Snakes, Thorns And Other Causes For Concern

[Hobo]

On 9/3/2023 at 12:01 AM, Rad Rocks said:

   Like to hear about how some of you Guys and Gals deal with your regions issues… Whether it be Rattlesnakes, Water Moccasins, Thorns, Gators, Cacti, or anything else some of us may have never thought of..

   Out Here in Arizona, We have All kinds of FUN stuff to look out for. As the Summer Heat very slowly subsides, Some of us are taking inventory, preparing and beginning to tool up for the Fall Detecting/Prospecting season. Part of that entails Thinking about accidental run ins with Things that poke,Scratch, bite, Kick, sting and even Munch. Being properly prepared to deal with such encounters is pretty important, especially when your attention is focused elsewhere (like on your Tones and coils). Now, a decent pair of Gaiters and some Thick Boots is a Terrific Start. A pair of nice fitting Knee pads are a definite plus in the Gravel laden washes and Rocky foothills. Also, In My opinion, a wide, over the shoulder pick(instead of a shovel) Makes recovery much easier and Quicker. Plus, if you aren’t “carrying”,  it really helps your odds in Those Chance Wildlife encounters..(Bobcats, Ferrel coyotes, Big Foots😉 and more)..

Anyway..Just wanted to start this up as I’m sure there are some things many of us could learn about or just may have overlooked.. 

Sure Hope that I posted this in the Correct spot. 🤙🏻

I have been nugget detecting in the AZ. deserts for 45 years and have never been threatened by a coyote, bobcat or even bigfoot. As for snakes, if you can't jump out of the way faster than you can get your digger or  357 out and aim & shoot then u should stay home in your rocking chair. mho

[jasong]

Detector speaker making noise and keeping my ears open, plus having a dog, seems to keep everything at a distance from me aside from rattlers which I normally hear first or see later if not rattling.

Can't stand using headphones for this reason - makes me feel completely out of touch with the world around me and unsafe. Feel 100% safe using the speaker though. The only animal that has gotten really aggressive with me so far was an angry bull I somehow really pissed off and had to get up on a rock outcrop with my dog until it lost interest in us. There are some escaped ranch buffalo that have reportedly tried charging people in one area, they jump barbed wire so the rancher just gave up on them and they are more or less wild now, but they stay away from me I guess. 

[Bishop]

over the years i have had at least 70+ rattlesnake encounters.
i remember one summer in the late 90s, seeing one or 2 every trip.
nothing in the world like the taste of adrenaline when you almost step on them and start doing the snake dance.
i have found (for me) dropping a good size rock on them kills them faster than a pistol.
now days, i will only kill one if they are in an area that kids or pets might be around.
they have there place in nature. snakes eat the mice and rats that can spread disease.(hantavirus)
i read that western diamondbacks can get up to max 8 feet, but i have seen 2 that
i would i would swear were 10 foot. one of them i have on an old video.
it stretched all the way across one side of a dirt road to the other. that was at Verde river sheep bridge.
the other i was detecting. there was a small tree in this little wash.i did not want to get out and go around.
so i hunched way down to get under that tree. about 3 steps in i saw the back end of a rattler slithering past.
never rattled.
my face was about 3 feet from it, and i was kind of stuck in a bad position under that tree.
talk about hebejebes. i only seen the back half of it. it was thicker than my upper arm.
funny thing about that one was i ran into Skookum, who is a forum member here about a week later. he was hunting
in that area and he was telling me about his encounter with the biggest diamondback that he had ever seen.
i was like ya, that is a big one.
in the last year i have only seen one. i don't know if there are fewer or if im just not seeing them.

[Goldseeker5000]

I have had one guy case me out to rob me years ago and in March of 2022 in Meadview, Arizona I had another guy try to intimidate me with a pistol. This is why I now have the Taurus Judge on my hip at all times. I also have cellular game cameras that I doctor up with local vegetation and I guarantee noone will ever see them. It pays to use a cellular game camera and have instant notifications of something or someone tripping it. It also has a built in GPS theft locator to lead the sheriff right to the camera. Even if they destroy it or sell it, they will be caught the moment they take it and sends it off to the app via Internet. This pistol might be heavy compared to semi auto's but I can shoot 45 colt, 00 buck, or any size birdshot. Turkey loads will do a lot of damage. 

[Rad Rocks]

1 hour ago, Goldseeker5000 said:

I have had one guy case me out to rob me years ago and in March of 2022 in Meadview, Arizona I had another guy try to intimidate me with a pistol. This is why I now have the Taurus Judge on my hip at all times. I also have cellular game cameras that I doctor up with local vegetation and I guarantee noone will ever see them. It pays to use a cellular game camera and have instant notifications of something or someone tripping it. It also has a built in GPS theft locator to lead the sheriff right to the camera. Even if they destroy it or sell it, they will be caught the moment they take it and sends it off to the app via Internet. This pistol might be heavy compared to semi auto's but I can shoot 45 colt, 00 buck, or any size birdshot. Turkey loads will do a lot of damage. 

     Knowing your being watched, cased and Targeted has got to be an uneasy feeling.  I’ve never been hassled myself, not when in the “Way Out” anyhow.. but I know it happens and it would be foolish to think that It never will. So, Like Most Polite People here in the West, I’m usually prepared, just in case. Now, Using the newer Tech to your advantage, Like setting up/having a few sensors on your 6  seems like a good way to go and Having constant eyes on your producing claims sounds like a Great Idea ..

And That Judge,.. Dependable, multi functional and intimidating from a distance..I’d say that it’s very Worth its weight.. 

Rad🤙🏻

[Valens Legacy]

Grandfather and I had used Optex driveway alert system with 3 remotes for a long time as they watched our backs and gave us about a thousand feet warning. He had modified the master to take a battery and the remotes all used a 9 volt battery which lasted over a year with heavy use. I'm going to have to start using them again as I have had several people walk up on me and my girlfriend when panning for gold. Well we were panning for gold for a while.

 

[F350Platinum]

Cheap air horn during hunting seasons, Glock 30s, and trusty Predator Shovel relic hunting. Best to just stay out of the woods in the summer, and the poison ivy can get you all year. Deer during rut, coyotes, ticks. Some new disease from the Lone Star ticks in VA this year, and Lyme from the nymphs. Odd that the smallest things are the most common and dangerous. 🤔

On the beach the sand scoop looks menacing enough, but I always have some sort of Pb expelling device there too, although lately it's been composites of poly/copper. Higher velocity and fragmentation benefit. Even at the beach the smaller predators are most common. 😁

I hope someday we will get wireless bone phones for better situational awareness, but WSA IIs are ok. The wired set on the D2 is great, but not in field hunting for the most part.

[Valens Legacy]

Sad when so many people laugh at your post.

I'll try to do better next time.

[geof_junk]

I think AUSTRALIA is much more safer for non gold detectorist than USA.

Note I said non gold detectorist so watch out if you are after our GOLD 

Despite being home to 21 of the 25 most toxic snakes in the world, Australia only has, on average, one to two snake bite fatalities each year.

When it comes to self-defence, Australia’s snakes have things pretty well covered. We share our continent with about 170 species of land snakes, some equipped with venom more toxic than any other snakes in the world.

But bites are actually quite rare in Australia and, since the development of anti-venom, fatalities have been low – between four to six deaths a year.

“This is in contrast to India, for example, where bites may reach one million a year, with over 50,000 deaths,” says Associate Professor Bryan Fry, a herpetologist and venom expert at the University of Queensland. “Snake bites are very, very rare [in Australia] and often the fault of the person being bitten. Most bites occur when people are trying to kill a snake or show off.”

From LINK   ...........https://www.australiangeographic.com.au/topics/wildlife/2012/07/australias-10-most-dangerous-snakes/..........     

[Ridge Runner]

Down here in South Texas we do have some large rattlesnake but yet to have one try to bite me. I don’t know why other than they scared the living you know what out of me and that snake knew he’d never get that bad taste out of his mouth if he did .

 Chuck