Snakes on a Trail - April 2014

"Whoa that's a fer de lance!"

Four of our party of seven have just stepped over a small mottled brown snake, unawares. K- seems to have stepped on his tail, and the tiny serpent is hopping mad, coiled among the leaves. I stop on a dime and quickly back up, calling the alarm. The Guppy line freezes, everyone turning to look at the snake. Profanity from the hikers who have just passed over the fangs colors the air. The fer de lance is encouraged to exit the trail with a long poled fishing net, and gracelessly acquiesces. Uneasily, the rest of us pass by.

It's the right season to see them out during the day, but this was our first live fer de lance sighting this year. Several hours later, a second snake is spotted in the foliage, but quickly vanishes. Not twenty minutes later, a big yellow and black snake is sighted. This one, known to not be venomous, has our resident herpers chasing it down with glee. Unluckily for everyone, they chase it into a long narrow gulch through which we usually wade hip-deep.

"Nuh uh," I say, and scramble over the high rocky embankment above the water, followed by the less snake inclined of our party.

Everyone kept hawk eyes peeled for snakes as we head back out of the woods. The three snake day turns into four as a long body flashes away from the truck on our drive home. So snake season was inaugurated.

Paying attention during our next hike, the jungle visually less interesting as we stare at our feet. The topic is all snakes and snake stories, first hand, third hand, boogie man.

"It's crazy we're seeing so many now."

"'Tis the season."

"Fa la la la la, la snake snake snake."

"Fer de lance."

"Ha ha, very funny."

"No really. Fer de lance. Right there."

There are only four venomous snakes in Trinidad: two small brightly colored coral snakes,  and two pit vipers: the massive bush master, and the fer de lance - picture a rainforest rattlesnake. Sure enough, there is another juvenile fer de lance blocking the trail home. This time when we try to shoo him away, the snake climbs a plant and hangs out at belt height. Curled around the stalk, he won't budge. Keeping a hawk eye on the snake and turning pack side to the fangs, we sidle past, one by one, breathing a sigh of held breath as we make it through the gauntlet. Only another twenty minutes up the hill to the truck.

We smell and hear another snake toward the top of the trail where the Canadians saw a big fer de lance a few days before, but happily it slithers away from the sound of our tromping arrival.

Speaking of Team Canada, they had quite the snake adventure. They had some night sampling to do at the C- focal site. Hiking down in the dark, the first night was blessedly snake free. The second night, they saw a fer de lance as tall as M-, the tallest Canadian, nearly six feet. In fact, they saw five. Maple syrup must make you made of stern stuff, because they finished their sampling in the midst of the vipers. Me, I'm quite glad I was asleep.

We see plenty squished snakes on the road these days, and they are still frequently spotted on the trail. Before I finish my stay here, M- and I are sewing up, patching, and fixing the protective paneling in the snake gaiters. May never a Guppster be stung.