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saw a huge rattler at the ojai foundation a while ago. it just slithered out from behind a bush to say hello, about 3 feet from us. quite an adrenaline rush!

spent some time with a beautiful 4' garter snake the past few days in escondido. black with lengthwise yellow stripes. got a great photo of it with a big lizard in its mouth. it slithered about 3' up a wall to catch the lizard. it was pretty impressive. the lizard didn't even see it coming.

Several years ago I was working, reopening a path through a heavy stand of Arundo. As I was hacking away I heard the electric shaver sound of a very excited rattler. It was difficult to tell where the sound was coming from, and as looked between the clumps, I almost backed into an old 5-6ft. grandfather. He was pretty threatened by my movement. I was going to move him off the land, then I decided to simply leave him alone. I spoke calmly to him and stayed about 4-5 ft away and spent a little time there reassuring him (her) and myself. I then went back to my clearing. When I would get too involved in the heavy work and move too close to him, he would raise up a bit and give a few rattles to let me know. He watched me closely for a few hours and on the occasional break I would squat near him, drink a little water, and talk to him, though they are supposedly deaf.
We spent the afternoon this way until dusk, when I bid him farewell and went in for the evening. It was a pretty neat experience.
We would see him on the land for the next few years and he seemed to become confident that we meant him no harm and never rattled at us again. One year we just stopped seeing him. Maybe he moved on or passed away.
That afternoon is a very fond memory for me..............B

Ty, You drive an SUV??!!

Great story, Bob. And no, anonymous, I drive a Scion xB, 32 mpg. (and it is still outrageously expensive to drive anywhere these days. checking out those $400 electric scooters last nite.)

ty, you should try my hummer!!!

first time I saw a King Snake was in the back yard of a house where I was renting a guest house. I was sure someone in the neighborhood had let their pet exotic snake get away - they are so beautiful and don't look at all like they belong in our semi-desert landscape!

That full length shot of the snake on the bed of faded avocado leaves is really something. They are beautiful and that's a great photo. The mountain king snake is considered the most beautiful in these parts. It's the one that looks like an escaped exotic or a coral snake (which are not native to this area). It has alternating white, black, red, black, white bands and is generally smaller than the Common King Snake. It's a rare and special treat to see one.

Once, when I was managing the restaurant at Wheeler Hot Springs, a very large king snake made a beeline for the open front door during a busy Sunday brunch. I just happened to be right there and, though never having picked up a wild snake before, I knew I had to act or witness a riot inside. I reached down and grabbed it a little behind the head just as it crossed the threshold. I was not prepared for how strong this constrictor was as it wrapped itself around my arm and squeezed. I pried it off with my other hand and held on tight as it writhed and twisted. Then I quickly bit off its head before.........nah, just messin' with you. Couldn't resist. The rest is true, though. I carried it about 100 yards away and let it go. I've picked up a few since then to share with students but otherwise I leave them alone, discouraging the practice except perhaps as a trial run for that time when one is called upon to remove one. I was bitten on the hand once picking one up for a group of kids in Santa Paula Canyon but that's not why I don't recommend it. As usual, we are capable of causing much more harm to most wild things than what we fear from them. (It was a small snake and the tiny teeth barely broke the surface. I had a first aid kit and immediately applied an antiseptic. Any wild bite can be loaded with bacteria.)