Badlands hiking

[Sum1]

I have done some bow hunting and shed hunting out there in the spring and fall during cool temps. I was thinking of doing some hiking out the this summer and was curious what the chances would be of running into rattle snakes? And if I would run into one what are your chances of getting it by one? And if you do get big is it a death sentance when you are out in the middle of no where on foot?

 

[guywhofishes]

no worries - in spring when it’s chilly and sun basking is in progress is when I saw them on trails where bite chance is decent

extremely rare to hear of people bit in ND - in fact I can’t recall such an event

anybody?

 

[DirtyMike]

Relative of mine was but at billy pulpit a couple of years ago. I think he was slow enough that the sob got him twice.

 

[guywhofishes]

gaaa!... what happened after bite?

 

[Sum1]

Yeah I’d be curious to what happened also?

 

[BBQBluesMan]

https://www.grandforksherald.com/ne...tory-surviving-surprise-snowstorm-nd-badlands

Careful hiking, you might get Munsoned out there!

 

[DirtyMike]

Couple doses of antivenom and he was good. Never did hear details.

 

[PrairieGhost]

My nephew wears snake boots and has been hit twice. The last time he was walking a cow path worn down in about six inches. The snake hit about a half inch below then top. I have run into a dozen since 1980. Most run into a load of birdshot from my 44. A few got their head crushed with my walking stick. I took the little ball off the end of my hiking stick and mounted an old #5 wood. Tap them ounce to get their head up.
About 20 years ago a kid in the campgrounds in Medora was hit and died. He was running in and out of the Little Missouri cold water and through brush. He didn't feel the hits. He was hit six or seven times. Legs were kind of numb from the cold water evidently.

 

[Captain Ahab]

I've heard of one guy getting bit by one crawling up on a deer(bow hunting). He got hit in the arm by a young one. Arm swelled up real big and he went to the doc. He turned out fine in the end.

- - - Updated - - -

I think snake boots would be cheap insurance.

 

[LBrandt]

Snake boots just to play it safe. Just getting bit would make my heart stop even without poison.

 

[dean nelson]

Here's one that bit a guy on the hand well boating out on what was likely lake oahe.

 

[guywhofishes]

I’ve run across maybe a dozen and none struck at me, even though 3 or 4 had a shot at it. Your brain explodes when you realize what they are... ha ha.

 

[DirtyMike]

Ran into two while bowhunting a couple years ago. Never did see them but that rattle is very distinct and frightening

 

[guywhofishes]

http://www.prairiepublic.org/radio/dakota-datebook?post=63579

[h=2]Last Snakebite Death[/h][h=4]Wednesday, September 23, 2015[/h] One hundred years have passed since the last death from a snakebite in North Dakota on this date in 1915. Four-year-old Helen Moomey was bitten by a rattlesnake while playing with friends near her house in rural Slope County. Her parents called a neighbor from the closest ranch over a mile away, and he drove Helen and her parents to Marmarth for a doctor.
The town was 15 miles away on poor roads. Over three hours passed before Helen reached Dr. Frederick Bordwell in Marmarth. Despite his best care, the girl died the morning after being bitten and was buried the next day.
Two years earlier, in 1913, were the next most recent deaths in the state. Two brothers, ages 6 and 7, were killed on their rural homestead near Beach. After going to bed, the boys had complained that each had pinched the other, but they remained quiet afterwards. In the morning, their mother found them dead, with a rattler coiled in the quilts.
Although seven to eight thousand snakebites occur each year in the U-S, an average of only six people die. Most victims, like Helen Moomey, die because they didn’t receive proper treatment in time.
Eight species of snakes are found in North Dakota, from garter snakes to the prairie rattlesnake.
First aid for a venomous bite includes keeping the person still with the bitten area below the heart, moving them to safety, and removing any jewelry or tight-fitting clothing around the bite area. Most importantly, keeping the person calm and getting medical help.
A number of other so-called remedies should be avoided — suction devices, ice, tourniquets, and cutting the bite open. The approved medical treatment includes an anti-venom injection, preferably four to six hours after the bite.
Rattlesnakes are not as common in North Dakota these days, though a Medora golfer was bitten twice by a rattlesnake this July. Preventing snakebites is relatively easy—just watch where you’re walking and use common sense.

Dakota Datebook written by Jack Dura
Sources
Kessler, A. (2015, July 23). Golfer bit twice by rattlesnake at bully pulpit in Medora. The Forum. Retrieved from: www. inforum.com/sports/3803198-golfer-bit-twice-rattlesnake-bully-pulpit-medora
RelayHealth. (2013). Snakebite. CRS Adult Health Advisor.
(1915, Sept. 24). Little girl is mortally bitten by a rattlesnake. The Marmarth Mail. 8(42). Retrieved from:
www.files.usgwarchives.net/nd/slope/newspaper/marmail/1913-5.txt.
(1913, June 25). Rattlesnake in bed with corpses. Bismarck Tribune. Retrieved from:
www.newspapers.com/newspage/71278667/

 

[Ericb]

Never came across one in ND, but have seen plenty in AZ. Usually they arnt going to jump out of a bush and bite you. They will usually try and get out of the way if they sense you coming. A walking stick to move them if you come across one and watching where you step will prevent most bites. If you want to go the extra step there are kits to suck out venom in case of a strike. I remember maybe one death from a rattle snake growing up. People did loose fingers and hands from them but those were usually hold my beer moments.

Grilled rattle snake isn't to bad if you do come across one. A head cleaned by KDM's Beatles would be pretty bad as as well!

 

[Big Iron]

The young snakes are the ones you really need to be careful of. They pump all their venom into a bite- unable to regulate venom amounts. Older snakes realize human is not worth wasting venom and will often dry bite. Either way- not worth messing with. Gives you a sense of humility being out in country where shit could go wrong in a hurry.

 

[BrokenBackJack]

The young snakes are the ones you really need to be careful of. They pump all their venom into a bite- unable to regulate venom amounts. Older snakes realize human is not worth wasting venom and will often dry bite. Either way- not worth messing with. Gives you a sense of humility being out in country where shit could go wrong in a hurry.

An old timer told me this many many years ago. He swore a little one is way more dangerous than the big ones on account of this.
More of a chance to be bitten is when they are shedding their skin as their eyes get blurred and they strike at anything.
When you are in an area where there are buzz worms (as we call them) and cattle keep an eye out for the cattle as every once in awhile you will see a cow or more than likely the calf with a huge swelled up nose. They got too curious of the buzz worm and stuck their nose where it shouldn't have been.
I can't hear their rattle anymore so i always tell my bride if she hears one to be sure to let me know right away. I guess it is the tone of the rattle according to my hearing Doctor, that is why i can no longer hear it.
Another old tale is they always rattle before biting. BS on that one.
Same thing with an animal won't eat or drink if they have rabies. That is BS too as found out the hard way. Have to be careful now not to get bit by an animal as on the last shot that i received i became allergic to the darn antidote. I asked the Doc what happens if i would get bit again by a rabid animal and he calmly said, " you are going to die".
True story!

 

[Retired Educator]

Snake boots have been mentioned. Might also consider snake gaiters. Less cost to accomplish the same goal I would think. Truth is, if you use common sense, your chances of being bit are pretty low.

 

[measure-it]

Was his golf game better or worse after said bite?

 

[Fly Carpin]

Best snake advice I've ever read:

When visitors ask how to avoid snake bites, I tell them, "Don’t be a drunk man between the ages of 20 and 35, statistically the most commonly bitten people. Other than that, don’t put your hands in places you cannot see, such as cracks, crevices and ledges above your head."