# Rattler



## mickey-mac (Sep 2, 2000)

I wish I'd brought the digicam along on my ride today. There was a big old rattler sunning himself right in the middle of one of the country roads I took this a.m. Although there's not a lot of car traffic, I figured it had about 10 minutes before a car came along and squished it. I'm not a big fan of rattlers but didn't like the thought of it being turned into roadkill. However, I wasn't up for trying to devise a way to move a live rattler to a place of safety, so I just rode on past. About a minute later I saw a group of 5-6 riders headed in the direction of the snake and let them know about the venemous reptile. If it weren't so passe, I might have yelled something about having MFing snakes on the road.


----------



## I am The Edge (Jul 27, 2004)

what road?


----------



## Bixe (Jan 28, 2004)

*Santiago Canyon*

Last summer I nearly nailed a rattler on the Santiago Canyon Road on one of the downhill segments along the apron. I turned around to verify what I thought I saw and sure enough... 

The Santiago Canyon Road is a popular ride route and it wouldn't be long before the next group came along. Fortunately, the snake wasn't so comfortable as to insist upon his sunny spot and he made his way back into the weeds with minimal coercion.

I'm more inclined to bunny-hop sticks these days when I can't avoid them....


----------



## jeff262 (Dec 19, 2005)

Reminds me of a MTB ride on the Santa Ana River Trail in the moutains a few years back. I was with two buddies flying down some sweet single track when I heard the guy in the lead yell something. I was trying to figure out what he said when I heard the second guy yell snake. I managed to stop just in time to miss a very pissed off Western Pacifc Rattler. The snake had been curled up and was grey so the first rider moving along at speed thought it was a rock and ran over it. The second guy went around it. I had a heck of a time getting around it as the trail was on a fairly steep traverse at that point. I had to shoulder the bike and hike-a-bike on the uphill side of it.


----------



## mickey-mac (Sep 2, 2000)

I am The Edge said:


> what road?


Cross Canyon Road in San Miguel. I live in Paso Robles, where we don't seem to qualify for northern California or southern California. Having grown up in southern California, I like to think of us as being just south of California's version of the Mason-Dixon line.


----------

