Damn sexy new people. I've been away for too long!

Sorry about the snakes, Losty. Here, here's a photo of my son, in with some other shots we took at the USS Lexington Air Museum in Corpus Christi, TX. His comment as I was taking the first one: "Aw, Dad, you already have pictures of me." Me: "I know, but in case we get separated, I want one handy so I can remember what you look like."

(July 16, 2014 at 11:23 pm)Rhythm Wrote: That's a beautiful set of moccassins Thump. Is that your deck they were under?

No, it's the footbridge into the grotto area at my job, Hamilton Pool, outside of Dripping Springs, TX. We've got water moccasins all over the place there; in one day last year, I spotted five individuals on a 3/4-mile patrol.

I'm guessing they send you out to drive the snakes back into the brush. I was walking on the footpaths through paines prarie in fl as a volunteer once - and caught a whole gaggle of gators just sunning themselves on a concrete slab that a bench had been built on. I wish I'd had a camera - it was a surreal moment.

This is me launching a paper hot air balloon on new years eve this year. Pai Thailand. Good times.

(July 18, 2014 at 9:50 am)Rhythm Wrote: I'm guessing they send you out to drive the snakes back into the brush. I was walking on the footpaths through paines prarie in fl as a volunteer once - and caught a whole gaggle of gators just sunning themselves on a concrete slab that a bench had been built on. I wish I'd had a camera - it was a surreal moment.

Well, now that would give me the heebies. How far off were you?

You're right -- my job, in part, is to moderate the visitor/wildlife interactions. We're a nature preserve, so the wildlife gets right-of-way, and that often means telling visitors to leave them alone, or directing them away. But snakes are generally shy animals and want nothing to do with people; generally, North American snakes bite humans only in defense.

When I see folks getting close to one of our eight or nine species of snakes, I'll tell them, "I've got a theory that people who get snakebit probably deserved it." Even the moccasins, who aren't afraid to defend their turf, will leave you alone so long as you don't get stupid, as you likely know.

10 or 15 feet, came right around a bend with thick palmetto on each side. They do the same at Paines, we went out every morning to close down the trails (if needs be). The trick was getting there before somebody wandered out early in the am (or down a taped off trail- for some idiotic reason), when the snakes and gators were too sluggish to get out of the way before they were ever seen. Definitely a heebie jeebie moment though. Can't say I did the smart thing immediately...lol. I stood there real still and admired the view/pissed my pants a little bit. Those fuckers are fast when they want to be......honestly, they always scared me more on land than they did in the water. Never had a problem swimming in the lakes, but I could never (and still can't) bring myself to meander on the shoreline. When you catch em out of the water it's almost a certainty that they'll either be sitting the nest - or feeling very vulnerable. In the water, they're pretty chill -in my experience.

(one side of paines is owned by UF, southern belles like to water the horses daddy gave em on the bank of one of the lakes - watched one of the older gators there -let's call him Herman- grab a horse by the head and drag him in...shrub he was tied to and all....little girl was inconsolable, Herman was as big as our john boat...and a bit of an attraction for the park)

Yeah, everything I've heard about gators says that catching them unawares isn't a good idea. I remember reading that they can actually run about 30mph in short bursts ... not any animal I'm wanting to play with, that's for damn sure.

Yeah, they're quick. LOL< you know..there's this other idea going around that if you zig-zag when you run.....




Gators aren't dumb. Deer zigzag and leap when they panic...gators just charge the middle and snap their silly asses up...and then it's nom nom nom...back into the muck. Point being, it's best not to run when you see a gator. You calmly gtfo.

No doubt. I'm not taking my eyes off anything that dangerous.

(July 17, 2014 at 1:30 pm)Amalynne0 Wrote:

Quote:Pretty girl! I love your hair and your mischievous eyes

Aw thx! I was feeling really bummed about the color Sun In made my hair (can we say first world problems??), now I can face the world with more confidence.

Do they still make sun in, I turned ginger in the eighties coz of that shit.