a snake RUINED our day fishing

[cathryn]

its such a beautiful day here today that i decided to take the kids fishing. we went over to my great grandads old farm where ive fished many times. it was the first time id ever taken my son and daughter over their to fish so we were looking forward to the day.

there are alot of bluegills in the pond and several nice bass but the bass are pretty smart.
alexys and i were fishing fro gills and Bubby was after the big bass, lol.

here they are are walking into the pond





heres the pond



all was going well, we were catching a good many bluegill and Bubby was enjoying trying to outsmart the bass.



then it freakin happend!!!

as i was reeling in like the 20 th or so bluegill a snake hurled itself out of the brush and onto the fish from somewhere to the left of us about 8 ft in front of us.

(i had to reel the fish in over some leaves and when i did the fish thrust itself at the fish, narrowly missing it.)

it tried again to grab the fish as i reeled it in and caught the fish by the head and it began to wrap its body around the fish.

(sorry its blurry but i was bout scared crapless at this time)



it then tried to pull the fish off the hook while i fought to reel the fish in.









the snake did not want to let go of the fish and all i wanted was the thing off my line. finally the line broke and the fish tried to back up with the fish.








needless to say that the snake ended our day of fishing.
i grabbed alexys and hauled butt, making up and out of the hollar in like a minute, literally, lol.

i am not going fishing over there again.

NOW do you see why i hate snakes? i have the worst of luck with them.

incidentally my son thought it was great fun and the neatest thing hed ever seen and alexys bout beat me out of the woods.

[alscalls]

If ya pick that one up he will leave a smell that will make ya wish he was a skunk.....I forget what they are called but we just call em a brown snake.
They can be very aggressive feeders......I do not like them as they aint afraid when they get like that.

[cathryn]

there aint no way in hell i was pickin that thing up.

it actually followed behind the fish as i reeled it in before it got the god bite on it.

i have no doubt it would have followed it right up on the bank if i had reeled the fish in.

[FinsnFur]

If ya pick that one up he will leave a smell that will make ya wish he was a skunk....

Are you freekin kidding me?  :roflmao:
Who in their right minds actually picks up a dang snake?

I wanna know what Alexys was saying during all this.

[coyotehunter_1]

It looks to be a northern water snake (Nerodia sipedon). Al is correct they can be pretty aggressive and they do have a good defense against predators, like other snake species they often produce a very obnoxious odor when agitated.

cathryn, you done good.  
If you don't know which snakes are poisonous and which ones are not it's always better just to leave them be.
This one's a nonpoisonous species, harmless to humans (except to some people that "hate" snakes...they may hurt themselves trying to get away from one.)      

Other information:
Length
61 to 140 cm
(24.02 to 55.12 in)
These are dark-colored snakes, brownish, tan or grayish in appearance. The back and sides have a series of square blotches alternating with each other that may merge to form bands. Adult snakes can appear solid brown or black, especially when dry. The belly is usually white, yellowish, or orangish with dark half-moon-shaped black edges. Juveniles have reddish brown saddles on a tan, brown, or gray background. Males are usually smaller than females. (Behler and King, 1979; Harding, 1997; Jordan, 1929; Tyning, 1990)
Source:
http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Nerodia_sipedon.html
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Snakes of West Virginia:
http://www.marshall.edu/herp/pages/Snakes_Index.htm


Edit:
"Who in their right minds actually picks up a dang snake?"
:roflmao:  No comment  :roflmao:

[alscalls]

If ya pick that one up he will leave a smell that will make ya wish he was a skunk....

Are you freekin kidding me?  :roflmao:
Who in their right minds actually picks up a dang snake?

I wanna know what Alexys was saying during all this.

I aint tellin ya what I read somewhere Jimbo........I am tellin ya what I know.......
Cause I have picked them up....  
I used to catch them in high school and sell them to biology teachers and such for extra $$
As I have lived on my own since I was 14 and the 2 jobs I was working under a pemit at 14 would only allow me to work a certain amount of hours.....If I done it today they would probably put me in jail...But I still get calls from folks that want me to catch them for them now and again.

coyotehunter_1 ,  They can cause you to get a tetanus shot....... I know that too....

[FinsnFur]

I aint tellin ya what I read somewhere Jimbo........I am tellin ya what I know.......
Cause I have picked them up....  

Yeah, but you dont count. I said who in their right mind. Remember?

[alscalls]

 :roflmao: :roflmao: :roflmao:

[Hawks Feather]

I really don't mind snakes as long as I see them ahead of time and they do what they are supposed to do.  That would be lay there and do nothing.  Having one take my fish might have been grounds for me looking for a large rock.

Looks like your daughter is getting taller.

Jerry

[cathryn]

Alexys was ahead of me on thr mass exodus out of the woods,LOL.  she said that was the grossest thing shed ever seen and she kept saying that poor fish.

kinda surprising since she couldnt wait to shoot her first possum when she got her BB gun, LOL.

coyotehunter..im one of those people who bout hurt themselves gettin way from snakes,LOL.. i think i wrenched my back i whirled around and took off outta there so fast.

i didnt know my big ole butt could move as fast as i did, lmao!!  :roflmao:

im thinking of starting a new excercise regimen..ill hire Al to chase me around all the while carrying a snake. 

Al will end up with some extra income( and alot of laughs) and i shed some pounds, lol, its a win win situation 

[coyotehunter_1]

Al, I know what you mean, I've caught a few too.  I've ran onto several dozen copperheads and timber rattlers in my time but I don't fool with them much. I was hit once by a 3' copperhead while squirrel hunting. It was my fault as I stepped on it. The snake struck and hung a fang in the toe of my boot. It felt like my foot was hit with a ball bat but luckily it didn't penetrate the boot leather. That one went to snake heaven, after removing the snake's head from my boot I had to sit down for a while.  
As a reminder, I wore that snake skin as a hat band for several years.    

[KySongDog]

That one went to snake heaven, after removing the snake's head from my boot I had to sit down for a while.     

I'd be doing quite a bit of wiping after that.   

[slagmaker]

cool pics and theres a story for the kids. So even if ya didnt fish anymore you still have a cool yarn to spin. Ya never know what your gona see fishing

[alscalls]

Oh dont get me wrong....... I have had my moments......
One time I sat on a folding stool during a warm early tree rat season........something hit my boot.....I looked down and I had a HUGE black snake pinned to the ground with my stool!!!!........... I got up and turned and shot stool and all so fast I dont remember taking off the safety........
I aint big on them surprising me.....



And no Cathryn I wont chase ya with my snake....... :roflmao: :roflmao: :roflmao: :roflmao:

[LORDDAL]

If ya pick that one up he will leave a smell that will make ya wish he was a skunk....

Are you freekin kidding me?  :roflmao:
Who in their right minds actually picks up a dang snake?

I wanna know what Alexys was saying during all this.

I aint tellin ya what I read somewhere Jimbo........I am tellin ya what I know.......
Cause I have picked them up....  
I used to catch them in high school and sell them to biology teachers and such for extra $$

I have to agree with Al on this one Jimbo back in my highschool days thats how we made spending money only difference was the type of snake and who we sold em too had to get them to the buyer within an hour of killing so we always took our snakes in alive and would release any they didnt buy someplace else could make a few hundred sellin to the right place and this was the particular fellow of choice we caught . and yeah I hate to think what would be done if I tried to catch one and sell it today but they say they are really good to eat

[cathryn]

Oh dont get me wrong....... I have had my moments......
One time I sat on a folding stool during a warm early tree rat season........something hit my boot.....I looked down and I had a HUGE black snake pinned to the ground with my stool!!!!........... I got up and turned and shot stool and all so fast I dont remember taking off the safety........
I aint big on them surprising me.....



And no Cathryn I wont chase ya with my snake....... :roflmao: :roflmao: :roflmao: :roflmao:

:roflmao: LMFAO!!!!

[JohnP]

Funny story and nice pictures.

[Silencer]

did yall see any frogs ?  I'm willin to bet they have the frog population wiped out for one to follow your fish in like that.    Perty Neat 

[Frogman]

cathryn,

Those are some awesome photos!!  Sounds like an exciting experience.

Jim

[nastygunz]

MMMMMMMMMMMMM, bluegill at Cathryns....whooooo-hooooooooo