billrquimby Report post Posted January 3, 2013 A rattlesnake was the last thing my wife and I expected to find when we drove to Green Valley Sunday to make certain a townhouse we own there was ready for tenants arriving on New Year's Day. But that's exactly what we found. It was coiled under a Mexican clay pot we use to hold a garden hose. My wife didn't immediately recognize what it was when she picked up one side of the pot and reached down to pick up the strange-looking round shape under it. Two things were in her favor, thank God: 1. She saw the snake's head and scales in time and jumped back before it could strike. 2. It was a very cold day and the snake was dormant. When the firefighter who responded to her 911 call picked up the coiled snake with tongs the snake didn't wriggle. It was very much alive, though. If the day had been warmer, it would have bitten my wife. Our townhouse is in a highly developed area. To reach it from the nearest unoccupied desert land, it had to crawl at least 200 yards over concrete and pavement. There are no pack rats or field mice near the place that I know of. We do have a pyracantha hedge whose berries are attracting a lot of small birds now, so that may have been what brought the snake to our place. The incident makes me wonder how many rattlers were dangerously close to me when I've sat down on rock piles to glass during winter hunts. Bill Quimby Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bonecollector Report post Posted January 3, 2013 This is the time I year where I dont really think about snakes being out. I guess I better think again and be on the lookout. Glad your wife wasn't bitten. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
billrquimby Report post Posted January 3, 2013 Me, too! Bill Quimby Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
azslim Report post Posted January 3, 2013 as long as they are quiet they can glass with me, gives me someone to talk to....... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
trophyhnter Report post Posted January 3, 2013 It does make you wonder how close they are! We hunted 20C several years ago and have snake rattle several yards from me and go under the smallest space under a rock! I will look for the pics and post them later! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CouesWhitetail Report post Posted January 3, 2013 Glad she didnt get bit! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Snapshot Report post Posted January 5, 2013 Dang glad she didn't get fanged. That would ruin her day in a hurry.Maybe it's a snake that got caught out in the cold and had no where to go? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Big Tub Report post Posted January 5, 2013 No Pics? What kind of documentation is that for a professional? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
billrquimby Report post Posted January 6, 2013 "No Pics? What kind of documentation is that for a professional?" I've mentioned this before, but the part of my job as a daily newspaper's outdoor editor for nearly 30 years was having to publish a minimum of three to four photographs every week. For me, photography wasn't fun. It was work. Over the three decades I held that job, 4,500 to 6,000 of my photographs were published in that newspaper. Another 100 or so appeared in magazines that published my freelanced articles. (We used film then, and wouldn't know until we developed it if we had a professional and reproduceable shot, so we exposed a lot of it -- a rule of thumb was one roll for each picture we needed.) After posing subjects or finding the best place and time to "shoot" scenery, metering the available light, choosing the proper lens opening, shutter speed and filter, and focusing and "snapping a pix" somewhere between 100,000 and nearly 150,000 times, I had no love for photography or anything that went with it. I gave away all my cameras and gear when I retired from the Tucson Citizen in 1994, and vowed to never take another photograph. I have strayed from that vow only once in 19 years. That was when our grandson graduated from UA a couple of years ago and our daughter handed me her camera and asked me to record the event. Since retiring from my post as Safari Club International's director of publications 14 years ago, I've written 19 published books and have contracted to write No. 20. I can happily state that professional authors/ghost writers of my chosen genre have no need to photograph anything. A simpler answer to your question, though, would be I no longer own a camera. Bill Qimby 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Big Tub Report post Posted January 6, 2013 You gotta agree these new digital-point-and-shoots are pretty cool, though! Dang that was a long winded answer. Don't worry as we still love you even without picures Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Huntress283 Report post Posted June 10, 2013 Yikes thank goodness the snake didn't strike. I live in the east valley and know little about snakes. I've always assumed I'd never come across a snake that is active in the cold months here in the valley (maybe excluding the days in January where our high is in the mid 70's). Spring, Summer and Fall is a different story but during the winter months I would take my dogs out hiking etc. and not think twice about snakes, until I started working at a golf course. I'd drive around all day on the cart and I was amazed at the number of snakes I came across during the time of year i figured they'd be dormant. It definitely resulted in me becoming more cautious with my dogs. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tjhunt2 Report post Posted June 10, 2013 Bill , I know what you mean. I use to take a lot of pictures, not as many as you, but I just got tired of carrying the camera. I still take photos but have stopped for the most part. A co=worker , who use to help out on outfitting once told me, if you want to see my pictures I'll share them with a story around the camp fire from what's in my head. TJ Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
