Snakes at the beach??…

Oh yeah… it can happen.  Happened to us this evening when we drove a few miles down the peninsula to an area commonly called ’stump hole’, named after the many tree stumps that line the beach.  We spent a few hours there back in June when we were down, so thought we would go back this evening to see how things looked after the storm and also take a look around for shells.  This is where we found all of the shells back in June.  Once we got there, Staci walked down the little road to the beach to determine if the tide was low enough for us to venture around, while I kept the girls in the van.  She returned a few minutes later claiming she had stumbled upon a rattle snake.  I had not thought about snakes at the beach before, but the surroundings were obviously a place they could live.  She stayed at the van while I took a quick look.  Sure enough… a 2.5 feet long rattler.  I came back and got the camera and went back for some pictures.  She has a couple of them posted on her facebook page, but I have added one below just in case you are not connected with her there.  Check it out.

Eastern Diamondback Rattler

OH yeah…!!!  This snake was less than 15 feet from where salt water was washing up onto the shore.  It seemed odd, but a few feet further up the bank was the typical Florida brush, which the snake could have easily hidden itself in and we would have never seen it.  Lesson today: Watch for snakes while at the beach… they live there too.