Civil War History - Gettysburg ForumGettysburg! It's not just a National Park. It's a Civil War Battlefield. For some it's historic and storied past are almost an obsession! All related discussions are welcome here!
Well said, Ole. You hit the nail on the head, and did it with alot less words than I. And if only more people were aware of the POSSIBILLITY of running into one of these poisonous snakes, perhaps they wouldn't sit their toddler's on the rock wall.... That makes me cringe every time I see it, though I suspect the better chance of running into these deadly serpents in in the brush and timber areas.. Still, the one we saw was out in the open, right on the old Kindergarten playground. Can you imagine if there had been kids playing out there?
__________________
.."This was the turning point; if won
By Southern arms their work was done.
Were ours the day, a Northern sun
"Never did I say it should distract your enjoyment of this ground or any other!!!!!!! All I stated was that it is wise to keep your eyes open for our slithering friends when walking off the beaten path and into their territory."
Well stated. The key words are "off the beaten path". My surprise about your encounter was not that it took place, but the location. That area is rather close to town, and the middle school, and I was surprised to find that a snake (of any variety) would be wandering in that open, rather populated area. I spoke to a lifelong resident and Licensed Battlefield Guide about it yesterday and his response was the same. The fact is, there are several types of snakes on the field, as there are in any environment maintained in a "natural" state. He was aware of only one other timber rattler encounter on the field (in fact he was there at the time) and that was south of BRT, in the area of the old stone bridge. That part of the field is way off the beaten path, rarely if ever visited by tourists, and treated with caution by those who do visit because of the frequent copperhead sightings.
"Well, at least Tom was the soul of diplomacy."
Wow, thanks. But you might want to read my post in the "Memphis Pyramid Proposed as Civil War Museum" thread before you accuse me of diplomacy <wince>.
I just want people to take the snake threat seriously enough to take some sensible precautions when venturing into their territory. I almost got bitten by this thing, and even now the thought is chilling. I was in within a foot of it, my husband even less than that. If that snake did not have the patience of a saint, we would have been bitten. He tried to escape, and when cornered at the playground wall, gave us fair warning. In our ignorance, never thinking rattlers were even native to this state, let alone that they can be black or nearly black, could have cost us a great deal. Ignorance is not bliss, it alot of cases it's deadly. I was only trying to help. EVERYONE knows about the ticks, but not everyone knows to look out for black rattlers.
Tom,
I also was surprised at the location. We've traveled through fields, up and down BRT and LRT, through the Slaughter Pen, and only saw the one snake in the Den, and never a rattler. I FIRMLY believe the reason for this is NOT that they are rare, more that they are normally shy and docile creatures. This one only rattled as a last resort, cornered and with my husband trying to poke it with a stick to make it come out into the light so he could get a better look at it. This happened in early spring, so my guess is that the chilly evening temps drove him to seek warmth from the blacktop on the playground, as it would have been heated by the day's sunshine.
I thought that this was a good time to mention the snakes as they are most active in the SPRING and FALL months. The summer months they stay in the shade and are sluggish due to the extreme heat.
__________________
.."This was the turning point; if won
By Southern arms their work was done.
Were ours the day, a Northern sun
You have the right reason for the seasonal appearances. Snakes, being unable to regulate their body temperature, den up in the winter and stay in the shade in the summer.
In the spring and fall, or anytime for that matter, when climbing rocks, NEVER put your hand in a place you haven't looked at first. Can you imagine reaching up for a hand hold and getting a fistfull of snake (any snake)!
__________________ "I want to bury myself in a den of books. I want to saturate myself with the elements of which they are made and breathe their atmosphere until I am of it."
--Lew Wallace, 1885
8th,
Well, it was past dusk, and the only lighting we had was an old yellow outdoor light at the playground, but I would say, not exactly. It's markings were either 1. not that visible as in the pic, since it was getting dark
or 2. were not that light as the snake in the pic's is. There were markings but they were very very dark, almost like a black on black I'd say. That was at night, at least. Now, if we'd seen him at two in the afternoon, who could say if the markings were really that dark. The most I can say is that he had some markings, but whether due to the lighting or not, they were VERY hard to see against his black scales.
By the way, that is a horrid pic. Just awful....ewwww.
__________________
.."This was the turning point; if won
By Southern arms their work was done.
Were ours the day, a Northern sun
Mary'
I was just kidding you. That was a picture of a python trying to get under a eletric fense. Sorry.
Martin
__________________ "I want to bury myself in a den of books. I want to saturate myself with the elements of which they are made and breathe their atmosphere until I am of it."
--Lew Wallace, 1885
I thought it was a Rattler too till I noticed the teeth.There are to many and not in the right place. I was just kidding you. I like your post on GB. I was coming out there again this fall but with the gas prices, I may not unless it goes down..
Martin
__________________ "I want to bury myself in a den of books. I want to saturate myself with the elements of which they are made and breathe their atmosphere until I am of it."
--Lew Wallace, 1885
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And if only more people were aware of the POSSIBILLITY of running into one of these poisonous snakes, perhaps they wouldn't sit their toddler's on the rock wall....
That makes me cringe every time I see it, though I suspect the better chance of running into these deadly serpents in in the brush and timber areas.. Still, the one we saw was out in the open, right on the old Kindergarten playground. Can you imagine if there had been kids playing out there?
I think you ENJOY scaring the daylights out of Yankees!
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