Snakes... and geocaching!

[Damo.]

I was looking for a cache in a northern NSW cemetery some years ago when I almost trod on a whip snake. Made for a cracking yarn later on at the pub.

I was wheeling my bike out of the shed as a teenager (on the NSW north coast) when I noticed what I though was a green tree snake lying in on the frame. Picked it up and put it on a nearby branch where it looked very uncomfortable! Thought that was odd it being a tree snake and all so I looked it up later and found out it was actually a yellow-faced whip snake.

[Captain Terror]

My years of caching have produced many more spiders than anything else. Other than the inconveniently placed webs, I occaisionally find one, usually on a cache container when i pull it from a log/hollow/cache hidey hole.

Only one encounter with a snake. After a fair hike through long grass to grab a cache, had to relieve myself, so out came the required utensil and took aim at a tree. Half way through getting the job done, noticed one of those burnt branches moved. The quick flash of red was all I needed to convince me to retract, zip and run.

At another cache in this area (SEQ) I was at a cache and saw a dead possum with those distinctive drop bear claw and tooth marks. They are violent buggers thats for sure.

[gardengorilla]

I am usually fairly careful when I am bushwalking. I carry a hiking stick and beat it on the ground as I walk sometimes. Mostly though if you are caching with kids they make a lot of noise. Just slow them down a bit, let the snakes get out of your way.
Every other story in this thread about drop bears or creatures other than snakes is crap. It's what Aussies do to scare foreigners but they don't know us Canadians are smarter than your average bear.

[Captain Terror]

Every other story in this thread about drop bears or creatures other than snakes is crap. It's what Aussies do to scare foreigners but they don't know us Canadians are smarter than your average bear.

I think you'll find mate, Dropbears are very real. You'll believe us when you see one for yourself.

[grahamf72]

Every other story in this thread about drop bears or creatures other than snakes is crap. It's what Aussies do to scare foreigners but they don't know us Canadians are smarter than your average bear.

Sounds like famous last words to me. People tend to think dropbears aren't real because confirmed sightings are scarce. Main reason for the scarcity of confirmed sightings is that most who have sighted one have become dropbear poop before they could tell their story.

[ruzzelz]

Drop bears are commonly said to be unusually large, vicious, carnivorous creatures that inhabit treetops and attack their prey by dropping onto their heads from above.

That is according to the Internet so it must be true just like well you name it

[bshwckr]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drop_bear
There is a small typo in this article. Where "fictitious" appears, it should read non-fictitious. Other than that, the article is spot on. I never venture too far into the Aussie bush without my screwdriver baseball cap.

[mtbikeroz]

While caching, I have,
- almost stepped on one red-bellied black, but fortunately temperature was about 2º one morning in the ACT mountains in the middle of summer,
- almost stepped on one copperhead, it stayed still while I leaped onto the adjacent log,
- was following the leader in a group, he walked mere millimetres from a curled up brown, it uncurled as I approached about 4m behind the leader, whoa, I had a "walking stick" with with I "fended" it away,
- walking back along a forest footpath trail, a brown slithered less than a metre in front of me, too late, I wacked it with my walking stick, broke its back, it writhed but could not move, I jumped over it and continued, (heart pumping)
- walking along a very ROCKY escarpment / ridge line, an aggressive brown zipped back & forth across the rocks about 3 m in front of me. I stood transfixed for a minute or so while it zipped back & forth (Its skin humming on the rock surface). I wanted to go up that rock face, oh well, I went well around, and came out on top well behind. Skirted the place on the way back,
- Ran over a really big thick brown (body width was thicker than my forearm) and it was a good 3m long, while mountain biking coming back from a cache, at something over 50km/h - saw it - lifted legs up - bump bump - careered on down the hill, eventually stopped, pedalled back - no sign of it,
- again, ran over a small 1m brown on the MTB again on a very rocky fire trail, only saw it at the last moment as I was pedalling up a slight incline, again, legs up - broke its back as I ran over it,
- several times I have been out with other cachers and snakes have slithered between the cyclists while zipping along fire trails,
- I have seen them several times beside fire trails and/or bike paths as I was riding past.

Phew, that's quite a lot, but the main thing is, I keep my eyes on the ground especially in the months Sep - Apr, often carry a walking stick during these months, AND ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS wear THICK GAITERS KNEE HIGH AND STURDY SOLID WALKING BOOTS. - even in semi-suburban Canberra fringe areas.

Don't want to scare you, but snakes are very real, but take sensible precautions.

[Freddo]

New Zealand!! No snakes, no nasty spiders, no ticks, no nasty anything.

[bshwckr]

New Zealand!! No snakes, no nasty spiders, no ticks, no nasty anything.

SANDFLIES!!!!!

[mtbikeroz]

NZ DOES have swooping magpies in October. I know, I found them attracted to me when riding.

AND Sandflies on the West coast of the Sth Island - THEY BITE!

[BigON]

Graphic and frightening evidence of New Zealanders attacked by a Drop Bear.
Be carefull out there and don't forget the Drop Bear repellent, Vegemite.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-WD_Nh_r ... r_embedded

[garnercx]

I accidentally uncovered a hibernating snake while near GZ for the Galileo's Vision geocache.

[rogerw3]

I have met my share of Red Bellied Black and Brown snakes, even once a so called Common Death Adder (never have seen another one) watch out for them they don't move and stay put until you step on them.
I am very careful as I always cache and/or bushwalk solo in the Blue Mountains, and sometimes it is better to be sensible and retreat. As I did once walking on the bush side of the Armco barrier on the bell Line of Roads in the dry grass and spotted 3 young red belly, obviously from a newly hatched clutch which meant there would be more and size does not matter they are as bad as the full grown ones.
I came across this poor bugger of a Diamond Python on the bell Line of Roads near Bell, it came second best from an encounter with a car. They are such beautiful creatures.

[Pirateute]

my two boys 5 and 4 and myself came across a 6 foot brown at Mavel caves central vic on sunday 12 sep. had to wait for it to leave before retriving cach