Reminds me of a hike I did near Camden ME mid-afternoon that took me quickly up a hillside to the top of a cliff with incredible views over a lake.
When I turned around to come back there were literally snakes everywhere. Or at least about every fifty feet, and all of them only on the path back down and nowhere else.
No one else around, no cell reception, and my first time in Maine ever. I assumed they were deadly and so every sun bathing snake meant I had to find a route off the path into the woods and back out. It was rocky and I risked snapping an ankle or, I guessed, treading on a hidden snake. I had to do this about twenty times in total on the way back to the trailhead and it was terrifying.
When I finally got online I found out they were Eastern garter snakes. Primary attack: run away. Secondary attack: spray a bad smell.
When I turned around to come back there were literally snakes everywhere. Or at least about every fifty feet, and all of them only on the path back down and nowhere else.
No one else around, no cell reception, and my first time in Maine ever. I assumed they were deadly and so every sun bathing snake meant I had to find a route off the path into the woods and back out. It was rocky and I risked snapping an ankle or, I guessed, treading on a hidden snake. I had to do this about twenty times in total on the way back to the trailhead and it was terrifying.
When I finally got online I found out they were Eastern garter snakes. Primary attack: run away. Secondary attack: spray a bad smell.