Jump to content
SASS Wire Forum

I Went Rattlesnake Hunting Today


Cholla

Recommended Posts

It should be denning season so I went out to a location that has several horizontal cracks that vary from 3" to 6" in height and goes back about 40' in places. (I use a mirror to shine sunlight into the crack.) I found lots of dried and fresh vegetation from mice and pack rats and one big blacktail rattlesnake too far back for me to reach (15'). This is the most classic snake den-looking site I have seen. Lots of rodents to hunt and deep protection from predators and the elements. I was hoping to find more lying out where I could get them. So, long story short, sorry Arizona Gunfighter, no western diamondback buckles yet. I went to another den site that produced 26 years ago and didn't find a thing. I don't know if I'm too early, too late, or in a bad location. Time will tell. And of course I have been trying to figure out how to get that one out. Maybe an extendable paint-roller handle and a hook...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I've been told that of the 23 kinds of poisonous snakes known in the U. S. that 17 are found right here in central Arizona.   I have never seen a rattler since moving here.

 

Saw lots in Utah when I lived there and South Carolina is wall-to-wall with the biggest diamond backs I ever saw, especially around Parris Island.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

What does one do with a rattlesnake when one has successfully hunted them? Is it the skin?

 

Here in the Pacific NW, we have only one species: the Western (not to be confused with the Western Diamondback); also referred to as the Pacific rattlesnake. One of the smaller rattlers; bites are rare, deaths extremely rare.

 

We've often seen them in our 'season opener' backpack hike in central Washington. They are often on the trail; one year not long back we had one in camp. We got some good photos.

 

One year, about 5 years back, at the trailhead a guy showed us one he'd chopped the head off of in the parking lot. I asked him why he'd killed it.  As I remember, he had no explanation.

 

The hike is Ingalls Creek. For some reason, the drainage is known for rattlers, to which we can personally attest. They are an interesting aspect of the hike. I have some good photos. I've never been able to figure out how to upload photos here.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, Red Gauntlet , SASS 60619 said:

I've never been able to figure out how to upload photos here.

 

Red:

Easy.

Scroll to bottom of your draft post or reply;

Click on "choose files";

Select your image from the directory that appears; 

Once you click on the image, it will appear in a small block in the lower left corner, as an "uploaded image"

Click on "Submit", and your post/reply will appear with the image. full size.

 

Easy peasy.

 

LL

Link to comment
Share on other sites

4 hours ago, Red Gauntlet , SASS 60619 said:

What does one do with a rattlesnake when one has successfully hunted them? Is it the skin?

 

This is what I do with them. I have eaten some in the past but they taste like frog legs to me and I'm not fond of frog legs. The bones are rattlesnake vertebrae.

 

IMG_2234 (1).JPG

IMG_2281.JPG

IMG_2284.JPG

IMG_2337.JPG

IMG_2338.JPG

IMG_2342.JPG

IMG_2380.JPG

IMG_2384.JPG

IMG_2385.JPG

Link to comment
Share on other sites

7 hours ago, Forty Rod SASS 3935 said:

I've been told that of the 23 kinds of poisonous snakes known in the U. S. that 17 are found right here in central Arizona.   I have never seen a rattler since moving here.

 

Saw lots in Utah when I lived there and South Carolina is wall-to-wall with the biggest diamond backs I ever saw, especially around Parris Island.

The official count by the DNR is 13 rattlesnake species that live here in Arizona. But, others like to sub-divide them even more due to coloring and take the count higher. I find four types here in our area; Western Diamondback, Mojave Green, Blacktail, and Arizona Black. Since moving back I have found two Diamondbacks, two Blacks and two blacktailed. I have found about ten Mojaves this summer. The Galloping Goose on Whiskey Row trades for my stuff and a shop in Williams buys it from me. I also sell it on the SASS FB page when the FB police don't take down my postings.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

8 hours ago, Red Gauntlet , SASS 60619 said:

What does one do with a rattlesnake when one has successfully hunted them? Is it the skin?

 

Here in the Pacific NW, we have only one species: the Western (not to be confused with the Western Diamondback); also referred to as the Pacific rattlesnake. One of the smaller rattlers; bites are rare, deaths extremely rare.

 

We've often seen them in our 'season opener' backpack hike in central Washington. They are often on the trail; one year not long back we had one in camp. We got some good photos.

 

One year, about 5 years back, at the trailhead a guy showed us one he'd chopped the head off of in the parking lot. I asked him why he'd killed it.  As I remember, he had no explanation.

 

The hike is Ingalls Creek. For some reason, the drainage is known for rattlers, to which we can personally attest. They are an interesting aspect of the hike. I have some good photos. I've never been able to figure out how to upload photos here.

Been bit twice (neither one was fatal) by western Diamond Backs.  The first one hit me on a thumb knuckle while I was climbing in some rocks a mile from my home.  I shot it all to pieces...emptied a Ruger .22 Automatic... and a friend gathered up the remains and I was in a hospital within 20 minutes.  Sicker than hell that night, but was back up and running two days later.

 

Second one about two years later went into the notch at the top on my boot and just barely broke the skin.  I killed him, too, and took him with me to the hospital.  Doc said he didn't inject me with any venom, but gave me an antivenin shot and an antibiotic  just to make sure.  I didn't have any symptoms from that one but my Mom burned my socks just in case.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

A rattlesnake can vary the amount of venom they inject from none to a full dose. Most bites are dry because they just want to get your attention and to leave them alone. It takes time to produce more venom and if they use it all they are vulnerable. I have read that if one were to inject egg yolks into muscle tissue it would have the same effect. I have not tested that theory but it sounds like a great plot line for one of @Alpo mystery books!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I read that years ago - thenTHAT if you injected egg albumin it would react just like rattlesnake venom, and that if you ate rattlesnake venom it would be just like eating the raw egg.

 

However if you're going to cut the bite and suck out the poison you need to be awful damn sure you don't have any cavities.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

We live in a rural area 60 miles north of Calgary, AB and in the 33 years we have been here, I have only seen one garter snake, nothing else.  

Link to comment
Share on other sites

16 hours ago, Forty Rod SASS 3935 said:

I've been told that of the 23 kinds of poisonous snakes known in the U. S. that 17 are found right here in central Arizona.   I have never seen a rattler since moving here.

 

Saw lots in Utah when I lived there and South Carolina is wall-to-wall with the biggest diamond backs I ever saw, especially around Parris Island.

Eastern Diamondbacks can get huge. Largest snake I ever saw was a diamondback bigger around than my forearm and nearly 8' long.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

27 minutes ago, Michigan Slim said:

I'd love to have one as a pet. I really would.

There are Herp clubs in Indiana. Some of the members have "hot" snakes. I took several reels of photos of them for an article back in 1997-1998. They lived around Castleton Mall on the NW side of Indy.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

23 minutes ago, Dirty Dan Dawkins said:

Eastern Diamondbacks can get huge. Largest snake I ever saw was a diamondback bigger around than my forearm and nearly 8' long.

My first rattlesnake was an eastern diamondback. My FIL had been fishing along a large canal in SW Florida. I was watching TV with his daughter when he came home. Come on, boy, he said, I saw a big rattler go in an armadillo hole along the canal. 30 minutes later I was shoving a stick down the hole and kept feeling something squishy and a faint buzzing. Soon after a triangle head popped out which was quickly perforated with a .22. As the 52" snake was being laid out on the tailgate I kept feeling more squishiness and hearing more buzzing. My FIL didn't believe me. Not soon after another big rattlesnake came flying out of the hole and into the sugar cane field. That was the start of it all. I made that snake into groomsman's presents in the way of belt buckles. The rattlesnakes out here don't run as big but they are just as fun to hunt.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Our Pacific Rattlesnake (sometimes called Western, but that can confuse it with  the Western Diamondback, a much bigger critter), is the only rattler native to Washington State. It occurs only east of the Cascade Mtns.

 

I've seen lots of them in that particular creek drainaige in central Washington in the Bluet Pass area, which is known locally to have a lot of them, probably because of some local, perhaps warmer, conditions, particularly early in the season.

 

They are easy to tolerate, because they are relatively small. The big diamondbacks and timber rattlers of elsewhere would be less welcome.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

11 hours ago, Alpo said:

I read that years ago - thenTHAT if you injected egg albumin it would react just like rattlesnake venom, and that if you ate rattlesnake venom it would be just like eating the raw egg.

 

However if you're going to cut the bite and suck out the poison you need to be awful damn sure you don't have any cavities.

I was going to do that on the first one.  My friend was driving and I started to cut an X on the bite. (Any of you old enough to remember when that was the thing to do?).  Got about about a 3/4 inch slice and told him I'd rather die than to carve myself up any more and used a boot lace to make a tourniquet.  Now I'm told that practice is no longer recommended.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 11/1/2020 at 7:17 PM, Cholla said:

sorry Arizona Gunfighter, no western diamondback buckles yet.

Howdy Cholla, I can wait for the Diamondback belt buckle, when you finally get the snake. Like the looks of your snake skin hat band and maybe do something with one of the rattles. 

 

 Hope to see you at the Chino Valley match on the 15th, we can talk about it then.

 

AG

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, Ramblin Gambler said:

 

I hardly think a teacher is qualified to make that determination.  Are you sure the doctors said your survived? 

Yeah, and the bas------ didn't even let me have all that much time off from work or school.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just a little (late) shout out to Cholla.

Got my hat band and buckle last week sometime.

Great workmanship, love the color and an amazingly fair price.

No stock in his business but a very satisfied customer.

Thanks so much Cholla

 

Regards

 

:FlagAm: :FlagAm: :FlagAm:

 

Gateway Kid

Link to comment
Share on other sites

3 minutes ago, Gateway Kid SASS# 70038 Life said:

Just a little (late) shout out to Cholla.

Got my hat band and buckle last week sometime.

Great workmanship, love the color and an amazingly fair price.

No stock in his business but a very satisfied customer.

Thanks so much Cholla

 

Regards

 

:FlagAm: :FlagAm: :FlagAm:

 

Gateway Kid

Funny Story-- A few years ago we were strongly thinking of moving to Grand Junction (Unaweep Canyon to be exact). My wife wanted Prescott weather and Grand Junction through Montrose was close. But, while I loved the area I was concerned about the lack of variety of rattlesnakes and I didn't know how many I could find. The wife finally convinced me to concentrate on Prescott and when JCI made me a job offer to transfer I had to jump on it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

44 minutes ago, Cholla said:

Funny Story-- A few years ago we were strongly thinking of moving to Grand Junction (Unaweep Canyon to be exact). My wife wanted Prescott weather and Grand Junction through Montrose was close. But, while I loved the area I was concerned about the lack of variety of rattlesnakes and I didn't know how many I could find. The wife finally convinced me to concentrate on Prescott and when JCI made me a job offer to transfer I had to jump on it.

Well if you ever get a chance come on and join us. No longer have a spare room but could probably fit you in a 39 foot 5th wheel.

You're right not many rattlesnakes here and the ones we have are small  (maybe one or two feet seems the most common). Not many other snakes either, garters, an occasional bull snake, others don't know much about them as to type, they go their way I go mine and everybody gets along.

Regards

 

:FlagAm: :FlagAm: :FlagAm:

 

Gateway Kid

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I live in Eastern Oregon,  my daughters shoot CAS with me for several years.   I arrived at my house one weekday mid summer for lunch.  As I drove in and parked saw something on the lawn.   After leaving the car I saw it was a snake about 3ft long and upon closer look it is a rattle snake.   Where the head of the rattler used to be was a black hole in the middle of the lawn.  I entered the house and saw my model 12 laying on the floor in the dinning room.   My middle daughter was in the kitchen smiling at me.  She said did you see the snake?  I said yes,  was it you ?  yes I took care of it.  I smiled and we had lunch.  We kill ALL rattle snakes because I don't want anyone to step on one.   Bullett 19707

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 11/2/2020 at 1:54 AM, Red Gauntlet , SASS 60619 said:

What does one do with a rattlesnake when one has successfully hunted them? Is it the skin?

 

Here in the Pacific NW, we have only one species: the Western (not to be confused with the Western Diamondback); also referred to as the Pacific rattlesnake. One of the smaller rattlers; bites are rare, deaths extremely rare.

 

We've often seen them in our 'season opener' backpack hike in central Washington. They are often on the trail; one year not long back we had one in camp. We got some good photos.

 

One year, about 5 years back, at the trailhead a guy showed us one he'd chopped the head off of in the parking lot. I asked him why he'd killed it.  As I remember, he had no explanation.

 

The hike is Ingalls Creek. For some reason, the drainage is known for rattlers, to which we can personally attest. They are an interesting aspect of the hike. I have some good photos. I've never been able to figure out how to upload photos here.

cook them. they eats good

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I did a forestry internship in/around Brunswick GA in 1987.   Traipsed through mature pine forests, newly planted pine, bogs, domes and fields wearing heavy snake chaps and carrying a Ruger .32 Single-Six.  Big easterns, fat canebrakes and cute pigmys were seen routinely.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

i like the work folks - never would have thought to make those hat bands but somethin bout her eyes , lips , OK maybe some other things that make me wish i was young when burlesque was in its hey day - i would have come up to see her , 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Geez your a funny lot & you say 'down under' has to many dangerous critters..yikes you've got bears, mountain lions, bobcats, wolves, coyotes &  many  others that want to bite or eat 'ya...just sayin' :o

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use.