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tl;dr - came close to a venomous snake, didn't get bitten, but scared the shit out of me.
Came upon a short piece of straight thin black pipe (or so I thought) by the side of a narrow grassy hill bridleway. Never seen a snake in decades of hiking and biking. The silvery diamond pattern on top of it (Adder) caught my eye, but it wasn't until I was under a meter away (in both directions) that I realised what it was - at which point it coiled back into a spring shape (strike pose?). That's the last I remember seeing of it. Unfortunately I was grinding uphill at the time, my split-second decision was to mash the pedals and ride on by, which fortunately got me out of it. No idea if it tried to lunge at me. Glad I didn't try to stop as I'd probably have stopped right next to it and fallen off my bike. Interesting how the flight response took into account being on a bike; if I was on foot I'm almost sure I'd have turned back and ran.
Just thought I'd share that cool story, although it'd have been a better one (or maybe not...) if it happened downhill. But also for your preparedness if you happen to be as ill-informed as I was:
- an Adder is 60-90cm and black (I had in my mind it'd be dark green and about 1.5 metres long)
- their prey is mouse-sized, not rabbit-sized
- they don't travel fast enough to pursue you; about 2mph
- you're probably not going to die if you get bitten (last death was in 1975)
I've seen a few over the years - normally just as they skulk off into the undergrowth.
I did see two multiplying last year...
Only ever seen one, curled up at the side of the road. Moved it into a field to stop it getting run over, did the 'grab it at the back of the head to stop it biting you' thing like they do on telly, followed by 'drop and run' to release it.
Ridden in Australia a couple of times and have given every vaguely snake shaped stick a very wide berth!
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Talking of Aussie snakes, a friend in Melbourne posted something on the Facebook, a list of the 25 most deadly snakes, and commented that something like 20 of them were Aussie. Someone I don't know then replied underneath 'number 7 in the garden and number 22 in the laundry last week'😮
Fun story... I moved into a new house here in Melbourne a couple of weeks ago. One night the circuit breaker for the kitchen sockets tripped so I went out to the box to reset it. Forgot to take my phone so fumbled around in the dark to find the breaker and flip it.
The next day the agent sent a handyman round to do a couple of jobs, I mentioned the breaker tripping to him, he said lets go have a look in the box to see if there's something obvious.
Opening the box in daylight I was met by this little critter...
I see them semi regularly in Queensland. They’re particularly dangerous around the beginning of warm weather as they get a bit active. We had one in the house a couple of weeks ago, but that’s unusual.
Of the nine species on our property the one I least want to meet is the coastal Taipan. Just no.
I’ve had a bike attacked by a python before, but the scariest was the suspected death adder I swerved riding home through the forest after work one afternoon.
And that's why I live in Melbourne 😂
When I lived in California, rattlesnakes were a fairly regular trial sighting, especially in late spring and early Autumn.
Also tarantulas (not dangerous) and the occasional black widow.
Now up in Washington state it's mostly bears, and they aren't really dangerous (black, not brown/grizzly), although I did come around a corner the other night to the sight of three cubs up a tree and a slightly miffed mother beat at the base of it. I backed off, and they ambled off into the undergrowth.
Only ever seen one in UK, warming itself on a fire road up near Rothbury. Here in Melbourne/Victoria however, they are a common enough thing to encounter. Usually they just slope off if they sense you coming although the Eastern Brown is described as "pugnacious" when feeling threatened and there are many anecdotes of them chasing people on bikes.
Seen lots of Red Bellied Black snakes and a few Copperheads and Tigers. Browns seem to be most common here and I have ran over one on the bike, didn't see it at all but the mate following me did. Did not seem to be any the worse for wear according to him as it shot off into a stream.
Said mate has a resident Tiger in his garden that has managed to elude the snake catcher 3 times so far. Likes to have a swim in his pool and alledgedly make Johnny Weismuller seem slow in the water.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_fatal_snake_bites_in_Australia
List of known snakebite deaths
Seen a few Adders on the trails over the years, but the first time was the best. I was cycling along, enjoying the views of Little Glen Shee when my mate, who was a bike length or so behind me, shouted "Look at that!!". I could see he was excitedly pointing at something ahead, but I was scanning the skies for an eagle, or the horizon for a majestic stag. When I shouted back "Look at what?" All I got in return was a pointed finger and the reply "That!!!!"
So, I stopped and looked back at him in puzzlement, and he looked at me in horror as I put my foot down right next to the head of a 60cm adder that was basking on the trail. Afterwards, we reached an understanding that if he saw another snake on the trail, he'd shout "Snake!".
Ah, they’re mostly harmless. And remember they’re more scared of you.
Here’s one I shut the door on one morning on my way out for a ride
And this one tried to join us to watch TV one evening… my son spotted it fall off the roof!
Look closely and you’ll see a carpet python about to attack a SolarisMax
You have to be pretty unlucky to be a. bitten by and b killed by an adder bite.
Bunny hopped a red-bellied black snake (only saw it at the last minute) and had a tiger snake strike at the back wheel (luckily miss it) in the last few years here in Melbourne, you see a couple most summers
i'm fine with photo 1 and 2 reeksy but that python shits me up with its hidden ness.
Not as shit up as I was when it struck.
I saw it crossing the track so stopped for a photo. It was a good 2 metres long. I made sure the bike was between me and the snake, which worked perfectly as it came towards me to check me out. Just after that photo was taken it struck at me… except it assumed the bike was part of me so it hit the head tube. But holy shit did I jump. Nothing prepares you for how fast they attack. Even though you know they’re pretty harmless.
Whilst cruising a Californian gravel track on a klunker I saw a rattle snake cross the track in front of me & in Gloucestershire I saw a ?grass? snake in our garden pond.
Male and female adders can differ in colour. The females are usually brownish and the males are more grey/silver/greenish.
Adders do strike and it's amazingly fast. I had assumed that they didn't. I did run away very fast. It was not a well planned outdoor lesson. The pupils learned several things.
I have seen adders basking in the sun at the side of quiet trails and also crossing one. At least they are largely shy and whilst venomous - not usually deadly.
I'm no fan of snakes, but haven't felt worried when I've seen adders when out walking and riding.
MCJnr went to the World Scout Jamboree in Virginia in 2019 and they had lots of briefing about snakes - they never saw any but did see bears. Lightening strikes seemed a bigger threat.
No ****ing way would I move to Australia.
We saw one sunning itself on a trail in Yorkshire. Gravel track, I rode past what I thought was a small stick then it moved. So we sat and watched it for a bit, it coiled up and hissed at us. It was tiny though, only as thick as a finger and maybe 8" long.
On a road descent in Spain once, I moved over to avoid what I thought was a crack in the tarmac just ahead of me, then the crack moved into my path. Turned out to be a 2ft silvery-grey snake, maybe as thick as my wrist. Didn't half shift across the road. Thankfully I avoided running it over.
Snakes are amazing things though. A neighbour had a pet python which was really tame.
No **** way would I move to Australia
Yup 😂
Oooft, I'm glad I live in UK.
I love adders, they're beautiful and peaceful creatures. And I'm not a snake fan.
an Adder is 60-90cm and black
Not necessarily.
I saw a very large black Adder a few years ago - easily biggest adder I've seen at 1m+ long and black with very dull back pattern.
Most however are under a metre, and usually much lighter and obvious pattern
There's a few places full of them - the wall at the bottom of the trails in Aberfoyle, most of Galloway(!) when we were there, Glen Turret etc.
I thought this was another Samuel L Jackson movie flop 😆
They've been reintroducing them here (Steyning, West Sussex) for the last few years, with adder mats for breeding at the edge of a particular couple of fields.
Then they built an "outdoor" children's playground right next to them!
On cue of course, I just narrowly avoided running over a small black snake on my gravel commute home. Bugger coiled up then fled before I could get a photo.
@kayak23 you missed the stonefish and the irukandji jellyfish
I was out running just last week, doing hill repeats. Heading up the hill the third time there was a stick that had apparently fallen on the trail sometime after my last repeat... got closer and the stick moved slowly off the trail 🙂 Unfortunately I didn't have my phone on me so couldn't take a photo, but going by what I remember of its size and colouring I'm guessing it was a grass snake.
Used to to rescue and relocate snakes at risk from housing and industrial developments at the edge of an urban conurbation. Have seen quite a few colour variants of adder and grass snake but never a black one*. Was quite disappointed. Adders are typically small, very shy and remarkably beautiful.
*Excepting that scheming dastard who goes by the name of Lord Blackadder 🖤
I saw a very large black Adder a few years ago – easily biggest adder I’ve seen at 1m+
Lucky! only ever seen a grass snake that kind of length - but even then was difficult to measure.
Still yet to see a smooth snake in the wild.
PS any of you see adders and would like to become involved in surveying reptiles there is this ‘make the adder count’ survey for logging
I volunteer on a site where we’re trying to increase adder numbers, I know all the areas where they’re located, I helped put out corrugated metal for them to bask under, I’ve helped clear areas so that different groups of adders can move around the site to help breeding etc etc and I’ve still not seen one!
However I have seen a boa that was dumped there and had to rescue
First time I met a snake on the trail was in Taiwan. I was belting along somne singletrack in a bamboo forrest and sawa soenthing big and black in front of me. I was going too fast to brake in time when I realized it was a snake snoozing in the sun. I managed the biggest bunnyhop I had ever done I can tell you. I often saw this type of snake in the forrest, it was 5 inches in diameter and 2-3 meteres long but by god it could really shift! I was never sure if it was venomous or not but Tawian does have it's fair share of poisonous snakes.
There’s a few places full of them – the wall at the bottom of the trails in Aberfoyle, most of Galloway(!) when we were there
That makes sense I grew up in Galloway and very familiar with stepping around/over sleeping Adders at the last minute! Mostly they just look at you annoyed for disturbing their sunbathing and slither off!
I did see two multiplying last year…
Heh!
I did see two multiplying last year…
well they are naturally gifted at maths, being adders and all...
well they are naturally gifted at maths, being adders and all…
Clearly a divisive subject though.
You have to be pretty unlucky to be a. bitten by and b killed by an adder bite.
Or really really thick.
https://www.scotsman.com/news/man-bitten-snake-picked-adder-holiday-snap-2510690
I have been bitten by an Adder. It was like having flu for a few hours - I shivered a lot, sweated and had a nasty couple of puncture wounds on my achilles. Gained by pulling sailing dinghies up through long grass and onto a tumble-down wall on a hot August afternoon...I thought I had be scratched or stung by the nettles or blackberries - only when I took wet boot off 10 mins later did I realise I had blood and a classic two-hole puncture...
A young girl was bitten by one last week on the site I mentioned, was taken to Brum childrens hospital but I believe all was ok. Rumours suggest she poked the snake
My wife and I were walking along a trail in Costa Rica a couple of years ago when I realised that she had just stepped right over a snake. I took a picture and edged around it. When we showed the locals later, they said it was a Mexican Jumping Viper. It isn't mega venomous apparently, but still...
[url= https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49219104822_b7b3b7bb41_h.jp g" target="_blank">https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49219104822_b7b3b7bb41_h.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/2hZjM6y ]IMGL9780[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/timrusson/ ]Tim Russon[/url], on Flickr
I photograph adders regularly in the Peak, they are generally very shy and unaggressive - I've seen loads and never seen one look like it was interested in attacking.
[url= https://live.staticflickr.com/3734/33420790945_cbd33b532f_h.jp g" target="_blank">https://live.staticflickr.com/3734/33420790945_cbd33b532f_h.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/SVhhMx ]IMG_9664[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/timrusson/ ]Tim Russon[/url], on Flickr
Seen a few on the North Yorkshire Moors and in Hamsterley forest. Mostly they are just sunning themselves and not moving, but recently nearly squashed one, it was moving across the track and I didn't see it until last minute. I swerved and It coiled back looking like it was getting into the attack position, but think it was just avoiding being flattened. Only missed it by a few inches. It soon moved off and it was too quick for me to stop and get a photo of it.
Mrs Reeksy and I interrupted a python mid meal once in the Northern Territory.
https://flic.kr/p/6PV2LP
Beautiful animal. We had to wait for it to move on to finish our walk… it was worth it cos this was at the end.
I got knocked of my bike by a badger once. Does that count?
Visiting my wife's friend in Thailand, who's very much into trail running.
He sets the scene, out with others, hard run, heavily wooded area, spots a moped tyre futher up the path on outskirts of a village. Mutters about someone dumping it, gets to within a handful of meters intending to clear it away. The head of a King cobra pops up to say hello.
Shudder.
Had a Puff Adder in my bedroom once when I was about 12. Was sitting on my bed, feet on the floor playing with lego, and just something felt wrong. Looked up and it was about 20cm away from my feet.
Also seen Rinkhals while outside my house in the street. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rinkhals
I managed to avoid any mambas or other issues while spending a lot of time out growing up outside Durban in South Africa.
Had to bunnyhop over an Adder on a trail in Dumfries & Galloway a few years back, I was quite surprised to see it there !
Mexican Jumping Viper
These things can jump?
That's it, I am sticking to Peloton workouts.
I photograph adders regularly in the Peak, they are generally very shy and unaggressive – I’ve seen loads and never seen one look like it was interested in attacking.
Fantastic photos on your website @tlr !
Whereabouts in the Peak District is good for adders then?