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Cheers @crazy-legs. I haven't updated that website for quite a while (inevitably), most stuff goes on Instagram now if you are interested - Tim_Russon
Sorry, but I don't want to be too specific on a forum, but suntrap areas of Big Moor etc. attract them in the spring when they emerge.
Getting a little off topic but this makes me laugh every time I see it 🤣
I saw a grass snake on the trail just before I registered on here for the first time, hence my username, Natrix natrix being a grass snake's scientific name at the time.
Thailand is great for snakes. The Pasteur institute in Bangkok where they make the antivenoms has a good collection. Was allowed into the cobra cage which was fine until a big one started rearing up, and up, at which point we were told to get out.
Had one a similar size in our house during the rainy season, and often saw them on the tracks through rice fields.
Snakes are awesome.
I saw a small ish adder on some moorland trail, I forget where. All calm and relaxed, no bother. The one that shocked me was coming down the Taff trail towards Cardiff city centre (it's a busy urban tarmac cycle path) a fat dark snake at least 1m long shot across the trail right infront of me. If it hadn't made it across in time I'd have hit it because I was going fast and didn't have time to brake. Probably 5-6cm across the middle, it was pretty hefty. Probably a dark grass snake, but it's not impossible that it was some other escape. It was right by a very big Tesco, and going buy the huge rats you always see at supermarkets that's probably why it was living there and how it got big.
Whilst we are talking about exotic places, I was swimming in a river pool in Texas, and I saw a nice 2m long snake swimming across the river a few m from me. I later found out that the ones in that area that swim are Cottonmouths that are actually pretty dangerous, they can kill you!
sometimes it's more worrying when you don't actually see the snake:
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....just outside Melbourne, Vic, Aus' ...no mobile signal...yes I do carry a snake bandage
meanwhile in a country with all snakes poisonous and most fungi poisonous why not make the message in the playground for the kids that its all really fun?!:
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There are no poisonous snakes, only venomous ones 😉
Lots aren’t venomous in Oz either.
The Asian Tiger Snake is both
I'm surprised by the level of affection and admiration for snakes. Personally I appreciate all wildlife and animals, but snakes are different, I don't think I'd have any qualms about killing one just as a precaution from a safe distance with any suitable weapon.
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!
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
Is someone taking action to prevent the opportunity for such an encounter to happen again, given that collectively "they" created it?
Lots aren’t venomous in Oz either.
They're more than compensated for by the ones that will kill you... 😉
Having said that, I think India has far far more instances of snake bites and fatalities.
Adders are pretty much harmless, as kids we used to find them, catch them and chase each other (mainly girls, aren’t young Botha pleasant?) around. Have been bitten numerous times as have friends and families.
Now I’m an adult I realise that this was probably much more terrifying and dangerous for the poor snake than the kids involved and am tying to educate my kids from a young age that the best thing to do is just avoid and leave them alone.
Now if I was abroad I’d avoid anything that looks like a snake (was not happy when on the White Nile in Uganda and what looked like a ‘stick’ swam up to me!).
We’re lucky in the UK that everything that moves isn’t trying to kill us unlike certain countries (cough cough Australia cough cough😉).
Edit -
I’ve just realised that the village FB page have their knickers in a twist this week because someone saw an adder or grass snake in the fields behind the houses.
You’d think they’d found a nest of puff adders or something by the fuss they’re making. “Think of the children!! Don’t let them out of your sight in case they are attacked/bitten”. FFS
I’ve just realised that the village FB page have their knickers in a twist this week because someone saw an adder or grass snake in the fields behind the houses.You’d think they’d found a nest of puff adders or something by the fuss they’re making
One of my Mum's neighbours found a snake in their house and the local WhatsApp / NextDoor group lit up like Christmas. Turned out it was an escaped corn snake from a house a couple of doors down and it was safely recaptured and taken back to its rightful home. It had apparently got there via some connected plumbing.
You can stick your creepy crawlies. We've got suicidal moor hens on my canal commute.
Plus it's officially angry swan and grouse season.
This time last year. Turn up the volume to get the hissing...
We’ve got suicidal moor hens on my canal commute.
Some poor b*gg*r has small finches attacking his car.
I've had the misfortune of being bit by an adder a couple of times, once as a teenager in argyll as I was helping my dad in the wood brashing trees and throwing all the branches into the centre for the forwarder to drive on - reached into a pile of scrub and got bitten on the hand, thumping headache and a day in Lochgilphead hospital for observation. Second time was entirely my fault as I was out at Screel hill (galloway) on the bike and sat on the ground without looking, got hit with an almighty whack on my inner thigh as I had sat on it, thumping headache again and felt really sick/woozy within a few minutes, by the time I had made my way slowly off the hill and drove to the hospital at Castle Douglas I was feeling a bit better but they still kept me a few hours to make sure.
Came across this grass? snake on a road ride, he'd been run over by something and was ruptured, but still alive. I picked him up and put him in the verge, but I doubt he was going to live long...
[url= https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51253747748_3320cbb13a.jp g" target="_blank">https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51253747748_3320cbb13a.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/2m67Ry1 ]Snake[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/brf/ ]Ben Freeman[/url], on Flickr
My maths teacher at school explained that adders were only allowed on the ark because they could multiply using logarithms. The track up to Loch Ordie at Dunkeld is a good spot for seeing adders sunning themselves amongst the boulders.
On the Glen Callater track.
This will probably not work because I'm a fud!
Not sure I believe the logarithm but of the story though...
i used to see snakes all the time when i lived in texas. you get used to it, but seeing them swimming or when they fall on you from trees is a bit of a freak out.
As a 100% off roader I had never been exposed to road riding group behaviour.
Joining a shop ride in Mullumbimby Australia having the rider ahead point out a hole or the rider behind saying "car" was a novelty.When they started saying "snake" I was beyond excited.
We're not in Surrey anymore Toto.
Rubbish picture but I wasn't getting too close!
See adders fairly regularly in the highlands usually middle of land rover tracks in the sun.
Have seen Adders on the Chase quite often - Oldacre Valley is a good place for them - though the last one i saw was dead unfortunately...
... the ^above was taken near to where you cross the road on the Dog, pine cone for scale shows it's a tiddler. Always happy to see them, beautiful animals.
Down here i've bumped into them most during summer months around the golf course here and common, they love to bask in the sun and you can get as close as you like, as long as you're not being daft, although there are usually multiples around, so always good to know your route backwards doesn't have any sunbathers.
Not really run into them on the trails down here (FoD/Gloucestershire), but never really focused, did see them around in Scotland, but as other say, they are pretty much low on the aggressive scale and will usually disappear when they feel your vibrations, hence why a lot of folk never see them.
Came across an Eastern Copperhead lazing on a trail while on holidays in Virginia.....Thought it was a stick until I practically rolled over it. Fumbled the bunnyhop and he got a smack of my rear tire. Was terrified to make my way back in case he was laying in wait 😅😅😅. The previous evening I had cycled straight through an enormous spiderweb which spanned two trees either side of the trail. Freaked out pulling the web off myself!
Not on a trail, but on a river in NE Turkey. Had one swim past the front of my kayak and over my paddles that were set down beside me as I was just about to get out of the boat. FFS. slithered under the rock my mate was stood on.
The next 30 minutes portaging a section involved making LOTS of noise and pushing overhanging stuff out the way with the paddles 1st. FFS.
This is the only one I've ever encountered. Me and a friend were doing the Eastern Moors loop in the peaks. It was stunning itself in the middle of, happily, a wide bit of trail. I managed to miss it and made sure my mate was well aware of it. This pic is quite cropped. I didn't want to scare the little thing while it was warming itself.
Gorgeous creature!
Opening the box in daylight I was met by this little critter…
That really is a scary dangerous part of the world to live in.
Starting in the sea, you have man eating sharks, at the sea shore you have the indo-pacific man o' war,
Move a bit back from the beach, you have poisonous spiders, further back still you have deadly snakes, scorpions and more spiders, rivers can contain crocodiles(as well as snakes) and if you manage to survive all that, the sun might get you.
Or a tree might fall on you while you're sleeping 😯
I resemble that remark!
*ahem* the spiders are venomous not poisonous, too 😉
... but seriously, it's all far far safer than living in a country with a Tory government (even if ours isn't much better)
Life expectancy is higher in Australia (and continuing to go up rather than down)
I don’t think I’d have any qualms about killing one
BikesandBoots adders are protected in the UK, it is illegal to kill them, see https://www.arc-trust.org/adder More people die from bee stings in the UK, please just leave them alone.
See also, rule no. 1.
^ username checks out
I'm not going to kill anything, I'd sooner run away. The point was I could, whereas with say a tiger I really wouldn't want to.
More people die from bee stings in the UK
That's not a useful statistic since the average person meets vastly more bees than adders.
Came across this Adder sunbathing on a lane while riding on Dartmoor last year [url= https://i.postimg.cc/YS50HFY6/IMG-20220428-140934.jp g" target="_blank">https://i.postimg.cc/YS50HFY6/IMG-20220428-140934.jp g"/> [/img][/url]
Came across this Adder sunbathing on a lane while riding on Dartmoor last year
Tiny thing!
Nearly hit an adder as it was crossing a berm in Thetford. I was going full tilt. It was panicking trying to climb up the berm. While I was trying to get a good look at it and warn my wife at the same time.
Also pee'ed on a random snake in a bush in Bosnia. It didn't seem bothered as I side stepped avoid it and finish my wee!
I had a really weird dream last night that involved a snake of some sort in my house that managed to survive being chopped in half about 8” behind its mouth. It was a crisp cut and resulted in the appearance of a deadly cucumber portion.
I blame you lot.
Took a med student for a ride this morning to show him some local trails and on our way up a techy climb he suddenly shouts and pulls up.
I'd apparently just missed riding over a snake - i didn't even notice it.
I definitely blame this thread. I reckon i'd normally see max 6 snakes a year on my bike and that's two in two rides!
I'm 50, have done a fair bit of MTB'ing and never once seen a snake in the countryside
Well you've gone and blown it now
I’ve ridden past tiger snakes and red-bellied black snakes in Victoria, Australia. The most likely mistake you’ll make is stop mid-trail and put your foot down in the brush at the side without looking. Every Australian kid is taught not to put their hands in holes in logs or trees etc. I’ve not seen an adder in the UK since I was a child. Would love to.
https://photos.google.com/photo/AF1QipNvom11-n4i93SQfKSqfArZpylxGeLCMh-csuJ P" alt="Cannock Chase last week" />
You'll have to use your imagination!
It's a complete mystery to me how you post a photograph on singletrack.