+The Fall Guy Posted August 24, 2011 Share Posted August 24, 2011 Here in Ohio (Cincinnati area) it's not a problem other than a harmless garter snake or other non-poisonous variety. But in the Southern/Western states I imagine it could be a serious concern when searching around rocks or in the woods for a cache. Quote Link to comment
+Pedagog Posted August 24, 2011 Share Posted August 24, 2011 We saw an Adder last week. Quote Link to comment
+Klatch Posted August 24, 2011 Share Posted August 24, 2011 Here in Ohio (Cincinnati area) it's not a problem other than a harmless garter snake or other non-poisonous variety. But in the Southern/Western states I imagine it could be a serious concern when searching around rocks or in the woods for a cache. Oh, really? No other snakes in Ohio? Think again. Quote Link to comment
+Sore Runner Posted August 24, 2011 Share Posted August 24, 2011 Surprisingly here in South Carolina I haven't ran into any snakes (knock on wood). I have read log after log of other people running into all kinds of snakes but either I have been lucky or I have over looked them. Hopefully I have been lucky and not the other. If I am overlooking them I guess that I am lucky I haven't been bitten yet. Quote Link to comment
+The Fall Guy Posted August 24, 2011 Author Share Posted August 24, 2011 I didn't say there were no other kinds of snakes in Ohio, in the cities around me (Cincinnati/Dayton) I have only seen a couple of garters. Quote Link to comment
+Postholedigger Posted August 24, 2011 Share Posted August 24, 2011 San Diego here. Yup, we got us some serious rattlers here. I came across one last month while attempting a TB rescue. I abandoned the attempt after meeting the rattle snake. Quote Link to comment
+The Fall Guy Posted August 24, 2011 Author Share Posted August 24, 2011 San Diego here. Yup, we got us some serious rattlers here. I came across one last month while attempting a TB rescue. I abandoned the attempt after meeting the rattle snake. Wow, I knew you all had rattlers out there. How close was it to the cache? Thanks for the reply! Quote Link to comment
+HOGFEVER Posted August 24, 2011 Share Posted August 24, 2011 (edited) Here in Ohio (Cincinnati area) it's not a problem other than a harmless garter snake or other non-poisonous variety. But in the Southern/Western states I imagine it could be a serious concern when searching around rocks or in the woods for a cache. Oh, really? No other snakes in Ohio? Think again. Since the OP is referring to the urban areas of SW Oh. I would have to agree that unless you're talking about the Cincy zoo,there is no danger of being bitten by a poisonous snake. Edited August 24, 2011 by HOGFEVER Quote Link to comment
+The Fall Guy Posted August 24, 2011 Author Share Posted August 24, 2011 We saw an Adder last week. That even sounds mean! Thanks for the reply. Quote Link to comment
+The Fall Guy Posted August 24, 2011 Author Share Posted August 24, 2011 Surprisingly here in South Carolina I haven't ran into any snakes (knock on wood). I have read log after log of other people running into all kinds of snakes but either I have been lucky or I have over looked them. Hopefully I have been lucky and not the other. If I am overlooking them I guess that I am lucky I haven't been bitten yet. Yeah, seeing them is one thing but a bite by one while reaching for cache is another story. Stay lucky! Quote Link to comment
+CrackerFL Posted August 25, 2011 Share Posted August 25, 2011 I've seen a few out in the woods in Florida. So far, none poisonous. I don't mind snakes, provided they stay over there. As much as possible, I'll leave them be. That said, I have only ever drawn my gun with intent to use it once...and it was against a snake. I was in knee high pine needles, and couldn't seen him, but I could sure hear him. I did not like that feeling. (All ended well. He boogied his way, and I boogied mine. No snakes were harmed in the creation of this message, although a large number of electrons were seriously inconvenienced.) Quote Link to comment
+The Fall Guy Posted August 25, 2011 Author Share Posted August 25, 2011 I can imagine it is rather unnerving when you can hear it and not see where it is. Quote Link to comment
+Founden Posted August 25, 2011 Share Posted August 25, 2011 My husband and I started geocaching less that two months ago as an anniversary present/date, and our very first cache search was a snake filled adventure. We saw two snakes, one lunged at me. We found many snake holes, a snake skin and a dead snake...all within 20 feet of this one cache! And we didn't even find it that day! But we did find it a couple weeks later. Quote Link to comment
+Pedagog Posted August 25, 2011 Share Posted August 25, 2011 My husband and I started geocaching less that two months ago as an anniversary present/date, and our very first cache search was a snake filled adventure. We saw two snakes, one lunged at me. We found many snake holes, a snake skin and a dead snake...all within 20 feet of this one cache! And we didn't even find it that day! But we did find it a couple weeks later. I would have thought that was enough to put you off for life. Quote Link to comment
+Founden Posted August 25, 2011 Share Posted August 25, 2011 I am utterly obsessed! Quote Link to comment
+NuttySophie Posted August 26, 2011 Share Posted August 26, 2011 (edited) My husband and I recently moved to South Florida. We started Geocaching a month ago in Pennsylvania before our move. We love it. We lived about 9 miles from Gettysburg Pennsylvania. At Devils Den in the Gettysburg National Park there have been sightings of Copperhead snakes. I have not seen any but, I have heard kids in that area screaming and running down the rocky hill. One of the kids fathers confirmed that it was a Copperhead. I am terrified of the snakes and can only imagine the kind in South Florida. I purchased walking sticks for my husband and I for when we go Geocaching. I am thinking that we can move around the area with the stick before we pick up the Geocache. I have not seen a snake yet here in South Florida and I am not looking forward to finding one either. Happy Geocaching! May it be snake free! Edited August 26, 2011 by NuttySophie Quote Link to comment
+JL_HSTRE Posted August 27, 2011 Share Posted August 27, 2011 Down here in SE FL, I am surprised I have only seen a couple rat snakes and black racers. Sooner or later I'm going to meet a rattlesnake in the wild. Seen bobcats, deer, wild pigs, scrub jays, gators. Rattlesnakes and river otters continue to elude me. I must admit a certain amount of apprehension about them as a result - I'd like to see one because I've never seen one (in the wild) but I also really hope I don't finally find one the hard way. Quote Link to comment
+The Fall Guy Posted August 27, 2011 Author Share Posted August 27, 2011 Down here in SE FL, I am surprised I have only seen a couple rat snakes and black racers. Sooner or later I'm going to meet a rattlesnake in the wild. Seen bobcats, deer, wild pigs, scrub jays, gators. Rattlesnakes and river otters continue to elude me. I must admit a certain amount of apprehension about them as a result - I'd like to see one because I've never seen one (in the wild) but I also really hope I don't finally find one the hard way. Gators would be crazy to see while caching also. That's one thing for sure I don't have to worry about in Ohio! Quote Link to comment
+CrackerFL Posted August 28, 2011 Share Posted August 28, 2011 Down here in SE FL, I am surprised I have only seen a couple rat snakes and black racers. Sooner or later I'm going to meet a rattlesnake in the wild. Seen bobcats, deer, wild pigs, scrub jays, gators. Rattlesnakes and river otters continue to elude me. I must admit a certain amount of apprehension about them as a result - I'd like to see one because I've never seen one (in the wild) but I also really hope I don't finally find one the hard way. Gators would be crazy to see while caching also. That's one thing for sure I don't have to worry about in Ohio! Shucks, if I don't get to see a gator somewhere along the hike, I'm not convinced it's a good cache! I joke. There are some wonderful places out in the woods too, I just love a nice hike along a stream/lake. Preferably through the woods too. Quote Link to comment
+DonB Posted August 28, 2011 Share Posted August 28, 2011 The part of Wisconsin I lived in as a boy had rattlers, and being a small town without much to do, we spent a lot of our summers exploring the woods. We saw snakes occasionally but never a rattler. Quote Link to comment
+secondgunman Posted August 29, 2011 Share Posted August 29, 2011 One of our local cachers was bitten by a copperhead last week. She's ok now, but it didn't sound pleasant at all. In the year and a half I've been here I've only come across one snake and it was while caching. I reached down and pulled a 50 cal ammo can out of a hole in the ground and there was a six foot long black scale wrapped around the can. It dropped back into the hole as the cache came out. I don't mind telling you that I ran away screaming like a little girl.... Quote Link to comment
+JASTSJR Posted August 29, 2011 Share Posted August 29, 2011 Ran across a snake while Caching out in the western desert of Utah. The rattler was actually using the cache to provide shade from the mid-day sun. Cache was behind some large sagebrush, and we had to move a few rocks to get the can out of the hole. As we moved the rocks the snake came out from under the cache and curled up at the base of the sagebrush and watched us very carefully. He must not have felt threatened as he never raised his tail or himself off the ground, but it sure made the kids scream and run back to the truck. We managed to sign the log and move along without any incident. Quote Link to comment
+Catydid Posted August 29, 2011 Share Posted August 29, 2011 We found a baby rattle snake near a cache we dnf'd. It was in a wooded area and involved reaching into dark spots. It was a difficult hide and I don't think I took it seriously enough while we were looking! Quote Link to comment
+Postholedigger Posted September 1, 2011 Share Posted September 1, 2011 San Diego here. Yup, we got us some serious rattlers here. I came across one last month while attempting a TB rescue. I abandoned the attempt after meeting the rattle snake. Wow, I knew you all had rattlers out there. How close was it to the cache? Thanks for the reply! It was within 15ft of the cache guarding the only way in. Sure it slowly rattled and slithered away but I didn't want to stick around in case it came back while I was working with the cache. Maybe I'll go back in the winter for this one That snake encounter probably earned me a world record vertical leap when I saw it. Quote Link to comment
+manicgecko Posted September 5, 2011 Share Posted September 5, 2011 Here in South Dakota frequently see snakes usually of the harmless variety but have run into a few rattlers. Take precautions (long stick and other tools) in rattler friendly areas. But the worst snake encounter was on the harmless garter variety. Of course that doesn't matter much when you are precariously balanced on a 4 inch branch 20 feet up over water and you grab to balance an overhead branch previously occupied by said snake. Needless to say I needed dry (and clean) pants and thank what ever diety that was watching over me that the water was deep enough and I actually had the floating water resistant GPS... Wife wants to know why no pictures. Quote Link to comment
+SinopeanDog Posted September 5, 2011 Share Posted September 5, 2011 (edited) Although my experience in caching is pale compared to the vets around here, I have had my share of run-ins from backpacking and camping. It's disconcerting to hear of snake bites, but it comes with the territory. The most I have ran across caching has been a black snake climbing a tree and a couple of water moccasins near caches placed around creeks or lakes. I cannot stress enough the importance of researching snake bite treatment methods (and all first aid responses) by reading medical journals and trusted sources. Don't rely on inexpensive snake bite kits- do the research on the pros and cons of these. They can do more harm than good. Stabilization of victim, identification of snake/description, evacuation for proper medical attention. I treat each caching outage the same as backpacking: alert others of your plans and duration (most importantly if soloing), carry a full first aid kit- along with the basics of being prepared and bring a cell phone. I hope everyone here takes the time to become knowledgeable of first aid procedures in remote situations and stays safe. Godspeed. Edited September 5, 2011 by SinopeanDog Quote Link to comment
+aka Momster Posted September 11, 2011 Share Posted September 11, 2011 I see the usual Rattlesnakes (Red Diamond & Pacific) and gopher snakes. Quote Link to comment
+aka Momster Posted September 11, 2011 Share Posted September 11, 2011 Kingsnake California Striped Racers (that is a younger one on the left) Quote Link to comment
+aka Momster Posted September 11, 2011 Share Posted September 11, 2011 Water Snake (Virginia) And a few more from California. That is a Patch-nosed Snake on the left, and a Western Black-headed Snake on the right. Quote Link to comment
mlindsey696 Posted September 29, 2011 Share Posted September 29, 2011 I was out geocaching with my girlfriend earlier today and we were doing the Tour of Chester County-SOUTH multi-cache. we were at the second location searching for a micro (which had been stolen days before) and I decided to hop down a level to search for it in a little pile of leaves in the shadows. A car went by so i poked my head up but as i reached down I felt something scaly....to which i jumped out of the hole, bashing my head and back in the process, to get the flashlight because I soooo didnt think it was what i thought it was. sure enough...I had almost grabbed a 4.5 foot black snake by the head. Freaked my the hell out. lol. Probably harmless but this thing freaked me out for a few mins. Lol. Quote Link to comment
+mullyman Posted September 30, 2011 Share Posted September 30, 2011 Here in Ohio (Cincinnati area) it's not a problem other than a harmless garter snake or other non-poisonous variety. But in the Southern/Western states I imagine it could be a serious concern when searching around rocks or in the woods for a cache. I've been living in Japan since 1991 but Cincinnati is my hometown. There are poisonous snakes there. Be careful. MULLY Quote Link to comment
+FloridaFour Posted October 10, 2011 Share Posted October 10, 2011 My son stepped on a Dusky Pygmy Rattlesnake at Upper Tampa Bay Park, near Tampa, Florida, a few months ago when we were about to do maintenance on my geocache called Perseverance. Luckily I saw the snake as his foot was on it, and just said, "Walk!" and he kept walking and the snake slithered away. If I'd screamed, he would've jumped and scared the snake. Quote Link to comment
+Mr. Wilson & a Mt. Goat Posted October 14, 2011 Share Posted October 14, 2011 Woah! Luckily where I live the most dangerous snake is non-venemous and pretty much harmless, although a bit stinky if you try to pick it up. The Garter Snake (not my picture) Quote Link to comment
+Team Pixos Posted October 14, 2011 Share Posted October 14, 2011 This one cache that continues to elude me has one of those places where garters congregate, not that that has anything to do with multiple dnfs on that cache. Caching down by Drumheller we found a snake while crossing the road, it wasn't a garter or a rattle, ferryman said maybe a bull snake? Quote Link to comment
+Team Geo-Rangers Posted October 18, 2011 Share Posted October 18, 2011 (edited) Seen two different types of rattle snakes in Southern California (might have heard one today and didn't stick around long enough to verify!) Non-venomous snake encounters include garter, gopher, king, and a memorable encounter with a racer in northern san diego county while hiking and caching with the family. I watched the racer come towards me as it hunted a lizard. I remained completely still and watched the drama unfold. The lizard darted into the log that I was standing next to on the trail. The snake persisted relentlessly and emerged from the log with the lizard in its jaws, held at the mid-section. The snake then turned and finally noticed me watching. With lizard in mouth, it turned away from me and raced down the hill, while still holding the lizard in it's mouth. The snake held it's head aloft about 12" above the ground as it raced away, never lowering it. It then disappeared into brush at the bottom of the hill where the creek bed was. It was a memorable encounter; thank you geocaching! Almost forgot - have run into Snake of Snake & Rooster while geocaching in the Temecula Valley - does that count too? Edited October 18, 2011 by Team Geo-Rangers Quote Link to comment
WashoeZephyr Posted October 21, 2011 Share Posted October 21, 2011 Best snake encounter ever was a Garter Snake taking off with a baby rattler. (I'm ok with one less rattler in the world!) We didn't stick around to find out if there were more. photo courtesy of NevadaWolf Quote Link to comment
+Ry Dawg Posted November 1, 2011 Share Posted November 1, 2011 I've seen many, many rattle snakes. Most don't bother you, just give you a friendly "warning". Some will, though. When hiking with the little ones, we barely missed a strike. Being 100 miles from any town, that would NOT have been fun! Reasons we never hike unarmed anymore. Quote Link to comment
Fletcher15 Posted November 2, 2011 Share Posted November 2, 2011 though, i have never had any such incident...but i wonder what would that moment be like..Snake and i feel it depends on the snake, if it is poisonous stand perfectly still and do not talk, if it is hot out the snake will mistake you for a hot rock because snakes use inferred not color so if your surrounding is hot and you are hot and you do not move it will mistake you for a rock or something. if it is not venomous you can just run away it wont attack. if you do get bitten call for help and go to the hospital but if you get bit do not be scared or run because the venom will circulate though your blood faster and you will start dying faster. Quote Link to comment
+doug_hollyNKC Posted November 30, 2011 Share Posted November 30, 2011 This is a copy of a write up on a cache I did this past June (GC2V9Y2). Although it was just a big fat rat snake, he still gets the geocache and I'll have to go back another day! "ok so we're looking for a small container. Coordinates dropping on the gps..10, 6, 4, 2...ok we're close and that looks like a very good candidate for hiding spots. So as I bend over to look in those spots, I see a super large jumbo container. YIKES, and it moves. "Henry quit walking towards me!", of course "Why", Henry says "Did you find it?" Doug says "Yeah I find it allright and it's about 4 or 5 feet long and it moves and I'm not looking for it anymore." Before I can even finishing saying all that, Henry is already back up on the trail and ready to head to the next one. I like his idea. Found 5 foot snake Did Not find cache" Quote Link to comment
+Disintagrator Posted December 1, 2011 Share Posted December 1, 2011 this year we had a really long winter and when it did warm up it seemed like every cache I looked for in the month of june was crawling, I saw 8 rattlesnakes within 100 ft of 1 cache. that gave me the heeby jeebies. and I found a watersnake in a cache, the container had a hole in the side, deffinately mad me jump. Quote Link to comment
+hzoi Posted December 2, 2011 Share Posted December 2, 2011 So far we've been lucky -- there are a number of venomous varieties we could have encountered in our travels, but to date it's just been some nonvenomous black racers. One was HUGE -- at least six feet long and as thick as my wife's forearm, and it slithered right past us to get where the cache was hidden. When I lived in Arizona in my pre-caching days, I'd run across a rattlesnake now and again, thankfully without incident. And it's not a snake, but it's still venomous; I've come across some pretty big gila monsters. Quote Link to comment
+Gitchee-Gummee Posted December 3, 2011 Share Posted December 3, 2011 This is a copy of a write up on a cache I did this past June (GC2V9Y2). Although it was just a big fat rat snake, he still gets the geocache and I'll have to go back another day! "ok so we're looking for a small container. Coordinates dropping on the gps..10, 6, 4, 2...ok we're close and that looks like a very good candidate for hiding spots. So as I bend over to look in those spots, I see a super large jumbo container. YIKES, and it moves. "Henry quit walking towards me!", of course "Why", Henry says "Did you find it?" Doug says "Yeah I find it allright and it's about 4 or 5 feet long and it moves and I'm not looking for it anymore." Before I can even finishing saying all that, Henry is already back up on the trail and ready to head to the next one. I like his idea. Found 5 foot snake Did Not find cache" Like I always say... a "found it" log rarely says much, but a DNF log most always has a story. Quote Link to comment
domromer Posted December 28, 2011 Share Posted December 28, 2011 When I lived in AZ I'd see a rattlesnake almost every time I was down in the desert caching. Since I moved to the south east ive only seen a handful of snakes. Mostly water snakes but I did come across one cottonnouth. Quote Link to comment
+dasy2k1 Posted December 30, 2011 Share Posted December 30, 2011 saw 2 adders on the hike towards one cache once, but they are so timid they didn't stick around for long, its amazing how fast they can slither away if they want to. that's the great thing here. Our only venomous snake would much rather slither away at speed than bite given the chance. the only bites I have heard of where where people have stepped on one or accidentally cornered one. Bites also are very unlikely to be fatal unless its a small kid or someone very elderly and frail. extremely painful from what I hear and hospital treatment is strongly advised but very rarely more serious. The only other native snake here I have yet to encounter and given that's non venomous and quite small I will probably try to get a photo. Ive handled a captive one and their actually kind of cute in a scaly way. Quote Link to comment
Bryan_T Posted January 1, 2012 Share Posted January 1, 2012 In NE Texas, I mainly see water snakes, but I've seen them all my life so I almost ignore them! While Geocaching in a park around Oklahoma City, I did see some coyotes, though! Quote Link to comment
+EScout Posted February 25, 2012 Share Posted February 25, 2012 After one of the warmest winters here in coastal Southern California, I was wondering when I would see the first rattlesnake of the year. We had days of 80F+ in December, January and this month. February is much earlier than in the past, when it would be April or May before seeing the first one. This little guy gave his rattle just off the trail when I was about 4 feet away. Quote Link to comment
+wimseyguy Posted February 25, 2012 Share Posted February 25, 2012 I've seen plenty of non-venomous snakes around here, and at least 1-2 copperhead sightings each year. But three summers ago I got a bit too close to one and felt the pain for the next 6 weeks. Have you ever shut the car door on your hand, or nailed a finger while hammering a nail? Now imagine repeating that 5-6 more times; it hurt that much. This is day two, before I had the doctor lance the finger tip to allow some fluid to escape and slow the swelling. I was very lucky. There is a small spot on the fingertip where I lost some sensation, some minor scarring, and the nail wants to become ingrown often. So be careful where you put your hand, and when in doubt poke it with a stick. Quote Link to comment
+t4e Posted February 25, 2012 Share Posted February 25, 2012 Reasons we never hike unarmed anymore. where i live the only vicious things i need to worry about are mosquitoes so i have a really hard time imagining how exactly being armed is going to help you against a snake, or what exactly is the purpose of being armed? Quote Link to comment
vagabond Posted February 26, 2012 Share Posted February 26, 2012 just a simple little king snake crawling around Quote Link to comment
vagabond Posted February 26, 2012 Share Posted February 26, 2012 Reasons we never hike unarmed anymore. where i live the only vicious things i need to worry about are mosquitoes so i have a really hard time imagining how exactly being armed is going to help you against a snake, or what exactly is the purpose of being armed? ever hear of snake shot, available in many different calibers it does wonders on snakes, I've probably run more snake shot through my S&W mod 19 then anything else Quote Link to comment
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