Gotta love November in Mississippi
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All I can say is the good lord was watching out for me today. I had just jumped off the dozer and was walking to my truck when I stepped right on top of this bad boy. I happen to look down and see him as I was in mid stride, I knew what he was and knew I was bout to step on him but it was to late to stop. He jerked around and coiled up but never stuck at me for some reason. He was angled at about my 2:00 facing away from me so I think that was my saving grace. These big rattlers are common on my place and we probably kill 10 or 12 a year. They don’t bother me to much cause I’ve grown up around them, but I’ve never actually stepped on one before and I’m here to tell you it scared the shit out of me.
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Whew! Close call!
I'm glad he didn't nail you.
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Yea you and me both
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Glad your safe.
There are supposed to be some in Nebraska but I’ve never encountered one. And I’m fine with that.
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I hate snakes. Grew up with them all over CA, luckily I never came across one like that either.
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Well I grew up around them and normally they don’t really bother me, but actually stepping on this one shook me up a bit. This is less than 50 yards from my house around an old barn, my girls know to watch out for snakes and know to stay away from the old barn area. We don’t really ever see any in our yard I guess cause we keep the grass cut regular but I still worry bout the girls stumbling up on one like this
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Glad it didn’t get you!
I almost stepped on a timber rattler this summer hiking. We don’t hike there anymore. I don’t care to encounter rattlers.
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Are you going to make a hat band out of it?
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Good thing you don't live in Texas, those damned things are seriously protected here and some boys got run in last year for posting a photo of one they killed. Never really not snake season down here, we see rattlers sun bathing all winter long.
Glad you weren't bit.
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@rr2241tx well I’d be in trouble if I live in Texas then, cause I can’t stand a snake especially that close to my house and my kids. I thought they had those big rattle snake round ups in Texas were they hunted them in competition.
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they are good eating. In HS I used to catch them or kill them, skin them, take the meat out, there isn't a whole lot, then made jerky. Haven't had rattler in more than 20 years.
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Rattlesnake a protected species?
That is a new one for me.
Maybe it is to keep the vermin population under control and stop Bubonic Plague or Hanta Virus outbreaks.Hanta is something I never want to get but one of the sickest I have ever been is after cleaning out an old shed that had been overrun by rats without any breathing protection.
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@hypo
Canebrake or timber rattlers are under protected status in Texas. It is unlawful to possess one without documentation of origin. Taxidermy shops in Texas will run you off if you bring one in to mount unless you have proof it came from Mexico or somewhere but Texas. The only Timber rattler I have ever seen here came from East Texas in the Piney Woods. Western Diamondback as far as I know are unprotected and are even hunted down in Freer at the Rattlesnake Roundup every year. If killing them here is a crime Facebook would have enough evidence to fill up every county jail around. There are some people that lobby to protect Rattler's but so far nothing has come of it. There's even some proof the feral hogs eat the dang things and and that's what got the lobbyists fired up. Those things give me the willies, I try my best to keep the population around my barns and buildings to the minimum. I have seen what a strike can do to you, nothing to play with.
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Damn danger worms.
When I see one, I don't spent much time looking at it before it gets made dead.
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@bigfoot
Crazy situation in the Piney Woods, timber rattlers and black bears are protected species. Good thing there's no law protecting western diamondbacks and eastern diamondbacks. Honestly, I have never seen any impact on the mouse/rat population from having rattlesnakes around. Reptiles don't eat often enough. We have scads of coachwhips and rat snakes that I leave alone to maybe eat a clutch of babies now and then. Barn cats, barn owls, foxes and coyotes do a pretty good job but really, nothing can keep up with a rodent population that has adequate food and cover.
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This is the one we saw hiking a few months ago. Like I said...I almost stepped on it. The thing is the biggest one I have ever seen in the wild. It was every bit of 4' long and it would have been difficult to put both your hands around it....although I didn't try. lol. I am pretty sure this is a timber rattler.
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That's a whole lotta no thanks! Sure is an awesome looking snake though.
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OH...You should have seen me backpedaling. I was one step from stepping on him. My 6yr old son was holding my hand and we were far enough from the car it would have been really bad.
The grass was really high in that area except for the trail...so we tossed a stick towards him trying to scare him away so that we could walk by on the trail. It didn't work...just made him mad. So we walked around through the tall grass with me carrying my son. He was still on the trail and mad as all get out. I kinda hated leaving like that cause it was not a safe situation for other hikers...but I don't think there were any others on that trail that day. That thing needed to be killed...but state forest and protection laws, blah, blah, blah...we let him live.
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@dddoo7 I wouldn’t have been considered a law abiding citizen that day if it been me especially if one my daughters had been with me.
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I will be pricing snake proof boots or chaps.
