Thanks for the pictures Dimitri. I have never been to Oregon or NW.
It looks a little more arid than I would expect but it is the eastern part.
Cheers.

Come to AZ! and sweat.

Bushy- Im not used to copperheads so i dont know there attitude. Most of the time rattlesnakes just try to get away so i guess i just catagorized all snakes like that. Also i was talking about people who dont have horses and when they see any snake they kill it.

Most of the time I won't bother with a snake. Copperheads don't rattle like what you are used to. We have cottonmouths too and they not only don't rattle, but tend to a bit territorial and agressive...Not to mention ill tempered...

Welcome back D, sounds and looks like a good trip !!!

Dimitri,
I am currently in China and have a really slow internet connection in the hotel. So I cant see your pics.
I am sure they are great.. cant wait to go home to see them later
Judging from your new avatar, you have either grown up or roasted.. :-)

Oh and yeah, welcome back!!

The mountains look great D.
The dry area along with the snakes, doesn't trip my trigger though.

Great pictures Dimitri.

Eric

Welcome back D!! Great pictures. The dry country photos look like west Texas.

As far as snakes go, I’d rather be around rattlesnakes. They, for the most part are cowards and will not bite unless you corner them or get too close (when they feel that they can’t get away). I’ve killed hundreds of them and almost every time, I’ve had to chase them down. If they are coiled up when you find them, they may not try to escape, but try instead to blend in with the environment. A copperhead is different. They, for the most part, won’t try to get away, and seem to be a little aggressive. I was bit by one last year and went through about 6 weeks of swelling and pain, after spending a couple of days in the hospital. I took one step off of the porch and he bit me on the back side of my ankle.

Copperheads are generally small. The biggest one that I’ve ever killed was only about 3.5 feet long. I’ve killed several rattlesnakes over 6 feet long, but normally the big ones average a few inches less than that. There are several sub-species of them that grow to different lengths.

The only cottonmouths we have here are around water. I don’t have much experience with them.

I have killed lots of coral snakes also. The are normally very small and are not aggressive.

Cary

Last Friday, I flew to Denver to pick up a car for my stepson, and drive it back to the ranch.

The prettiest country that I drove through was from Colorado Springs into northern New Mexico along Interstate 25.

I don't think I would ever do that again. I drove straight through and it took me 18 hours. I crossed into Texas at Texline. It took me about 11 or 12 hours of driving from that point to get home. Rain storms probably slowed me down a couple of hours. I didn't take any pictures of my trip; I wish I did. The only monotonous part was across the plains of the Texas Panhandle. Flat!

Cary

It's funny Cary, how folks see things in different way.
I love heavy woods, but think that the Texas Panhandle is just as pretty as woods in It's own way.
Sitting out in the plains of the Panhandle at night, a guy can see God's hand with the clear night skies.

Eric

But why do you kill them Cary? Yes you have been bitten, but i have been bitten by snakes (none poisonous) and yet i have nothing against them.

Anyways, the Texas panhandle is quite boring. Drove through there on the way to Indiana a couple years ago. Oklahoma is the same.

Vet bills for one thing, atrox. For another, I don't need to reach into something and find a snake on the other end of my finger. In most cases if the snake is going the other way I let him...Otherwise...Dead snake

gelandangan wrote:

Judging from your new avatar, you have either grown up or roasted.. :-)

That last picture was a long while back.

Dimitri

ElyBoy

The Texas Pan Handle is beautiful. There are some huge ranches up there. I like that country also. If you have the desire to ranch, you can buy land up there really cheap. It's just a long, long way from my ranch.

People who live in the mountains or areas covered with lots of trees, or urban areas, don't realize how huge and beautiful the starry nights are out on the plains.

As far as snakes go, I only kill poisonous ones and chicken snakes (rat snakes) because they kill my chickens and eat the eggs.

I believe that snakes are good for the environment. They keep the rat and mouse population in check, but I have grand kids running around the ranch that I have to think about. We've got thousands of other snakes around here to keep the environment in check. The sad thing is that I can't seem to hurt the population.

I also get tired to cattle and dogs getting bit. I had a yearling heifer get bit on the tongue and almost die. She lost about a forth of her tongue, but lived.

Cary