Have you encountered snakes?
I have a few times, but nothing bad happened (to me).
The first time was when canoe camping on the Eel River in northern California. A large rattlesnake slithered out of the rocks and right by our tents. I had left my tent door . . . open! The snake we saw soon disappeared into the landscape, but I was afeared all night that some rattler had gotten into my Eureka and was just hiding in wait to get me in my sleep.
The second time I saw some young cottonmouths (water moccasins) at a launch spot on the Silver River in Florida, which were swimming around my canoe as I floated near shore. I'm not really competent to identify snakes. But a woman in a black bikini warned me not to step into the water because she was confident about her pits. Cottonmouths get their name from the white mouths they display when threatened.
The third time I encountered a snake was in a campground on the Suwanee River in Florida. It was scaring some Yankee children and their parents. An old guy went to his trailer, came out with a machete, and lopped off the head of that snake in one stroke of his terrible swift sword.
Did you know: "Though all snakes swim on top of the water, poisonous water snakes can float when they stop. On the contrary, non-venomous snakes sink below the surface when stationary. Their head is the only part of their body that can be seen above the water."
I have a few times, but nothing bad happened (to me).
The first time was when canoe camping on the Eel River in northern California. A large rattlesnake slithered out of the rocks and right by our tents. I had left my tent door . . . open! The snake we saw soon disappeared into the landscape, but I was afeared all night that some rattler had gotten into my Eureka and was just hiding in wait to get me in my sleep.
The second time I saw some young cottonmouths (water moccasins) at a launch spot on the Silver River in Florida, which were swimming around my canoe as I floated near shore. I'm not really competent to identify snakes. But a woman in a black bikini warned me not to step into the water because she was confident about her pits. Cottonmouths get their name from the white mouths they display when threatened.
The third time I encountered a snake was in a campground on the Suwanee River in Florida. It was scaring some Yankee children and their parents. An old guy went to his trailer, came out with a machete, and lopped off the head of that snake in one stroke of his terrible swift sword.
Did you know: "Though all snakes swim on top of the water, poisonous water snakes can float when they stop. On the contrary, non-venomous snakes sink below the surface when stationary. Their head is the only part of their body that can be seen above the water."