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Cole Davis · Senior Member

Heads up

Otter · Senior Member

That looks like the little guy I let go up by the dam last week.... Seriously though the little guys are sometimes more dangerous as they release all their venom when they bite and you can't hear them. How was the fishing?

Cole Davis · Senior Member

To be honest Otter I only fished for an hour before I headed home. So not sure how the fishing really was. Usually I have to spend more time out there before the creek gives it up. Wasn't feeling it on Sunday, it was hot and nasty, sweating like crazy. May have been one of those days were it was more about the drive out there than the fishing. But I got to see a cool little snake.

Matt R · Senior Member

saw a video of a guy catchin a trout on a rattlesnake fly. the fly was long and had several articulated joints. tye one up Cole

Cole Davis · Senior Member

I've heard of rattles inside lures but never a rattlesnake fly. I was paddling around Spring Lake over here in Santa Rosa a long time ago. Ran into this guy float tubing who had a foot long rubber water snake. He said the big bucketheads loved that thing.

coolbee · Veteran Member

Yeah I remember seeing an interesting story on some guy's blog once, can't remember who specifically. This guy took pics of it all, very cool.

He was on some river in Missouri or Mississippi canoeing and casting spin gear for largemouths in the summer. He noticed a rattlesnake swimming near him so he snapped a few pics. Then he realized it was heading straight for the canoe. When it reached the boat, it made to climb in, so he gave it a few good whacks with the paddle. He decided he might as well hook it up and see what happened. Sure enough he stuck a nice 6lber.

SK60 · Senior Member

Probably a water moccassin rather than rattler, but just as dangerous. My Dad grew up in Arkansas and lived on a small river that they catfished. One day they were heading home in the boat with a bunch of catfish when a moccasin climbed in, struck one of the larger cats before my Dad could club the snake with an oar. The catfish went into a state of rigor and presumably died before my Dad could toss it out of the boat. In the spring, they used to shoot the mocassins with .22's as they sunned themselves on logs. A constant war between them, but ultimately no one was bitten.

coolbee · Veteran Member

Found it...

http://www.fieldandstream.com/photos/gallery/fishing/bass-fishing/2009/09/kayak-fishing-guide-catches-10-pound-largemouth-bass-liv

bono · Master Fly Fishing Guide

As a kid we had a pretty big pond on our ranch on pleasants vly rd near Putah, my dad was chasing me and was going to throw me in the pond so I ran away from him and jumped into the pond before he could catch me. Well I wasnt looking ahead of me ( at the pond) as I was glancing over my shoulder at my dad, as I started to dive into the pond I saw a rattlesnake swimming right where I was diving, i could only re-direct my path and I barely missed landing right on top of that thing! On another note I would be willing to bet that the snake thats in Cole's picture was at access #5 because thats one place I've seen a few rattlers and because of the cottonwood tree leaf near the snake. BTW there have been alot of rattlers this season so far around our ranch (near access#5).

shon42073 · Senior Member

At putah I've seen a few around Acces 4 and 5, they must like that area as I haven't seen em anywhere else. Had a close encounter 2 weeks ago on the north fork stan. 7 rattles neatly 3 feet long. I had to kill it. The fishing was excellent

Cole Davis · Senior Member

Greg good guess but no. That little guy was in the middle to upper creek. I actually like rattlesnakes a lot. I used to kill a lot of them as a kid in Idaho unfortunately. Now I let them chill... we have a mutual respect these days.

bono · Master Fly Fishing Guide

Ok Cole I know where you were at and it was my second guess, was it above what we call boulder alley which is about 300 yards above the old caretakers trailer? If so there is a boulder strewn wash that connects to the creek and that area usually has a den in it, which I found out the hard way about 4 years ago when I found myself right in the middle of 4 juveniles and one big one. I am like you I just leave them alone now unless they are near the house and even then sometimes I will try to catch them and turn em loose. I am a believer in karma and I have had numerous close calls with rattlers where I should have been bit and the snakes chose not to. Like last spring when myself my son and my buddy and his boy were up at Pope creek exploring, I bent over to try to dislodge a small rock and was having a difficult time I noticed a small black thing touching my pinky and to my surprise it was a 8-10" rattlesnake coiled up ready to strike!!(THIS THING LICKED MY FINGER!!!) My son said I screamed like a little girl,which I did by the way.

Cole Davis · Senior Member

I know rattlesnake dens smell really nasty, and like you say Greg are normally rocky type caverns. That one you speak of sounds big and I may have seen it. I have rattlers bigger than that sometimes on my dirt road during this time of year.

Xnjb707X · Senior Member

I have seen a few more than normal this year, and with all this rattlesnake talk I've been leaving my dog at the house. He keeps giving me the stank eye everytime I leave for the creek tho.. I would hate to see that vet bill if he got bit.

- Nic

Cole Davis · Senior Member

One of our cats got bit a few years ago Nic. Don't know if it's the same cost for a dog but it was 700$ for the antivenom for a cat.

AfricanAngler · Senior Member

I know there is a rattle snake "vaccine" for dogs. Luckily my dog never got bit by a rattler but I know a guy who's dog did and it made it through OK with the vaccine. Poor dog wasn't too haappy and still spent a night at the vets but he was alright. The vaccine runs about $25 and needs to be done annually and and is good peace of mind if you are out and about with your dogs wether it be on the creek or elsewhere!!

Xnjb707X · Senior Member

The only flaw with the rattlesnake vaccine is that it just slows the poison. So you still have to go to the vet and get the anti venom still. It just prolongs their survival if they get bit. So you still have to fork over the $$ for the vaccine regardless.

- Nic

Bob Loblaw · Senior Member

I was in the Pit a couple of weeks ago chest deep in water and right against the bank and a large bush I was casting around when something caught my eye, about 8 inches from the tip of my nose a snake was looking right at me. I almost crapped in my waders. It was a garter snake of course but it got my heart rate up for a few minutes.

I always wear fishing gaiters/gravel guards when bushwhacking in rattlesnake country. Probably not enough to stop a strike from a fully grown snake, but they'll definitely protect against the little fellers.

-- Edited by Bob Loblaw on Tuesday 3rd of July 2012 08:56:42 AM

Arnell · Member

Was there last weekend and these critters are everywhere. Well, in the 3 hours I was there, I saw 3 of them, plus a couple I didn't recognize. Be careful out there, as you know they love this heat!

vince · Senior Member

I saw an eight-rattle rattler at the Yuba on Sunday. I was about 5 feet way and it didn't even rattle, just started slithering off the trail. I was fishing with my girlfriend and I practically had to carry her out of there after I told her I saw it. It didn't help when as we were hiking out in the dark, I saw a skunk on the trail and quickly stopped and went "whoa!". She damn near jumped four feet. That was one dumb, dumb skunk too: we tried chucking rocks near it, making loud noises, etc, and the stupid thing kept going the wrong direction, then turning around, then stopping. The critters keep it exciting.