than in the light of day. The odds of unseen encounters with snakes are also increased and so are those of getting lost.
5. There are pros and cons to traveling in a group.
I am guessing that the actual danger felt greater given the psychological aspects of traveling through the woods at night so if this post sounds overdone take it within that context.
ZS, It always comes back to sheep.
